Greipel Takes Stage 13 in Under 5 Hours!

André Greipel won his third flat stage of this year's Tour de France with an impressive win in Stage 13 today.  The German cyclist satisfied my curiosity by taking today's stage in under five hours.  Below is the comparison between Greipel's time and our prediction.

• Stage 13:  4h 57' 59" (actual), 5h 02' 23" (prediction), 04' 24" slow (1.48% error)

I am very pleased with our prediction, and I am quite impressed to see the world's best take a stage like today's in under five hours.  Well done, Herr Greipel!  His average speed is given below.

• Stage 13:  12.14 m/s (43.69 km/hr or 27.15 mph)

Tomorrow's Stage 14 takes riders into the Pyrenees.  They begin the 191.0-km (118.7-mile) mountain stage in the commune of Limoux and finish up in the commune of Foix.  A taxing category 2 climb early in the stage will whet our appetites for the two monster category 1 climbs later in the stage.  The first has riders ascend Port de Lers, which has an elevation of 1517 m (4977 feet).  Just 26 km (16 miles) from that peak is Mur de Péguère at an elevation of 1375 m (4511 feet).  Below is our prediction.

• Stage 14:  5h 03' 27" (prediction)

I will once again be anxious to see if tomorrow's winner will finish the stage in under five hours.  These great athletes never cease to impress me, so I won't be surprised to see a "4" in front of the winning time.  Bradley Wiggins looked strong today and maintains the yellow jersey.  If someone is to take that yellow jersey from Wiggins, that person will need to shine in Pyrenees!