Greig Leach

With little chance of figuring in any of the remaining stages and not showing up on the race for the Maillot Vert it is a bit of surprise to see that Mark Cavendish (Astana-Qazaqstan) is still in the Tour. As the peloton started up the first of three categorized climbs, he slipped off the back with his ever-faithful teammate Cees Pol. Jarrad Drizners (Lotto-Dstny) was another of those that found the pace too stiff on the way up the Col Bayard. The pace had been hot all day with most teams trying to get a guy into the breakaway. Every time a group got off the front, the teams not represented chased it down. So, it has been a very, very hard day and they have just gotten to the climbing section of the stage. Most of the sprinters are dropping out of the Tour, the question is, will Cav stay? I now suspect he wants to finish what will almost definitely be his last Tour de France.