- HOT TOPICS:
- The new VeloNews.com (BETA)
Unexpected effort: analysis of stage 3 SRM power readings of two Saxo Bank riders
Wow, what an exciting day of racing. There are simply no easy days in the Tour de France. On paper, Monday's stage 3 appeared to be a fairly routine flat stage for the sprinters, but it ended up being a detrimental day for some of the Tour’s overall favorites.
Team Saxo Bank’s Chris Anker Sorensen certainly isn’t having an easy beginning to his first Tour de France. Stage 3 was a fight to the end and no one had an easy ride. Team Columbia put on a show of dominance as they truly rode as a well-oiled machine leaving many of the favorites in their dust.
TdF Stage 3 SRM Power Data
Saxo Bank’s Nicki Sorensen and Chris Anker Sorensen
| Stage 3, 196.5km | ||
|---|---|---|
| Chris Anker Sorensen | Nicki Sorensen | |
| Stage Placing: | 153rd | 33rd |
| Average Watts: | 215w | 188w |
| Mean Max 5-minutes: | 407w | 410w |
| Mean Max 20-minutes: | 339w | 357w |
| TSS: | 300 (based on 375w threshold) | 295 (based on 395w threshold) |
View and download Chris Anker Sorensen’s SRM file or Nicki Sorensen’s file
The stage wound its way inland for a short while before it headed back toward the French Mediterranean and the wind-swept low lands. If it wasn’t for the early rolling hills and olive fields you could have mistaken this stage location for Holland since the finishing miles were flat and the style of racing was like an early season classic. The crosswinds caused chaos and at one point split the peleton into multiple groups in the final 40 minutes of racing.
In the end a group of 27 riders, including Astana’s Lance Armstrong finished 41 seconds ahead of the overall favorites such as Alberto Contador, Andy Schleck and Carlos Sastre. Armstrong now sits in third overall, 40 seconds behind the yellow jersey of Fabian Cancellara.
"Too bad for Andy, he was trapped inside the wind along with many other riders, but that's sport, that is the Tour de France, but luckily we still have the yellow jersey. I was in the right place at the right time”, said a confident Fabian Cancellara after the dramatic finale.
"Team Columbia were riding very fast during the one kilometer where side winds made the peloton explode and we were not paying proper attention. It is obviously not good enough, but there is still a long way to Paris and the course has only just begun," said team owner Bjarne Riis after the stage.
The SRM power data also showed just how hard the finishing miles were. Chris Anker Sorensen had his maximum 30-minute segment within the final hour of racing where he averaged 337w. Likewise, Nicki Sorensen also recorded his maximum 30 minutes (351w) in the final 40 minutes of racing. Nicki also averaged 410w for five minutes within the final 30 minutes of the day’s five and a half hour stage.
To view the entire archive of power data files for the Tour de France, visit Trainingpeaks.com.
Dirk Friel raced professionally on the roads of Europe, Asia and the Americas and is a co-founder of TrainingPeaks.com.
