So that there are a few less people in the world to stare at me blankly when I talk about cycling, here is the Busy Athlete's Guide to Le Tour.
The Jerseys: What are all the different jerseys about?
- Yellow (Maillot Jaune) - The jersey worn by the overall race leader
- Polka Dot - The jersey worn by the King of the Mountains. The rider who collects the most points at designated places on climbs throughout the tour.
- Green -The jersey worn by the rider who collects the most sprint points throughout the various stages of the race.
The Terminology: What the hell are they talking about?
- Peloton - The main bunch of riders.
- Break - A group of riders who have escaped up the road from the peloton.
- Chase - A group of riders who sit between the peloton and a break (usually chasing the break or being dropped by the breakaway riders).
- Gruppetto - The group of slower riders which often forms as the sprinters and weaker riders get dropped on the difficult mountain stages.
- Drafting - Riders sit in behind the rider in front to shield themselves from the wind and benefit from the reduction in drag that comes with the reduced wind resistance. This can save riders up to 30% in energy expended.
- Echelon - The line that forms as riders try to shelter from a crosswind. Instead of a straight paceline, the riders will form a precise diagonal line across the road away from the prevailing wind.
- Domestique - The soldiers of each team. These are the "bottle bitches" or workers that you'll see going back to the team car to pick up water for the rest of the team. They work to support the senior members of the team who are in contention for the overall win.
- Time Trial - A solo race against the clock. Fastest man wins.
Not all riders are created equal, and you will hear talk about the "strong" teams dominating the race. "Superteams" like Sky and BMC are full of superstars, whilst some of the smaller teams like FDJ and Cofidis (who don't have similar super budgets) tend to develop younger, unknown talents. It's not unusual to find a team that has numerous "leaders" who are employed to chase results in different stages. Sky for example, has Mark Cavendish who will chase wins in the flat "sprint" stages, hoping to claim the Green Jersey. Bradley Wiggins, also on the Sky team, will chase the General Classification, or overall win. On the flat stages, the Sky team will protect Wiggins and Cavendish, shielding them from danger and keeping them out of the wind. As they get nearer to the end and the pace picks up, a lead out "train" will form with the faster Sky riders trying to assist Cavendish in taking the win. As the mountain stages arrive, Cavendish will drift off into the Gruppetto whilst the team works to help Wiggins get to the top of the mountains in the best possible position. The domestiques that work for the team leaders, will often never win a stage, but find their own brand of glory in putting every ounce of effort into helping their team get a result.
The Contenders: Who to watch
- Cadel Evans (BMC) - Last year's winner. Cadel was the first Australian to win the Tour. He comes to this year's tour in good form.
- Bradley Wiggins (Sky) - One of the favourites in 2011, before he crashed out. Wiggins has won several big races in 2012, and with his strong team, he is considered the favourite for this year's Tour.
- Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Barracuda) - The winner of the 2012 Giro D'Italia, Hesjedal has proven his ability to climb in the high mountains and is a real threat to the Wiggins/Evans pair of favourites.
- Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas-Cannondale) - The Italian chose not to ride this year's Giro so that he could come into the Tour fresh. He has great support in Ivan Basso and Peter Sagan. Will be with the leaders when we get to the mountains.
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