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2016 Tour de France Route Revealed
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| roturn |
Posted on 10-01-2016 21:07
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This year we will start with the presenation of the biggest cycling event: The Tour de France. To win this race you must belong to the very best. Not only in climbing but also on hillier terrain and against the clock.
Win here and your name will be remembered for a long long time.
Let`s have a look on the winner list. 2015 saw one of the top GC riders of our time taking his first TdF win after missing out closely the years before: Pluchkin. Also the other big names Schleck, Madrazo, Spilak or Cunego are on the winner list.
From a neutral point of view the spectators surely would love to see a field like in 2014 when the 4 top GC riders were all in the race plus the next tier riders as well.
2015 was in terms of top GC guys definitely one of the weaker years. Still this is not supposed to make it sound easy to win here. But the Tour de France surely deserves a top field and the 2016 route surely looks to offer a lot for everyone.
| Year | 1. | 2. | 3. | | 2015 |  Pluchkin |  Taaramae |  Amador | | 2014 |  A.Schleck | Pluchkin |  Spilak | | 2013 |  Madrazo |  Cunego | A.Schleck | | 2012 | Cunego | Madrazo | Pluchkin | | 2011 | Spilak |  Dekker |  Popovych | | 2010 |  Fothen |  Devolder | Spilak | | 2009 | Devolder | F.Schleck |  Gadret | | 2008 | F.Schleck | Di Luca | Valverde | | 2007 | Moreau |  Vinokourov |  Leipheimer |
With all top GT riders having won once now, it might be time for one of them to be the first rider ever in MG history to claim a 2nd win.
One country though is having a bad run here. Since the 2007 win of Moreau, France is waiting for another home winner. Though a 3rd by Gadret in 2009 was also the last podium.
The wait for Sicard was long. But it`s not looking that probable to see him on the highest step in near future. Hopes are high in Lecuisinier but he is missing the experience and might need another 2-3 years. But surely those two are the main riders for the spectators to cheer for.
Le Grand Départ in 2016 will be in Sedan. The French town near the Belgium border holds the opening prologue, that is going to deliver one of the specialists the first Maillot Jaune.
Stages 2 - 8: A sprinters dream?
The peloton then heads into Belgium for the first of three consecutive flat stages for the sprinters. The fight for the point jersey and in especially the battle sprinters vs. GC riders in this ranking will start.
Though it`s only a short visit to Belgium as the next 2 sprinter stages both take place in the North of France.
While the first 4 stages also see a fight for the Maillot Jaune between the sprinters and prologue specialists, the 5th stage finally should mix the GC quite a bit.
7 mountain sprints on the very hilly course. Many of them are Cat.2 rated which shows the difficulty. Even the punchy sprinters might struggle here while the GC riders need to prove their puncheur skills on that stage.
Two more flat stages within the next three. So it`s a sprinter friendly start and a good chance for them to create an advantage in the points ranking. Also it`s not absolutely impossible that any of them is still going strong in the GC neither.
Stage 7 though adds another element. A 13km team time trial. A little bit of a hill on the first half there but the team with the best chrono riders should take this one and might bring their GC rider into a nice position. Though the length should not deliver the biggest gaps.
Stages 9 - 13: GC fight in the Pyrénées
Early in the 2nd week we get the first uphill finish. It`s not the most mountaneous one but surely will give teh puncheurs and possibly GC riders a chance to get the leader jersey. Also gaps between the top riders are likely to happen before the first real mountain stage.
Stage 10 is the calm before the storm. Yet another sprinter stage for those that are still having the energy to go strong. Some might also take a rest here to avoid a big struggle on the upcoming stages though.
Here we go. The GC start now officially has started in the high mountains! Now there is no more time to sit inside the peloton. All GC riders need to be focussed now riding in the front rows not missing the attacks.
The first mountain top finish should really reshuffle the GC a lot. A HC climb on the Port de Pailhères and the final Cat.1 on Ax-3 Domaines. Not the longest climb with 8km but a very steep one with 8,2%. Right behind the Pailhères this is a hell of a start into the mountains.
The next stage to Bagnères de Luchon has the next HC rated climb. It`s the Port de Balès that comes just ahead of a long descent and a flat finish. Creating gaps here needs a strong attack on the climb and a fast descent. Surely possibly even though a smaller group is most probable including many GC riders.
Finishing the Pyrénées the feared long climb up the Col du Tourmalet waits for the riders. 19km à 7,5%! The HC top finish might the one of the hardest pieces this Tour. In especially as two Cat.1 climbs need to be passed before.
Stages 14 - 16: 3 Stages to relax!
For the GC riders it might be time to refresh their legs in those 3 stages.
14 & 16 are the last chances for the sprinters before Paris and as the GC riders should have closed the gap a bit in the points ranking and will continue to do so in the Alps, the pressure is on them. But who still has the energy for a late sprint?
Stage 15 looks like a typical breakaway stage in between the mountains. But if a puncheur team goes for it, they might grab a stage win here as well. Even the GC riders can`t relax too much as a strong attack by one of them could force the others to follow.
Stages 17 - 19: Monster Climbs in the Alps
The Alps start with one of the toughest climbs in cycling: The Mont Ventoux. Another very long climb with 20km and 7,5% in average. If ignoring the easier first 5 kilometer the average on the final 15km is beasty. So whoever has bad legs on this day, might lose the whole Tour!
As in the Pyrénées we go with a descent finish in between two mountain tops. But the stage is not easy at all. 2 early HC climbs over the Glandon and Madeleine should already reduce the peloton and exhaust many riders. Some might even be isolated from their team mates.
On the last 60km another Cat.2 and two Cat.1 climbs should be ideal for attacks. Whoever passes the de la Croix Fry first might have good chances to take the stage. Only 13km until the finish and it`s downhill until there.
The last Alps stage has another popular mountain top finish. It`s Alpe d'Huez as final mountain in this years Tour de France. And actually it`s being climbed twice. First time 50km to the finish, then going down again just to repeat this torture. Big finish of this years edition.
Stage 20: Who has the most energy left?
The mountains should have made a nice GC. But there should be many fights still open. Possibly even for the win! So now on the penultimate stage the GC riders face a tough time trial. 44km. Mainly flat. Bad news for the climbers that don`t like those stages. Good news for the best allrounders. But that late in a GT it`s mainly about recovery and who has saved some energy. It`s the last chance to attack the rivals.
Stage 21: Celebration on the Champs Elysees
The Champs Elysees is the finish of the Tour de France for a long time already. Also in 2016 the Tour will end in the heart of Paris. While the GC riders just need to finish the stage and already celebrate a bit, the sprinters will go for glory on that stage. It`s one of the most prestigous win for them and everyone wants to be fastest here once in their career.
Also the point ranking is still in the head of some of them. Is a sprinter starting the last stage in the point jersey? Or did the GC riders gain enough to steal it? Can someone attack the jersey on that stage? We will know when we reach this point.
In total this race is one of the sprinter friendly GT with 9 flat stages! But also some tough mountains in between, that might make it difficult to make it to Paris?
Also it`s the first GT presentation! So we can`t compare with the others just yet.
9 Flat
3 Hill (1x HTF)
6 Mountain (4x MTF)
3 Time Trial (6km & 44km ITT; 13km TTT)
For now it`s about discussion/prediction and planning. Who might be sent here? Who could win the race? How to support the leader? |
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| Avin Wargunnson |
Posted on 11-01-2016 08:12
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World Champion
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Well, this route cries for the defense of the title. 
But TT on stage 20 is tough call, when it can be more about recovery than TT stat itself...read Schleck.
So i will have to wait for other GTs and their route to judge the possibility of defending the TdF win with Aleksandr the Great.
Edited by Avin Wargunnson on 11-01-2016 08:26
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| Gustavovskiy |
Posted on 11-01-2016 08:23
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Cool route we've got this year. Three TTs on the way, but with only one of them with likelihood of bring relevant, and since it's on the penultimate stage it's bound to favour riders with good recovery in spite of pure time-trialists.
It will be interesting to see if Pluschkin confirms his GT winner status, or if he'll fade after a one-time flick at the TdF.
Thanks for the post roturn!
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| matt17br |
Posted on 11-01-2016 13:20
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Nicely thought route we have this year: we've got everything that could make an exciting GT. I don't have hopes too high after PCM 15's poor showing in ICL for an open GT, but this kind of route will probably make sure every day from the 2nd week on the GT contenders will need to fight hard 
Thanks for the fantastic presentation too, roturn.
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| Eden95 |
Posted on 12-01-2016 05:54
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Quite a homage to the history of the TDF with the only major climb missing being the Galibier! ITT, TTT, Prolouge, tough uphill finishes, pan flat stages, Downhill MT finishes - seems like this route has everything except a cobbled stage. Maybe not so much in it for the puncheurs either, but still I think thi will provide quite an exciting race.
Indosat - ANZ HQ
"This Schleck sandwich is going to cause serious indigestion for Evans" - Phil Liggett |
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| wackojackohighcliffe |
Posted on 12-01-2016 08:39
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Not the kind of route I'd like to see in the actual Tour but probably a good one for us here. Should be interesting with a nervy race before the Pyrenees.
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| Roman |
Posted on 12-01-2016 15:41
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The first week looks not too bad for a certain rider from Kiwi country. The amount of flat stages in total is looking good too. I like. 
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| jt1109 |
Posted on 12-01-2016 16:10
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A very hard tour has Schleck, Spilak and Madrazo and Pluchkin written as over it with the amount of very hard stages. |
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| SotD |
Posted on 13-01-2016 14:10
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Not ideal for Spilak. Have to revise his Tour de France campaign.
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| Heine |
Posted on 13-01-2016 16:14
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Interesting route this year, too bad I wont compete  It should fit Schleck, but also many other riders, and we will most likely get some new ones trained into the top flight here
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| CrueTrue |
Posted on 14-01-2016 15:56
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Tour de France Champion
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Ouch... Quite a long TT plus a TTT which my team has always sucked at.
Not an ideal route for Sicard, but let's see who we can bring in for the coming season |
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 25-11-2024 02:53
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| CountArach |
Posted on 16-01-2016 06:45
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That's a pretty classic and solid route, with a bit of everything on offer. I particularly like that sprinters get a fair bit of a look in here.
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| Smowz |
Posted on 16-01-2016 07:55
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It is a nice classical Tour - I do like the long build aspect. Should be enticing for the worlds best sprinters in the first week with the best stage racers hopefully actually giving it a go against Pluichkin, who it looks has nailed his season as loking to repeat his last.
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| ember |
Posted on 16-01-2016 19:14
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Interesting to see such a short TTT in the Tour. I also like that there's a couple of hilly stages before the riders hit the Pyrenees. From then on the climbers should claim the spotlights, and with Alpe d'Huez twice on the final mountain stage, it looks set for a thrilling race.
Really curious to see if Schleck goes for it. If he does, it feels like he will be a slight, slight favourite due to how he earlier has dominated the mountains. |
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| SotD |
Posted on 17-01-2016 09:58
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ember wrote:
Interesting to see such a short TTT in the Tour. I also like that there's a couple of hilly stages before the riders hit the Pyrenees. From then on the climbers should claim the spotlights, and with Alpe d'Huez twice on the final mountain stage, it looks set for a thrilling race.
Really curious to see if Schleck goes for it. If he does, it feels like he will be a slight, slight favourite due to how he earlier has dominated the mountains.
Imo it is favoring Schleck quite a lot, so I would be surprised not to see him here. Mountains are all placed fairly late, and the final TT very late, which historically speaking favors his recovery. Look at how he dominated this season for example. Starting way off, climbing back and even "winning" the TT. The same will happen here. And the hills are so early on, that he won't struggle to claw back the time imo.
I will have to reconsider Spilak here for sure - Or train him +2 Recovery.
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