Cycling in Yorkshire
Cycling in Yorkshire
Stage 7 of the Tour de France 2022 is the first mountain test, although it's only a final climb rather than a full day of ascending. It's 176km long. The last 7km are at an average gradient of 8.7%, up to La Super Planche des Belles Filles at an altitude of 1140m.
This could be the day when we see which of the GC contenders are in the best shape, even if the time gaps are small.
| Date | Friday 8th July 2022 |
|---|---|
| Stage classification | Mountain |
| Distance | 176.3km |
| Intermediate sprint | Gérardmer |
| Climbs | Col de Grosse Pierre (Cat. 3) Col des Croix (Cat. 3) La Super Planche des Belles Filles (Cat. 1) |
There's an annoying video map of Stage 7:
This is the profile of Stage 7 Tour de France 2022:
| Caravan | Fast Schedule | Slow Schedule | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start Time (départ fictif) | 1105 | 1305 | 1305 |
| Start Time (départ réel) | 1115 | 1315 | 1315 |
| Intermediate Sprint (101.2km) | 1343 | 1530 | 1543 |
| Penultimate Climb at Col des Croix (136.1km) | 1435 | 1617 | 1635 |
| Finish Line (176.3km) | 1543 |
1717 | 1743 |
Stage 7 starts in Tomblaine.
Tomblaine is a suburb of Nancy, separated from the city by the river Meurthe (Wikipedia). It's in the north east of France.
One theory about the origin of the name Tomblaine is that the Celtic people here were called 'les Alains', and they were beaten in battle by the Romans. Thereafter, the location became known as 'Tombeau des Alains', or tomb of the Alans.
The idea isn't given much credence by Wikipedia, which says it's a fantasy. Still, one element of it may be correct: Tomblaine may derive from tomb or tumulus.
The football stadium where AS Nancy-Lorraine play, the Stade Marcel Picot, is in Tomblaine. Michel Platini started his career here, playing for Nancy for seven seasons.
Tomblaine was the start point for a stage to La Planche des Belles Filles in 2012 (when Froome won the stage). It also hosted the start of a stage in 2014.
Specialities of Nancy include Nancy macarons, created by two nuns in 1793, and Mirabelle plums.
Leaving Tomblaine, the riders head south east along the Meurthe via Art-sur-Meurthe and Dombasle-sur Meurthe. They pass Léomont Hill, which passed between French and German forces 8 times at the start of World War I. They continue to Lunéville.
The Château de Lunéville dates from 1702 and was built for the Dukes of Lorraine. The Treaty of Lunéville between Napoléon's France and the Austrian Empire was signed in the chateau in 1801.
The peloton then goes south to Gerbéviller (where the C18th castle belongs to the House of Arenberg), and Rambervillers.
The route continues south towards the Parc Naturel Régional des Ballons des Vosges. The riders go through Sainte-Hélène on the way to Bruyères.
The Battle of Bruyères took place in October 1944, towards the end of World War II. It was a fight between the Germans and an American corps of Japanese-Americans from Hawaii and California. In memory of the battle, Bruyères is twinned with Honolulu.
Now the race follows the course of the Vologne river upstream to Gérardmer.
Gérardmer has attracted tourists since the 1600s. In the 1800s it got its nickname, 'the Pearl of the Vosges'. The Nazis burnt 85% of the town before leaving in November 1944.
From Gérardmer, the race is into wooded mountain terrain. The riders tackle the first categorised climb of the day, the Col de la Grosse Pierre, 3.1km at 6.4%, Category 3.
It's downhill to La Bresse. Traditionally an isolated mountain village, the local people are now involved in tourism and renewable energy.
The lac des Corbeaux is a glacial lake near la Bresse, now used for hydro-electric power.
The descent continues to Cornimont; it gets its name from an auroch horn lost by Charlemagne here while hunting, according to the legend. Then there's the uncategorised climb of the Col du Ménil, and a descent via Le Ménil to Le Thillot.
Clément Noel, superstar slalom skier, is from Le Ménil and learned to ski at the small resort of Ventron.
After Le Thillot, the next categorised climb starts: the Col des Croix, 3.2km at 6.3%, Category 3.
There's then a descent by the river Ognon to Belonchamp. Immediately north west of the road taken by the Tour de France is the Plateau de Mille Etangs.
The lakes here are glacial in origin, and in the Middle Ages monks used them for fish-farming. The area is sometimes called the Little Finland of the Vosges.
From Belonchamp, the road rises to Fresse, where the Fountain of Saint Barbara cures eye diseases - a handy way of saving on medical bills. It continues uphill to the uncategorised Col de la Chevestraye (611m).
Next it's down to Plancher-les-Mines, famous for its silver mines, glass-making, and a funfair museum.
Plancher-les-Mines is the springboard for the ascent of La Super Planche des Belles Filles.
The Tour came to la Planche des Belles Filles for the first time in 2012, on Stage 7. Chris Froome won the stage, and Bradley Wiggins took the yellow jersey.
This is very end of the 2012 race on video.
On Stage 10 of the 2014 Tour de France, Vincenzo Nibali won here; on Stage 5 of the 2017 race, Fabio Aru was the victor; and on Stage 6 of the 2019 Tour, Dylan Teuns crossed the line first.
Most recently Tadej Pogacar won a mountain time trial on Stage 20 of the Tour de France 2020, to win that edition of the race overall.
La Planche des Belles Filles has been a stage on which GC contenders shine, and that is likely to continue in 2022.
I suggest the most likely winners are Tadej Pogacar, Primoz Roglic, Jonas Vingegaard, Ben O'Connor, Aleksandr Vlasov, Romain Bardet and Geraint Thomas.
As with most stages, van Aert and van der Poel could win. If I was to throw in a couple of outsiders, why not Esteban Chaves or Warren Barguil?
Who do you think will win Stage 7?
Mountain High by Daniel Friebe and Pete Goding.
Price £18.23 from Amazon as at 18th January 2022.
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