14 DAY TRIAL // With just a time trial and a ceremonial spring stage left, some teams are always looking for a win and the organizers of Le Tour de France seem to have designed the 18th stage with that in mind.
Thus, they have created a long trek of over 220 km that uses narrow roads and has quite a few hills to negotiate.
A breakaway could manage to escape and win, especially as long as it’s a big group and has some strong riders present.
However, there’s always the possibility that sprinters are ready to give their all one more time in order to make an impression and get a win before the beginning of the real-world Olympic Games, where the road race is very important to them.
But after close to 20 played stages, I have come to understand that the computer is much more prone to chase down escaped riders than in the real world, so this stage will likely come down to a mass sprint.
The usual group of no chance riders got ahead quickly, 13 of them, and their advantage grew to about 8 minutes before anyone started chasing.
I decided to put one man to work and the advantage dropped down precipitously and then I tried to launch a counterattack with my team leader, but it was for nothing as he lacked both the form and the strength to really get away.
I then created my usual spring pair, with Montfort ready to launch Benatti towards the finish line, and almost managed to get another win, coming third behind Hushovd and Freire.
The General Classification remains unchanged, with Frank Schleck in seventh place before the last time trial, which will probably decide the order that the peloton reaches Paris in.
Take a look at how the 18th stage of Le Tour de France happened in virtual form:
