The cobbles have returned. Those mighty old stones that nobbled the hobbled Frank Schleck in the 2012 edition of the race are back.
The stones are back, literally, with the exact same two kilometres section to be included along with another 13.4 kilometres to be included in the 2014 Tour de France.
The name Sars-et-Rosières à Tilloy-lez-Marchiennes may mean little to anyone but hardened Tour fans and the even harder, wizened farmers of the region, but you can be sure that the name is etched deep in the psyche of the aforementioned Schleck the elder.
When the 2012 route was announced it drew grimaces from many a rider not physically designed to withstand the bumps and grooves of the infamous pave, but there were a select few who would have given a little grin when they heard of the selection of the ancient roads.
Men like Thor Hushovd for one, who won the stage that sent Schleck to the emergency ward and left him cut and bruised and nursing a shattered collarbone that put paid to his hopes of helping his brother Andy win the greatest stage race in the sport.
Tom Boonen announced not too long ago that he’d most likely never ride the Tour de France again, but then he took one look at this year’s early race route and the desire to win on his favourite roads suddenly surged deep in his belly.
“To our own surprise,” said Boonen’s boss, Partick Lefevre, “in the past few days Tom has expressed interest in the Tour. He thinks of riding.”
Anyone with an IQ above five knows why, too.
We all know what Paris-Roubaix means: pain, suffering and a once-a-year possibility to step into the temple of the cycling Gods, to have your name scratched out on a metal plaque and put up in the famous shower room, alongside names like Bernard Hinault, Eddy Merckx and the others giants that have pummelled their bikes into submission over the old stones, taking charge of their destinies to emerge victorious in the Roubaix Velodrome.
Here, by design and a gleam of no-little mischief, is one more chance to shine on the stones.
The 2012 route drew criticism from many and derision from some, but there is no doubt that the majority of cycling fans – and just about all Classics fans – lauded the decision.
Should the cobbles be included in a race like the Tour? A race that is by its very nature is already incredibly hard to even complete, let alone win, an event that tests the riders’ nerves and determination to succeed above and beyond any other race on the planet?
The argument against says that having these stones in the race means that the riders are even further pitted against Lady Luck than they already are.
That the chances of a crash or a flat are incredibly high, both events that could see a genuine contender lose time, or, even worse, as in the case of Frank Schleck, sustain serious injury.
The nervous tension in every stage of the Tour is ridiculously high, the riders being tensed like a tightrope walker’s wire.
Sprawling riders have littered the early stages of recent Tours like so many of the bidons cast aside during every stage, and that’s been on perfectly rideable roads.
Riding the cobbles so early on in the race, when every rider is worried of losing time and where positioning is absolutely paramount every second of the day, will increase the stress on those already strung out nerves.
Alberto Contador, speaking at the route launch earlier this week, highlighted Stage 5, which will feature the pave sections, as perhaps the most important of the entire race.
And that shows just how critical this stage is. One false move and there is no possibility of rescuing yourself from a fall, a fact compounded by the irregular nature of the stones – if you fall there the chances of a sharp edge cracking a bone only increases.
This is the reality of the stones. There is simply nowhere to hide.
Riders like Contador and defending champion Chris Froome, slight men who are far more naturally built for the high peaks, get bounced around even more than most.
Froome had this to say about the perils of Stage 5:
“It makes it a bit more of a lottery but I’m sure, as a team, we will look into anything we can do to reduce the risks and limit any losses if there are any.
“It is something that will literally shake things up. For me the cobbles just represent more of a risk in terms of a mechanical failure or something going wrong and crashes but in terms of the race it will make it interesting and it is something else that we are going to have to prepare for and hopefully it could be somewhere we look at taking advantages.”
To their credit, neither Froome nor Contador have complained about the inclusion of the cobbles, and both seem intent to just get on with their job, a large part of which entails dealing with whatever road the organisers thrust under them.
Ultimately, this is how it should be. Some roads, such as certain climbs that have featured in recent Vueltas a Espana, are just plain silly.
They crush the race in terms of excitement, being too hard to allow riders to express themselves.
But the cobbles do just that. They are dangerous, for sure, and a little crazy, but then so it this entire sport. These are men, these riders, they are superstars, the best our sport has.
Let them ride. Let them suffer. Let them become heroes.
Some will fall, that is for certain, and one, two or even more may see their race over before it’s even begun. No one wants to see a rider injured, but this is the bare bones of cycling – it happens.
This is why they do it, and this is why they are here.
Bring on the cobbles, I say!
Rocky
Guest
Think it's great to see the cobbles back in action! Love some of the Belgian classics races on them!
Ben of Phnom Penh
Roar Guru
I agree with the general sentiment expressed here that cobbles and diversity in general make for a better race. It is meant to be a tour celebrating a country and all its splendour. Turning countries into glorified race tracks diminishes the event; at least for me.
dirk westerduin
Guest
Nothing wrong with the cobbles. As there was nothing wrong with the climbs in the Vuelta this year. They didn't kill the race, they made it more exciting. A stage race with not enough mountains is not a real race. They should throw in two time trials as well. Most of the Grand Tour champions can climb and race individually against the clock. Horner was an exception, this year, but I found it exciting to watch an almost 42 year old kicking the asses of the much younger ones in the steep mountains. Cycling is alive. Bring it on indeed.
nickoldschool
Roar Guru
Very happy the cobbles are back! Trying to diversify le tour is for me the best way to go. Giro and Vuelta have now been trying for years to have the most mountain top finishes and get the label of 'toughest race on the planet." I say let them do this and try something different. Cycling isn't only about mountain climbing and I like the fact the Tour often crowns an all-rounded rider. And cobbles are part of cycling, like climbing, TT, downhills, 250km long, flat windy stages etc. Sure the tour organisers could have designed a tour with 15 mountain top finishes, a tour that start in Grenoble and finishes in Pau with 4-5 cat 1 and HC climbs every day. Am glad they didn't take part of this, imo, silly race.If a rider loses 10min on the cobbles it means he is simply not good enough to win a race like le tour. Cycling isn't only about climbing.
liquorbox_
Roar Rookie
Is there something wrong with me? I for one would have liked a time trial featuring cobbles? How would a 29"er TT bike look?
Lee Rodgers
Expert
Yes I meant to mention the rain, slipped my mind. Then it'll be a doozy...!
John Thompson-Mills
Expert
The TV gurus inside ASO want to have their say too on what le Tour does each year. So the inclusion of cobbles represents an opportunity to broadcast a rarer set of Tour de France images. But how the riders approach it will be fascinating, One question has occurred to me though. What if it is wet? Given this is a three week and not a one day event, will serious thought be given to neutralising the stage? Imagine how slowly the contenders will ride if the cobbles are wet? They may even walk some sectors if the racing is not stopped. Of course the train of thought is that it's easier to ride fast on pave than slowly, but in Paris-Roubaix there's no tomorrow, where as in le Tour there is. What a potentially juicy scenario! Bring it on!
Lee Rodgers
Expert
It will be interesting because, unlike P-R, time matters. But then you'll have the top GV guys trying to limit the damage but the hardmen really going for it. Bring it on!
Lee Rodgers
Expert
Yes I agree Tim, as I mentioned in the article, the majority of fans love to see the cobbles on any route, never mind the TdF! Should be fascinating!
Lee Rodgers
Expert
Absolutely - and was it just me or was El Vino crying as he suffered on Cuddles' wheel?
Lee Rodgers
Expert
Yep, watch Boonen, right down the middle of the road!
Tim Renowden
Expert
Boonen is making similar noises.
Craig
Guest
Hushovd already talking about changing his plans for next year to now include TdF, there'll be no go slow for the Tours hardmen (including new OGE signing Matt Hayman) who get a chance to shine and good to see terrain that will challenge the Froome/Sky ride-by-numbers guys.
HardcorePrawn
Roar Guru
I love the Paris-Roubaix, but have to admit to being a little wary of seeing the cobbles return next year. While competitors can (and often do) go hell for leather over the pavé in the one day classic, they know they have a week (or maybe more) to recover before they're competing again. At the TdF they're back in the saddle the next day so will probably want to take it a bit easier. Including cobbles in the tour probably only serves to pique the interest of spectators (and by association sponsors, advertisers and TV networks), and I can see the cyclists not being too happy about it - Froome has already expressed his dismay at their inclusion. It wouldn't surprise me, especially after the complaints in 2010 following the injuries to tumbling competitors, to see the peloton arrange a go-slow on the cobbled stages.
Tim Renowden
Expert
I think it's great. Yesterday I was chatting to some colleagues, who don't follow cycling, but had seen the Tour route announcement in the news and mentioned the cobbles. Like most casual fans, they know about the Tour but don't have much information about the other great races and traditions. I explained about Paris-Roubaix, showed them pictures, and some video. They were fascinated, and excited to watch it in the Tour. Having cobbles in the Tour will grow interest in Paris-Roubaix, and that is a very good thing.
Riddos
Guest
The bike manufacture companies will be happy with the cobbles stage. There's a massive market for the endurance/sportive geometry bikes which teams tend to use just for stages like this. Usually they have to use the couple of weeks of pro teams riding Flanders/Roubaix for their years worth of marketing for these bikes, they'll love to see the peloton back on them in July.
Riddos
Guest
Bring on the cobbles, and other road surface types. The strade bianche stage 7 of the Giro in 2010 that Cadel won on is one of my all time favourite Grand Tour stages.
njptower
Guest
Looking at old photos of The Tour shows riders going up dirt tracks, maybe there could be a re-visit to true retro roads!
Matthew Boulden
Roar Guru
Well for all the talk about the cobbles being dangerous during the 2010 Tour de France, it shows just how fickle Lady Luck can be when it was a mechanical on a climb which arguably originally cost Andy Schleck the Tour de France (Now won by Andy obviously). You do not want to go overboard with cobbles, but if a Grand Tour winner should be the best all-round rider than why shouldn't the race occasionally test the ability of riders to overcome the Pave. Considering the number of General Classification riders we've seen wiped out in the past due to crashes within the peloton on perfect road conditions, is it even that much more dangerous? Are cobbles more dangerous? Or is a bit of a myth based on subjective opinions and circumstantial evidence like the curse of the rainbow jersey? Watching the 2013 Paris - Roubaix several of the high profile accidents were caused by trying to outsmart the cobbles by riding as close to the edge as possible. So there is something to be said for riders sometimes being their own worse enemies and causing their own accidents. You attempt to outsmart and escape the cobbles and you are playing a dangerous game with the crowd and the edge of the cobbles.