A time trial stage requires enormous amounts of planning from the performance team and sports directors who formulate each rider’s strategy to the mechanics, soigneurs, and staff on the ground who arrive at the start hours before the first rider even sets off in order to prepare for the day. So it’s that much more rewarding when the untold hours of work pay off like they did today. Kristen Faulkner came home in sixth as our top finisher while Cédrine Kerbaol was seventh by only fractions of a second. Cédrine also leapfrogged on the GC and now sits in third place overall. 

“It was really hot. I thought it was a really great TT because it had some technical sections. It had an uphill and it had a downhill so I feel like it really catered to a well-rounded rider. And for me, it challenged me in different ways. I think I really excel at long, flat, straight TTs so this really challenged me to develop new areas in TT while I was prepping for it. And I think the preparation for this race has made me a better TT rider. And overall, I'm really happy with how today went.

“I spent some time with my TT bike when I was at altitude camp doing some intervals, but I also did two TT specific skill sessions, and that really helped me go around corners at speed and I never really excelled on my TT bike in technical sections soI felt really comfortable today. And I think that gave me a lot of confidence in the race.” - Kristen Faulkner

“I’m happy. The legs were good, my speed was good, my position was nice. The staff was amazing. Fabien [Rabeau, Head of Performance] was super good in the car as well, so it went according to plan, I would say. That was very fun on the climb with a lot of spectators. Some bits you could really go fast, which I really enjoy as well, and I just kamikazed downhill which I enjoyed a lot. It was really good fun.

“The goal was to lose as little time as possible to the main rider and actually I took a few seconds over some riders, so it's always good to take back a little time.

“Every year, there’s been a point where I was like second or third on GC, and I’ve learned that the Tour is really long. Everything can change really quickly so I'm not thinking about that. I'm thinking about the next days.” - Cédrine Kerbaol

“Time trial day, always an exciting one. We had a mix of our riders kind of taking it easy because we have some pretty hard stages coming in the next couple days and then we focused our energy on Cédrine and Kristen and doing a good performance. So we've been working pretty hard behind the scenes to really have a good result here. What does a good result mean? Basically, we need to keep Cédrine in the GC contention, which we did today. She moved into third on GC, so one day at a time, but this was a good day for her and then also with Kristen, with hopes on world championships and other events with a time trial at the end of the year.

"It's always good to try to do a very good routine around time trialing, because it's not that easy and we don't have so many chances to practice, like, how you warm up and the execution part of it. So Kristen's day was around the execution part of doing a time trial. Then we were trying to go high in GC. Of course, we want to win so we go in with that ambition and then everything plays out. Kristen, had a pretty hard day yesterday with the heat, as did everybody, but she had a hard day so to come back from that, and to really do a great performance today, I think that says a lot for where Kristen is, moving forward. So, a successful day for our crew.” - Carmen Small, sports director

What does it take to finish in the top 10 on a TT stage? For Pan American champion Kristen, it meant never letting up on the pedals. Her average cadence was a leg-burning 105 rpm while her cadence peaked at 130 rpm. Through the corners and on the descents, Kristen stomped on the pedals, making the most of every revolution to place sixth on the day.

A pain au chocolat, served slightly warm, with its buttery, flaky pastry and chocolate that melts on your tongue, is a quintessential French symbol. During the Tour, seeking out bakeries is one of admin’s favorite parts of the day and today was no exception. This morning’s bakery in the town of Beaune opened its doors at 6:30 AM and your admin was there shortly after to pick up a fresh pain au chocolat. As the French say, it was top!

Naturally sweet, refreshing, and high in carbohydrates, this smoothie is ideal after a hot Tour stage or training ride. This recipe makes around 2.2–2.4 liters, giving each rider roughly a 315–340 ml serving with 10 g green powder each. Serves seven riders.

Ingredients

70 g Healthspan Elite green powder

900 g frozen mango

1 kg ripe melon (honeydew or cantaloupe), diced

1 liter orange juice

120 g honey (adjust to taste)

Juice of 2 limes

Method

Add the orange juice, honey, and green powder to the blender and blend until the powder is dissolved.

Add the frozen mango, melon, and lime juice.

Blend until completely smooth.

If it’s too thick, add a splash of cold water. Serve well chilled.

Reconnaissance, the act of surveying or gathering information, is a word the English language has borrowed from French. The word originally referred to soldiers scouting out the terrain to plan operations or to get information about enemy forces. Today, Recon and recce are common abbreviations of reconnaissance. With a 21 kilometer time trial for stage 4, our riders took the opportunity to recon the course ahead of the race. By knowing each turn, every bump in the road, and picking an efficient line in advance, our riders are able to be more explosive when the race gets underway.