frtour1-7, Exercise 1: Designing a Tour

Model answer (check the details); another design is equally good if justified:

Mix of 21 stages:
- 8 flat stages, for sprinters and television audiences in the first week.
- 4 hilly stages, where breakaways can win.
- 6 mountain stages, 2 in the Pyrenees and 4 in the Alps, including 2 summit finishes.
- 2 time trials: one individual of about 40 km in the second half, and one early team time trial.
- 1 ceremonial finale in Paris.

Start and finish: a Grand Départ in a coastal city in the west, a clockwise loop round France through Brittany, the Massif Central and the Pyrenees, with the Alps in the third week, and a Paris finish on the Champs-Élysées.

Who it favours: a balanced rider who time-trials well and climbs steadily, with a strong team. With fewer time trials or more summit finishes, a pure climber would have the advantage.

Reasoning to include: keep the race open until the third week, include a variety of terrain, put big mountains late for drama, and balance the budget by choosing paying host towns.

Care: the numbers are an illustration, so compare them with a real recent route.