Le Tour Day 7 - The Longest Day (In Distance)

Day 7 of Le Tour de France and we're still moving across the top of France, heading toward the cobblestones of Roubaix on Sunday. The men and their machines are going to earn their day off on Monday, but until then we still have three days of exciting racing to come. 

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Today is the longest day for this year's TdF with 231 km covered. It's rolling topography with only a single Cat 4 hill. It has all of the earmarks of possibly being a boring ride, except for the fact that the sprinters are running out of stages to push through and the mountains loom ahead for next week when the climbers will get their days in the sun (or rain). Weather will definitely play a role as the sprinters bunch together on their ride towards Chartres. 

Dan Martin won a tough stage yesterday, but Tejay van Garderen
came in third in a great race with a tight finish. Congrats to
Dan Martin, though. It was a very hard ride but he pulled it
off. 

As a general overview, Greg Van Avermaet (BMC Racing) still wears the yellow. Today should be another fight between the two main sprinters in this year's Tour - Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Fernando Gaviria (Quick-Step Floors), but with constricted roads, some sharp turns and an uphill finish, anything can happen. The positions of the GC after yesterday's stage have Tejay van Garderen (BMC Racing - USA) in 3rd position. Although that won't hold up by the end of the Tour, it's still nice to see Tejay doing so well this year. 

There are a lot of causes this year - the ocean, education, and
others. Lawson Craddock rides for a personal goal of raising
money to help the infrastructure of his home town, Houston,
Texas. It's why he didn't go home after that horrible crash
on Day 1. So far he's raised more than $40,000 for hurricane
relief for homes and for the Houston Velodrome. 

I have to say, at this point, I'm extremely impressed by Lawson Craddock - USA (EF Education First-Cannondale). He crashed hard on Day 1, breaking his scapula and banging his face up. He just won't give up, though. He's still riding every day, bringing up the back of the pack. Yesterday he came in at position 168 or 170 riders. He wants to ride, wants to be in Le Tour and raise money for others so much that he'll ride through the pain. It's crazy, but I have a deep admiration for him. 

It's Friday and I'm hoping for a better weather day today. Yesterday was beastly hot and humid until the rains came, then the drops fell in sheets and buckets. DH was out front bailing the one window well that's always in danger of flooding. It was NOT a fun time. Enjoy your Friday and Le Tour, I'll be back tomorrow.