Ahead of tomorrow's big race, I thought I'd post these excellent video, covering the 2010 & 2011 Tour of Flanders from the perspective of the (then) Cervelo TestTeam (now Garmin-Barracuda, keep up!).

It's part of a fantastic series of videos, well worth a watch. Enjoy!

2010:

2011:

 

 

 

 

So we're a few days into the excitement of Paris-Nice, and suddenly another UCI World Tour event rears its head; The Tirreno-Adriatico, or 'Race of the two Seas'.

I know you're probably trying conceive how one body of water can race another, but please don't be too literal, because this race is actually in-between two seas; making its way from the Tyrrenian to the Adriatic coast of Italy.

 

The Stages

The Tirreno-Adratico is one stage shorter than its calendar rival, Paris-Nice, but like the French race, it starts and finishes with short time-trials (the first being a team time-trial).

Between the skinsuits there's a pretty healthy variety of stages, which has encouraged a real range of riders. Just like Paris-Nice, if you think of it as a mini-Grand Tour and you can't go too far wrong.

Stages 2, 3 and the flat ones, so unless a breakaway can stay ahead of the peloton, it's likely we'll see the sprinters battle it out. Look out for the Cavendish-Greipel match up, one that's likely to mature nicely over the season.

Stages 4, 5 and 6 are likely to suit the climbers (maybe 6 less so, but it won't be for a sprinter - maybe an all rounder) and if there's one finish you'll want to watch it's the end of stage 4, where the riders have to tackle narrow, steep and cobbled terrain to reach the finish in Cheiti town square.

 

The Jerseys

Last year's winner, Cadel Evans, wearing the blue jersey (Credit: AP)

As with most tours, you enter the Tirreno-Adratico to win, or help someone else win one of 4 main jerseys...

Blue Jersey - Worn by the rider with the lowest overall time. As with Paris-Nice, time bonuses are available for those who do well in the intermediate and stage finish sprints

Red Jersey - The sprint, or points race is awarded a red jersey in the Tirreno-Adratico. Points are awarded to the first 4 over the line in the intermediate sprint, and the first 10 over the line at the end. 

Green Jersey - Maybe this was just done to confuse Tour de France fans, but the leader in the King of the Mountains competition is awarded a green jersey. Unlike other races, climbs in the Tirreno-Adratico are not given different classifications, which means its the same amount of points awarded to the first 5 riders over the line.

White Jersey - phew, back with familiar colours... as with Paris-Nice, TdF and pretty much every tour, the young rider (under 25) with the lowest overall time wins the white jersey. 

 

The History

Dino Zandegu, 1st winner of the Tirreno-Adriatico / convicted caterpillar smuggler

I'll admit, this is a difficult one, I've not exactly got Tirreno-Adratico facts coming out of my ears... but the internet is a wonderful thing, and a quick scout around (including the brilliantly translated race guide) led me to these interesting facts:

- This year is the 47th Tirreno-Adriatico, perhaps predictably, the nation with the biggest number of winners is Italy, with Italians winning 21 times. The first winner was Dino Zandegu, a man with quite impressive eyebrows (sorry, that's a new low).

- The rider with the most ever wins is the Belgian, Roger de Vlaeminck, whose 6 victories came consecutively between 1972 and 1977

- Recently, Tirreno-Adriatico is becoming more and more popular with riders who just want to avoid Paris-Nice. Being a bit further south, the weather is a little less likely to give the poor chaps a cold.

Stage 1

Gustav Larsson (Credit: Getty Images) & Bradley Wiggins (Credit: BBC)

Weather is so often a deciding factor in bicycle races; wind, rain, or shine, professional bike riders are always affected by the conditions and their teams will always have an eye on the weather forecast. 

So, as the rain started to come down mid-way through Stage 1 of Paris-Nice (9.4km time-trial), the favourites, all scheduled to start towards the end, must have written off their chances of coming close to the 11:19 set by Gustav Larsson (Vaconsolieil-DCM). After all, Larsson is no TT slouch (2nd in both the Olympics and World TT Championships), and his time, whilst not perfect, was strong. 

Obviously Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky), a big favourite for the overall race, had other ideas. Whilst the Brit didn't quite manage to beat Larsson's time (arriving 1 second behind the Sweed), this is a huge result for him, especially considering his 24 second gap over Tony Martin, the TT 2011 TT World Champion and winner of Paris-Nice in 2011. 

Levi Leipheimer (Omega-Pharma Quick-Step - OPQS) came in third, which, although a good result for the American, will put him in a difficult position as OPQS will need work out whether it's him or Tony Martin (last year's winner) they support. After that, it's a bit of a list of casualties; Alejandro Valverde, Andy & Frank Schleck and Andreas Kloden have all lost time to Wiggins, and will need to do some serious attacking to get it back. 

Perfectly poised...

 

Stage 2

Tom Boonen (Credit: Washington Post)

I don't hate much, but I do hate the wind. Even today I was out on my bike and as I turned out of the shelter of the woods, I was exposed and battered. So I can't imagine what it's like for riders on a stage like today's stage, which saw the exposed riders battered by a headwind to start, and strong crosswinds to finish. 

Like many others, I expected the stage (185km of flatness from Mantes-La-Jolie to Orleans) to follow the traditional flat stage format; a lengthly break, hard work by the peloton to reel them in, and a bunch sprint to finish, with all the main contenders safely carried over the line. 

After a fairly mundane (but painful) start to the stage, the fun and games started when the crosswinds hit and around 30 riders got free from the peloton. However, unlike a normal break, this group contained quite a few of the main contenders (including Wiggins, Leipheimer, Chavanel...), and left behind some others (including Larsson and Martin). 

The conditions threatened (storm clouds seemed to be constantly chasing the peloton) and the cold was obviously getting to the riders, who were decked out with long sleeves and trousers, but there were no further distractions, and the gap between the groups just grew.

Bradley Wiggins, not content with the possibility of gaining the overall lead also lept out of the group to win the intermediate sprint, but the real action was waiting at the finish line, as whilst the leading pack were depleated, there were a few sprinters likely to battle for the line. It was Tom Boonen (OPQS) who won out though, pipping Jose Rojas to the post. 

However, whilst Boonen will be happy, Paris-Nice overall is not a race for sprinters, and you have to say that the real story today was Bradley Wiggins, who now has a 6 second lead over Levi Leipheimer, and who has seen the weather really disrupt more of his challengers. 

 

Stage 3

Valverde Wins (Credit: AFP)

I'll start with the finish...

As I glugged my coffee and took in stage three's denouement on Twitter (best I could do having returned to work... sigh), I couldn't find anyone happy with Alejandro Valverde's win today.

I mean, it wasn't like it was unexpected... Valverde is one of only a few cyclists who effectively combines sprinting and climbing, and the steep finish to today's 194km stage played right into his hands (as it did in the Tour Down Under on Old Willunga Hill)

So what was it... two things from what I can tell:

- Valverde cheated, he was banned, but he still cheated and in an emerging culture of not cheating, it'sa hard pill to swallow. 

- Simon Gerrans almost beat him with an epic ride to the line, riding past 20 others, only to lose out in a photo finish. It would have been nice for Gerrans, and his newly formed, Australian, GreenEDGE team to win, especially in that manner.

But Valverde it was, and the 10 bonus seconds he got for winning the stage has put him back in the mix, just 20 seconds behind overall leader Wiggins, who's main contribution today was certainly not one of colour cordination...

Wiggins, too many colours (Credit: Reuters)

Before all the hilly-sprinty (c) action, the stage was marked by a 3 man breakaway; Morkov (Saxo-Bank), Engoulvent (Saur-Sojasun) and Curvers (1t4i), who built up a lead of almost 5 minutes. However, with teams like Sky & Movistar looking to control the race for their riders, the Musketeers were doomed.

Bradley Wiggins retains the lead and Levi Leipheimer remains at 6 seconds from the Brit. It's Wiggins for me...

 

Stage 4

Meersman Celebrates

So, stage 4 has been and gone, and the Paris-Nice is about half-way to the sun.

If this were any other sport, it is about now that I would expect my fellow Brits to bow out.. 'thank you, but no thankyou. We've enjoyed the experience, but it looks a little too much like one of us may win...'

But this is cycling, and with the help of Dave Brailsford's increasingly epic Team Sky, I'm beginning to feel like Bradley Wiggins could win this race.

But, before I get over-excited, let's have a look at today's stage; a bumpy 178km from Brive-la-Gaillarde to Rodez.

Although hilly, the stage was always likely to come down to the final kilometres, and the job for Wiggins, Leipheimer and all the other GC contenders was to stay near the front and out of trouble. Easier said than done when the road in is littered with street furniture. Whilst the afforementioned did manage to escape, Tour Down Under winner Simon Gerrans wasn't so lucky, colliding with another rider after he clipped a traffic island.

At 2km to go, Andreas Kloden (last years runner up) shot off the front of the peloton. Although not in contention overall, the German clearly fancied is chances at more Paris-Nice success, and as the group passed under the Flamme Rouge (1km to go), he was still in front. It was not to be though, and he was swallowed up, leaving the race to a sprint finish.

It was the 26 year old Belgian, Gianni Meersman (Lotto-Beliso) who won it on the line, continuing his good form from the Tour of Algarve, where he he won the first stage.

However, putting stage wins and spectacular crashes to one side, the day again belongs to Bradley Wiggins who kept out of trouble and even managed to finish in the top 10, protecting his lead. However, tomorrow's is Bradley's real test, maintain his lead over the hilliest of the hills and we'll be looking at the first British winner of Paris-Nice since Tom Simpson.

 

Stage 5

Westra Wins (Credit: Getty)

Stage 4 at Paris-Nice belongs to Richie Porte. He didn't win, or breakaway, or fall rear first into barbed wire. However, he was clearly the guy who shaped today's stage.

Today's stage was always going to be tough with the 1759km between Onet-le-Chateau and Mende taking in 3 Category 1 climbs, the last of which was a brutal 3km to the finish line.

The prior to the final climb the highlight of the stage was a four man breakaway. Whilst it gained some decent ground, but you felt the break was more for the sponsors than a stage win, and Frederik Veuchelen (Vacansoleil-DCM), the final escapee was eventually caught at the bottom of the final climb.

Enter Porte, signed this year by Team Sky, he took on the role of assistant to team mate and Yellow Jersey holder, Bradley Wiggins. It was clear his job was to protect Wiggins right up to the end & stop anyone else attacking. However, he rode at such a brutal and consistent pace that in doing so he dropped most of the peloton, including Sylvian Chavanel who was placed 4th prior to the start of the race and a real contender for the overall win.

It must have been horrible, and what's incredible (well, for anyone who isn't familiar with pro-cycling) is he did it all for Team Sky and Wiggins. No stage win, no jersey, just for the team. Awesome.

So, with around 1.5km to go, Porte drifed off down the timesheets, and left Wiggins to attack. Attack he did, however, it was probably a little early, and as Bradley slowed, Lieuwe Westra (Vacansoleil-DCM) took to the front and finished it off (albeit with a little showboating), beating Valverde and Wiggins to the line by 6 seconds.

Those 6 seconds, along with 10 bonus seconds for winning the stage have now put Westra in 2nd place overall. Not too shabby, but the Yellow Jersey is still with Wiggins, and with a team like Sky to protect him over the next 2 days and his epic form in the time-trial, I'd say he's looking a good bet.

 

Stage 6

Sanchez beats Voigt (Credit: EPA)

One of my cycling highlights of 2011 was sitting in a French cafe watching the Alpe D'Huez stage of the Tour de France. Having crashed the day before, I should have been sulky, however, I was, and the reason was the chap sitting next to us; a huge, cigar smoking Spanish man and his (surely long suffering) wife.

Alfonso (I didn't actually catch his name) wasted no time in trying to convince us that Alberto Contador was going to win the Tour (he was well out of the race by then) and would stand and shout 'Samu, Samu' every time King of the Mountains contender Sammy Sanchez came into shot. His wife just smiled at us sympathetically, a smile she had clearly practiced over the years.

Anyway, it was a fantastic expereince, and I thought of Alfonso (and anyone near him) today as Sammy's namesake and fellow Spaniard, Luis Leon Sanchez (Rabobank) won the stage in a two way battle with the hugely popular Jens Voigt (RadioShak-Nissan). In fact, if my Twitter feed was anything to go by, Alfonso was probably a lone voice today too - everyone was willing Voigt, the 40 (!) year old German to cross the line first, but he just couldn't do it, leaving 2009 Paris-Nice winner Sanchez to take his first win of the season.

The stage itself (179km from Suze-la-Rousse to Sisteron) was a little less hilly than Stage 5, and didn't finish with a climb, meaning no-one was really sure how it would end.   

This uncertainty made for a tense opening, as a largish group of 26 riders (unconventionally including big names such as Wiggins and Tony Martin), looked to break away. However, the big group didn't stay together for long, and the break eventually settled to 7 riders, which was whittled down further until, with about 10km to go, it was just Voigt and Sanchez.

You me and Alfonso know the rest.

Whilst both will be happy to stay away from the peloton (not by much in the end), they weren't placed highly enough in the standings at the beginning of the day to threaten Wiggins or any of the other contenders.

So, it's status quo going into to tomorrow's stage, and if anyone's going to threaten Wiggins they'll probably have to attack on the Col de Vence and it'll be well worth a watch, whatever dodgy Flemmish internet feed you using.

 

Stage 7

De Gendt Wins (Credit: Getty)

Stage 7, the penultimate of this year's Paris-Nice, was a tale of two riders. For Thomas De Gendt, things couldn't have gone better, and for Levi Leipheimer, it's difficult to imagine a more disasterous stage. 

It's not often that a rider steals the show like De Gendt did today. Don't get me wrong, it's happened but unless you get some help, things need to be just right. So they were for De Gendt, who, alongside Estonian Reim Taaramae (Confidis), rode off the front of the peloton at about 50km into the 219km stage.

Neither rider being a serious contender for the Yellow Jersey, the group just let them go and they gained an advantage of over 10 minutes, an advantage which De Gendt held all the way to the finish at Nice, having dropped Taaramae on the Col de Vence (a tough category 1 climb, and the last of the tour). 

It would be fair to say that Levi Leipheimer didn't have such a good day at the office. At the start of the day the American was in 3rd place overall, and only 10 seconds off Bradley Wiggins. This was a manageable gap, but ultimately one which Leipheimer managed to erode, spectacularly, by crashing, not once, but three times.

The first two crashes were fairly innocuous, but left Leipheimer and his team with a lot of chasing to catch up with the peloton. It was their enthusiasm in doing so, combined with an unfortunately placed police motorcycle which capped off his nightmare day. One of Leipheimer's teamates went into the obstruction, and Leipheimer went into his teamate. A disaster, and one which left them 7 minutes behind Wiggins. 

So, as the peloton rumbled in, around 10 minutes after De Gendt, only one minor threat remained for Bradley Wiggins and Team Sky, who had to make sure that Westra didn't cross the line in third place, giving him 4 crucial bonus seconds. Wiggins wasn't to worry though, Westra, crossed the line safely in the bowels of the peloton, leaving him 6 seconds behind the Brit. Both are excellent in the time-trial, which means that tomorrow is likely to be close, and a fantastic finale.

 

Stage 8

Bradley Wiggins and Podium Girls  (Credit: Getty)

To answer your question; I don't know, I just don't know. I mean, this guy doesn't know for sure, and he seems to know everything about bike racing.

Today's stage was the final of Paris-Nice 2012 and whilst only 9.6km in length, it was a real sting in the tail of the race. I mean, a time-trial is hard enough, but a time-trial that just goes up, with sections of over 7% isn't pleasant.

The day started with Bradley Wiggins in the lead, but only by 6 seconds, from noted time-trialer Lieuwe Westre (Vacansoleil-DCM). All others were pretty much out of it; Valverde was close in terms of time but unlikely to challenge Wiggins' time-trial ability, and all other time-trialers, like Ton Martin were way down the General Classification.

So, Wiggins and Westre it was, and after both riders had crossed the intermediate part of the course, Wiggins was 2 seconds slower than Westre, reducing his overall lead to 4 seconds. So when Westre just improved over the second part of the course, and  smashed the previous best time by 30 seconds, Wiggins must have been nervous.

However, there's usually an advantage going last, and Wiggins, knowing Westre had set a cracking time, raced up the final part of the course to gain 4 seconds back and win the stage by 2 seconds, and Paris-Nice by 8 seconds. 

So, back to your question. Will Bradley Wiggins win the Tour de France? I don't know, but after today I'm pretty sure he can.

 

Paris, nice (Credit BBC)

Following it's initial jaunt Down Under, the UCI World tour picks up with Paris-Nice - 'The Race to the Sun' - so it seems like a good time to pick up Maillot, my little attempt at blogging the world of bike racing.

Paris-Nice is not a nod to 90s British classic, the Fast Show, nor is it a minimalist approach to advertising the French capital, it is in fact, a bike race... From Paris, to Nice... I bet you feel silly now.

 

The Stages

The race takes place over 8 stages, and is bookended by two short (around 9k) time-trials, the second of which is a bit of a beast (all uphill and mostly between 3-9% in gradient).

The stages between, as you might expect, are a bit of a mixed bag. Increasingly hilly as the race goes on, there's something for everyone; stages 2 and maybe 3 will are likely to end in a bunch sprint, whilst stages 4-7 will suit those who climb. 

To my delight, the final climb of stage 7 is one I've personally tackled (there's not too many!); the Col de Vence, a fairly short, but relentless section up from the pretty town of Vence.

However, a word of caution for the pure climbers is that the stage finishes with a long descent into Nice, so if any strong descenders can stick close to the climbers, you never know (I'm thinking Thor Hushovd in 2011's Tour de France). 

 

The Jerseys

The Tour Down Under introduced me to a cadre of interesting new jerseys, but I'm not sure how many more my poor memory can take... Obviously motivated by similar concerns, Amaury Sport Organization (ASO) - who also put on the Tour de France - took over Paris-Nice in 2002 and gradually phased in the TdF jerseys, until complete parity in 2008.

Yellow Jersey - it's the big one, the leaders jersey, worn by the individual with the lowest accumulated time. Like the Tour Down Under, there are time bonuses available, but only for the sprints, and they aren't likely to propel any sprinters into the overall lead. 

Green Jersey - also known as the point or sprint jersey, is all about who crosses the finish and intermediate sprint lines first. Well actually, you don't have to finish first, there's points available for the first 20 riders to cross the lines, but it's likely that the person with the most points will have won a stage or two. 

Polka-dot jersey - awarded to the best climber. As you can see from the stage profiles above, some of the hills have category numbers next to them. Crossing these summits in the first few is how you win polka dot (or king of the mountains) points. 

White Jersey - Think of it more as a very pale yellow, as the White Jersey is essentially the Yellow Jersey, but for anyone under 25 (strictly, born after 1st Jan, 1987). Not me then.

 

The History

Sean Kelly (Credit PresseSports)

Aside from my (factually dubious) account of the Paris-Nice takeover by ASO, the week long race is steeped in history. Inrng has written a fantastic piece on the race's history which I certainly can't trump, but here's some interesting facts about the race anyway:

- Like the Tour de France, Paris Nice was initially conceived to sell newspapers. It was Albert Lejune, owner of Le Petit Journal (based in Paris) and Le Petit Nicois (based in Nice), who pioneered the event. 

- The first leaders jersey was Azure and Gold in colour (representing the mediterranean). Since then the leaders jersey has been; green, yellow and orange, white, yellow and white and finally yellow!

- Before ASO took on Paris-Nice it was owned and organised by Laurent Fignon, twice winner of the Tour de France. Fignon passed away in 2010. 

- Initially Paris-Nice was not a particularly hilly race. This is because it was intended to lure track cyclists onto the road, and I don't think they could be doing with the bumpy mountain passes! The race was actually initially called '6 days on the road'.

- Finally, Paris-Nice has some serious cyclists on it's honour board. Sean Kelly (Ireland) is the most successful rider in it's history, winning 7 (consecutive!) stages. Other names that jump out are Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Miguel Indurain and Alberto Contador, not too shabby!

Last summer some friends and I went on a Pie Ride.

In short... ride somewhere, eat pie ride back.

There’s no reason why summer should have all the fun…indeed, many
believe that the pie, as a principle, is better suited to chillier
months.

A picnic is probably taking it a little bit too far, so this time
we’re off to the Fox House Inn, a proper pub near Hathersage, with
proper fires and proper pies.

The route is about 12 miles in total, with a steady climb up Ecclesall
Road to the pub, followed by a coast back down to Sheffield. We’ll be
taking it nice and easy, so anyone can join in, but you can always
breakaway if you fancy your chances.

Here’s the details, would love it if you can come.

The Date: Sunday 12th February

The Time: 1:15pm to leave at 1:30pm

The Place: Hunters Bar roundabout, Sheffield (by the entrance to
Endcliffe Park)

What to Bring: Some money to buy pies (other food), and all the other
kit you’d bring on a longish cold cycle (comment below for any advice)

Aside from consuming vast quantities of pie, there will be other risks
associated with the Pie Ride. By coming along, you are taking all
responsibility for anything that may happen to you on the day.

Actual real life has necessitated a bit of a delay in reviewing stages 5 and 6. Oh well, better late than never...

Stage 5

Sunday brought stage 5, for many the most anticipated of the Tour Down Under, since, for the first time in it's (relatively short) history, the tour would be finishing atop a hill... No ordinary hill, Old Willunga Hill. The stage itself 

Stage 5 Profile (Credit: Santos Tour Down Under)

The day was littered with breakaways, which team Movistar were instrumental in reeling in. One such break tried their luck on the first ascent of Old Willunga. However, team Movistar were too strong and reeled in all bar one, plucky fellow, Nathan Haas (Garmin-Barracuda).

Movistar's perserverence in chasing the breaks meant that their man, Alejandro Valverde (of 2 year drug suspension fame) was protected and primed for the second ascent of Old Willunga, and as riders dropped off he was left alongside only Simon Gerrans (GreenEdge) with 200 metres to go. 

Unusually, Valverde is noted as a fine sprinter as well as climber, which ultimately proved the edge as he emerged from Gerrans' back wheel around the last bend to beat him to the line. 

Valverde Beats Gerrans to the Line (Credit: Santos Tour Down Under)

 

 

 

The Tour Down Under is one of the only tours on the circuit where pure  sprinters have a shot at winning the General Classification. Five out of the six stages in and around Adelaide are well set for the  beef-cakes, and adding the time bonuses into the mix, it's a real opportunity for a sprinter to enhance their CV.

After today's stage, a relatively short (130km), flat jaunt from  Norwood (in Adelaide) to Tanunda (north east of the city) you've got to feel that Andre Greipel has missed his opportunity for the Ochre (overall leaders) Jersey. 

Stage 4 profile (Credit: Santos Tour Down Under)

After around 100km of a stage that looked like a contender for the most boring so far, the peloton split on the short (but steep) Menglers hill, leaving 50 riders out front, and importantly, Andre Greipel in the slower group (not quite an autobus).

The hill was followed by an undulating descent to Tanuda, meaning it was unlikely the group would be caught again, and leaving those sprinters in the large break away group to fight for first.

The eventual winner was the veteran Oscar Freire (Katusha), who is not exactly a stranger to winnng (1 green jersey and three world championships amongst many other victories). A new wind for Freire's racing career must be especially welcome since he's spend much of the last few years trying to overcome breathing difficulties (um... geddit?).

Freire Crosses the Line (Credit: Santos Tour Down Under)

After today's events, Martin Kohler (BMC) has re-taken the overall lead, but he'll surely be wary of Michael Matthews the Australian youngster from Raobank, as the group tackle Old Willunga Hill twice tomorrow. I have to say, I'm looking forward to hearing about the most exciting day's racing so far.

One of the tweets that stood out to me as I drearily caught up with events Down Under this morning was a tweet from (serial tweeter) Mark Cavendish...

'Looked a good sprint in #TourDownUnder. Andre Greipel looks proper lean. I don't reckon 2x Willunga Hill will be a problem for him'.

So Greipel won again then, and at the Tour Down Under he's laying down his credentials to be Cav's number one challenger this year. Cav though will take heart from the fact that the man across the line third was Team Sky's Edvald Boasson Hagen, who will surely have a role supporting him in the big races this season.

Anyway, enough SEO... Today's stage was 135km from Unley to McLaren Vale. A shorter stage than yesterday, but one that was affected by strong crosswinds as the course followed the coast northwards, towards Adelaide.

Stage 3 Profile (Credit: Santos Tour Down Under)

Again, as with most stages this tour (aside from the 5th), there wasn't too much to get the climbers in the group excited (there was a notable bump halfway as the riders went over Mount Compass, but it wasn't the kind of hill to stop sprinters). 

A group of 3 riders broke away in the early stages; Eduard Vorganov (Katusha), Kan Bakelants (Radioshack-Nissan-Trek) and Thomas De Gendt
(Vaconsoleil-DCM), and were joined a little while later by Matthew Brammeier (Omega Pharma-Quickstep).

Learning from yesterday's epic ride by Will Clarke, the peloton monitored the group tightly, only allowing them to travel 5 minutes ahead before the chase began in earnest and the four riders were caught (Brammeier tried his luck again, but one man so rarely succeeds against the peloton), leaving the race poised for a sprint finish.

Andre Greipel (Credit: Santos Tour Down Under)

You know the rest... Greipel, led out perfectly by his team, won pretty convincingly and re-took his place at the top of the leaderboard (thank you confusing time-bonus system), trailed at 8 seconds by yesteday's master tactician Martin Kohler.