Smitten by the Tour de France? This site is for those of us who stand on the outside looking in. It gets past the techno-babble and opens up the heart of this great cycling event--or is that "metaphor for life?"--to the rest of us. Enjoy the ride!
Tour de France - a/k/a "Grand Tour," "Grand Boucle"
Yellow Jersey - jersey worn by the overall race leader, the rider with the lowest time; in French - "maillot jaune"; a/k/a "golden fleece," "Mellow Johnny"
Green Jersey - jersey worn by the top sprinter or points leader; in French - "maillot vert"; points awarded for designated sprints during each stage and at the finish line
Polka-dot Jersey - white with red polka-dots jersey worn by the top mountain climber; in Frenh - "maillot pois"; a/k/a "King of the Mountains"; points awarded for the first riders at the crest of any categorized peak
White Jersey - jersey worn by the best-placed rider no more than 25 years old
Stage - a single-day course; there are 21 stages (racing days) in the Tdf
Peloton - the main group of cyclists riding together
Attack the peloton - one or more cyclists launching an effort to move ahead of the peloton and try win the stage on a solo or small group effort
Escapees - the riders who succeed in their attack on the peloton, riding ahead in a breakaway effort to win the stage apart from the peloton
Breakaway - another way to describe a successful "attack" by "escapees"
Staying clear - describes "escapees" on a "breakaway" who continue to maintain a lead over the peloton; they "stay clear" of the group
Reel in / chase down - the peloton picks up speed and begins to gradually close the time gap between "escapees" and the peloton
On the point - the leading rider of the peloton or a small group of riders; the cyclist on the point is doing hard work, taking the wind, setting the pace, while he creates a slipstream or draft for his teammates or other riders to follow in with relative ease
Drafting - multiple cyclists riding in a line, so as to have the benefit of the wind break and pacing created by the leading rider in the group
Wheel sucker - a rider who takes advantage of your draft but does not take a turn in front of you on a breakaway or draft line
Bonking - running out of energy amid a critical part of a stage; a/k/a "hit the wall"
Suffering - suffering
Domestique - team riders who work for the advantage of the designated team leader, sacrificing their own chances to win the race or a stage
Mule - a rider designated to fetch food, water and supplies for the other members of the team while riding
Categorized climbs - mountain climbs are categorized (abbreviated "Cat") for degree of difficulty. Categories are determined by length of the climb, height to be climbed, and degree of gradient. In lay terms, a Cat 4 is hard; Cat 3 is harder; Cat 2 is more difficult; Cat 1 is most difficult; HC is means, literally, "beyond categorization," or incredibly difficult, usually a mountain at or over 5,000 feet above sea level
Feed zone - a designated part of the course in which riders may eat, usually at least 50 km after the start but not less than 20 km from the end of the stage; race etiquette provides that no rider may attack or gain advantage over the peloton during a designated feed zone.
More to come
21 teams
9 riders per team
189 riders at the start
A Prologue + 20 day-long stages
Distance: 3,600 km (2240 mi)
Avg speed: 40+ km (25+ mph)
9 flat stages
4 medium mountain stages
5 mountain stages
3 mountain-top finishes
22 Category 1, 2, and HC (highest category) mountains
2 individual time trials (116 km total, including Prologue)
No team trial this year
2 rest days
Longest stage: 239.5 km (Stage 17, July 20)
1st year: 1903
Years raced: 93
Most wins by a rider: 7 (Lance Armstrong)
15 million roadside spectators this year
Calorie input/output per stage: 9,000
David Zabriskie after winning Stage 1: "It's amazing, unbelievable...I have no idea how long I can keep (the maillot jaune). I didn't think I could win but it feels great...it's an amazing accomplishment for me; I never, ever expected this to happen. It's turning out well for me."
Jan Ullrich on being passed by Lance Armstrong during the Stage 1 individual time trial: "I rode flat out; I gave all I had... I would have liked to have ridden better, and gave it all - it wasn't a nice feeling when he passed me. I'm down over it at the moment, but the Tour lasts three weeks. We'll see what's in it in time."
Lance Armstrong on being required to pull on the Yellow Jersey at the official start line of Stage 5 after he attempted to NOT wear it in respect for David Zabriskie, who lost the maillot jaune due to a freak crash in Stage 4: "It was very simple, really. (Tour de France Race director) Jean Marie LeBlanc said 'if you don't wear the maillot jaune today, you won't start tomorrow. What are you going to do...I wanted to try and do the right thing, but I understand that (the Tour) has an obligation to sponsors. People might drive for hours to wait by the side of the road to see the maillot jaune."
Robbie McEwen on his chances of winning the Green Jersey competition after being penalized for apparent head-butting in Stage 3 but bouncing back to win Stages 5 & 7: âI very much doubt that I can still win [the green jersey]. I donât need the green jersey to know that Iâm the best sprinter. Iâm not going to concentrate on it anymore; Iâm just going to go for stage wins.â
As the TdF progresses, I will nominate riders who demonstrate "guts" even though "glory" may evade them. The top ten will be recognized in my 2nd Annual TdF "Guts" Awards' (no money at stake...what is mere money compared to being recognized for having "guts?"
2005 TdF "Guts" Award winner: Alexandre Vinokourov - The Khazak attacked relentlessly throughout the mountain stages, challenging the top contenders time after time. Vino defines aggressiveness in professional cycling today