A difficult thing for many fans to understand about the Tour de France is even though a sprinter like Mark Cavendish will probably win the most daily stages he has no chance to win the Tour de France overall.
On the other hand riders like Lance Armstrong and Alberto Contador may not win a single days stage, but will probably win the Tours yellow jersey by the time they reach Paris.
Lance Armstrong finished in 80th place in stage 2 and if he were a sprinter he would be bitterly disappointed with that result, but because Lance finished with the same time as the stage winner he will start the next stage without having lost one second of time.
The yellow jersey is unique in that it is awarded to the fastest rider after each days stage is added up. This tally of time at the end of three weeks can be a matter seconds like 2007 or a matter of minutes as it was during Lances 7 Tour de France wins. The yellow jersey is all about time and Lance rode yesterday’s stage flawlessly. Even if his place does not suggest he is one of the best in the race he remains perfectly poised to win this year’s Tour.
Lance has one other job before he reaches the mountains. To stay hydrated. Nobody in this field knows their body better than Lance and although it may not show this early in the Tour by the end of July it most certainly shall.
