EF Education-EasyPost went on the attack in the final kilometers of Stage 12 of the Tour de France to try to shake off the sprinters' teams.

Max Walker, Michael Valgren, Georg Steinhauser, and Kasper Asgreen each went for it over the short, steep hills towards the end of the stage, but couldn't get away from the sprinters, who were determined to duke it out in what was likely to be the last bunch sprint of this year's Tour. When our guys tried to get away early, on the rolling roads out of the Circuit Nevers Magny-Cours, the peloton wouldn’t let them get an advantage. The breakaway that did get away was kept in check with just over a minute's lead for most of the day. Our best option was to try to break the peloton over the final climbs. We gave it a good go, but couldn't make a move stick.

Tomorrow's stage, from Dole to Belfort, is much better suited to breaks. Watch for EF Education-EasyPost to light up the front of the race.

"I tried a lot of attacks, but none of them worked out. I always seemed to have two Quick-Step riders and two UAE riders on my wheel, so I never really got a gap that was worth talking about. It was pretty much what I expected. Hats off to the sprinters' teams – they're riding really well. They kept everything under control, even though there was quite a bit of interest from other teams trying to upset them. Hats off to them." – Kasper Asgreen

"Today was alright — sweaty, rainy, and then a little bit snappy at the end on those kickers. Everyone stayed safe. Max and Kasper gave it a good whack, and Michael and Georg too, so the team was active and did what we could. It wasn't our day, but the weekend should be good. I feel like sprint stages aren't so stressful if there's no crosswind. The stress was pretty high in the bunch at some points today for kind of no reason. Still, we made it through." – Sean Quinn

"Today was good. I got involved a bit, trying to shake things up and see what happened. I didn't get very far, but I had a good time. The first five seconds were great. After that, it just starts to hurt." – Max Walker

"It was like a junior race out there today — everybody was trying everything they could, all the time. We tried our plan at the beginning with Kasper, but he's really got an X on his back because he's so strong. None of the sprinters' teams wanted a rider like him up the road.

"They rode super hard behind the breakaway, and then the other option we discussed this morning opened up. Georg was there, Michael was there, and Max was there after the climb.

"Then, once it became clear it was going to be a sprint, we backed off because the sprinters' teams had already put so much effort into controlling the stage that we knew there wouldn't be much organization left in the finale. Sprints like that can get really dangerous, and unfortunately, that's what we saw.

"I think most riders in the bunch are pretty aero'd up these days. But if I could be a fly on the wall in the other team buses, I'm sure Kasper's name is one of the first that's mentioned when they're talking about who they don't want to let up the road.

"You see day after day that they really struggle to control small breakaways. So you can only imagine how difficult it would be if there were six really big engines up there. You could see that was their priority today." – Charly Wegelius, head sports director

Michael Valgren launched into a move on the Côte de Montagny-lès-Buxy with 20 kilometers to go in today's stage. Our Dane got away with a very powerful group before the summit. That effort took him 510 watts for four minutes and four seconds. The sprinters' teams were on the limit. Unfortunately, they were able to recover and reel Michael's group back in on the descent.

Our new social media manager Ansel had the experience of a lifetime today, as he joined sports director Tom Southam in the race Cadillac. After a hot lap around the old Formula One track Circuit Nevers Magny-Cours, they drove ahead of the race to check out wind conditions and see if they could find a good spot for a break to attack. They soon slotted into the race caravan to provide the athletes with cold bottles and ice and be ready for any mechanical issues. Ansel described it as one of the top two experiences of his life. We didn't ask him about the other one.

Owen and Chris made our squad a fresh peach and halloumi salad to enjoy with dinner this evening. Sweet, smoky, and tangy thanks to the grilled peaches and halloumi, this recipe is packed with flavor and nutrients to keep the guys healthy as we approach week three of the Tour.

À bloc describes an all-out effort. The expression comes from motor racing, where drivers press their accelerators all the way to the floor. Bloc is a Germanic word – the same as the English word block, which was originally used to describe a tree stump, but is now used to describe a hunk of anything solid and hard. Riders were on the limit as soon the peloton exited the Circuit Nevers Magny-Cours, the old Formula One track where Stage 12 of the Tour started. There was a big fight to make it into the break and riders were à bloc from kilometer zero. The peloton averaged over 49 km/hr to the finish.