The WorldTour’s elite were given a hero’s welcome in Yorkshire, with hundreds of thousands packing what for many would be very familiar routes in their home county.
It is part of the beauty of cycling, a sport which sees professionals and amateurs tackle the same playing fields – albeit with the advantages that being one of the world’s best brings for the pros.
But just how good were the riders in the peloton today? Through Strava it is possible to get a tantalising glimpse of ‘them and us’ and see how the locals match up to Strava’s Tour de France pros.
And there will have been a few of the dreaded ‘uh oh’ notifications pinging through today as the likes of Laurens Ten Dam, Ted King and Niki Terpstra scooped Strava King of the Mountains titles in the Yorkshire Dales.
In front of thousands of supporters, some of the best action played out on the three categorised climbs of the day – Kidstone Pass, Buttertubs and Grinton Moor.
So how did the professionals fare?
Thanks to a phenomenal ride, keeping Cannondale near the front of the bunch, Ted King certainly enjoyed a productive day as he readies his legs for the rigours of the medium-mountain stages targetted by Peter Sagan.
Niki Terpstra, too, pulled hard for Omega Pharma-Quickstep – the Dutchman burying himself on the front as the Belgian super team tried in vain to set up Mark Cavendish for victory in Harrogate.
Strava also offers great insight into the power and speed put out in the peloton and the final denouement makes for very interesting reading.
An average speed of 48.9km/h in the final run-in of 15.6 kilometres places Laurens Ten Dam as the new King of the Mountains, but the wattage of the riders is also incredible – King, in his efforts for the Cannondale train, registering a power output of 485 watts.
There will be more painful reminders of the gulf between the world’s best riders and the rest of us in the days and weeks ahead. We’ll bring you the most revealing Strava snapshots throughout the Tour.
Now you know the numbers, how do yours compare? Let us know in the forum or join the RoadCyclingUK Strava club here.
