Tour de France Stage 19

It may not have looked like it on paper or on TV, but Stage 19 was a critical stage in the 2009 Tour de France. Sandwiched between the final individual time trial yesterday and the monster climb up Mont Ventoux tomorrow, many riders today were looking for ways to recuperate and prepare for the one last major challenge ahead of them.

read more

With all eyes focused squarely on the crucial climb up Mont Ventoux tomorrow, the stage was set for a successful escape to have their way.  But as is often the case at Le Tour, that was not what eventually happened on the way to Aubenas.

Tour tactics: late into a stage race the overall contenders and their support cast will do everything possible to conserve energy.  This is a perfect opportunity for other riders far down on GC to go for a stage win.  The only problem is that by now this is a very large group and they all will be competing very hard in the opening kms to be a part of this select escape.
read more

A message from our sponsors.


Water has many important functions in the body including helping to prevent muscle weakness and sustain energy, which is vital for athletes like Lance Armstrong.  Without the electrolytes found in water, your nerves cannot tell your muscles to contract, leaving you weak and tired. Proper hydration with the clean water  Clear2Go® provides not only reduces muscle weakness but also helps you sustain energy and perform better longer.

read more

Mountain stage – 178km / 110.6mi
Fri, July 24 – starts 1245pm local / 645am ET

Much like the stage where I guaranteed the break would not succeed, I feel equally confident that today it will.  The best situation for all concerned is that a group of riders will get away that is so far down on GC – think 30-45 minutes or more – that the peloton can basically have a "rest day on the road" and wait in anticipation of the guaranteed fireworks tomorrow on Ventoux.

The stage victory chasers will also know this, and the attacks will come literally from the gun and should succeed quickly as the day starts with a Cat 4 effort and then some up-and-down riding before leveling out at 54kms.  I would expect that the peloton would let them have close to 15 minutes time gap, and then close that to a slightly more manageable number, probably half that, on the final ascent up the Cat 2 Col de l'Escrinet.  We may see someone in the Top 10 try a testing run on the last climb, but to be honest that would probably in very poor form, and the race leader's team will set a demanding pace to discourage just such an attempt, too.

Bourgoin-Jallieu
Bourgoin-Jallieu is located near two urban centers at the heart of the Rhône-Alpes region. The town is known for sports, with 72 clubs and sports associations for its 25,000 inhabitants. Famous native sons of Bourgoin-Jallieu include 2000 Olympic champion in boxing Brahim Asloum, and world champion in the light flyweight category, rugby man Stéphane Glas, and the handballer Stéphane Stoecklin. The CS Bourgoin-Jallieu rugby club is the town's flagship team.

Outside of the arena of sports, Bourgoin-Jallieu is also acknowledged for its "intelligent" textiles and is a market leader in the manufacturing of solar energy panels. In the way of cultural influence, the town hosts events like the Electrochoc festival, which celebrates different kinds of electronic music.

One of Bougoin-Jallieu's most interesting monuments is the "Objet Dard," which was created by artist Bertrand Lavier to honor Frédéric Dard, author and town native. The monument was constructed using Dards novels.



Aubenas
Aubenas sits of the edge of a rocky ridge that overlooks the Ardèche Valley.
Visitors come in droves during the summer, when the sunlight lights up the whole town, to explore the city of the Montlaurs. This dynasty reigned over the town from 1084 to 1441, and was vital to economic expansion of Aubenas, as well as the social and material development of its residents.

The Montlaurs' castle towered over Aubenas for more than ten centuries. The town sits next to the Monts d'Ardèche Regional Nature Park, and features a smorgasbord of scents and savors. The weekly market spills its noisy traffic into all of the pedestrian streets every Saturday.

City descriptions written by LIVESTRONG.COM Contributor Charity Scott. read more