One of the most interesting (but perhaps also most dispiriting) aspects of Strava is how it gives you a means of comparing your performance with those of the pros. If you’d like to get a Strava-eye view of the Tour de France, here are a few riders who upload their rides to the site as well as a handful of the key stretches of road from this year’s race.
Michal Kwiatkowski is one famous user, having previously uploaded the data from both his 2014 world road race championships win and his victory in Amstel Gold earlier this year. However, you might be more interested in the performances of French hope, Thibaut Pinot, who finished third overall last year. Pinot’s countryman, Romain Bardet, is another Strava user who will be looking to place well overall.
Andre Greipel is your man if you’re interested in the demands of a sprint stage, while there’s a fair chance that at some point Belgian rider Thomas De Gendt will give you some insight into what it takes to spend a day in the break.
Other than that, Lotto NL–Jumbo seemingly provide a large proportion of the riders who’ll form the second group on the road on mountain stages. Take your pick from Laurens Ten Dam, Robert Gesink, Wilco Kelderman and Steven Kruijswijk.
Chances are that more than a few KOMs will be claimed over the course of the next three weeks, but while many are already in the hands of members of the peloton, a handful of amateurs and mountain bikers will also be feeling threatened.
Ten Dam is the current King of the Mountain for the Col du Tourmalet which will feature on stage 11 and he can also lay claim to the Col du Glandon from stage 18. Strava’s Alpe d’Huez record, meanwhile, is currently held by Peter Pouly, a former French mountain biker. In terms of QOMs, it’s interesting to note that Emma Pooley holds all three of those.
But this year’s race isn’t all about climbs. There’s the pavé too. Stage four segments to watch out for include Verchain-Maugré à Quérénaing, Quiévy à Saint-Python and Viesly à Quiévy.
Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.