Arras to Roubaix

Stage 9 - Sunday, 15 July - 154 km (96 mi)

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The Stage

This stage starts and finishes earlier than normal because of the football world cup.

Yes, 21.7 kilometres of cobbles! :D

This is what Roubaix is famous for and the ASO is giving it to us in spades; they also organise Paris-Roubaix so it was easy enough to do sort of a mini version of that. Expect lots of fireworks here and some broken bikes and riders... Apparently they are advertising this particular stage in the USA to get them to watch cycling again.

Peter Sagan won Paris-Roubaix this year and there are a few specialists that are likely to have a good chance today. The GC riders will try and make a difference here; some are a lot more comfortable with this kind of terrain than others.

Winner: John Degenkolb

Tour Touristique

Château de Montmorency was built in the mid-12th century by Robert I de Montigny. Then it consisted of a stone tower on a motte in a marshy and wooded area. The present gate building was added to the bailey in the 13th century.

During the Hundred Years' War Montmorency Castle was damaged. The castle remained in the hands of the descendants of Robert I until 1415 when Robert VII de Montigny was killed in the Battle of Agincourt. Then it went to the Hornes family and later the Montmorency family. These families rebuilt the castle into a more comfortable seigneurial residence instead of a military building.

"When I first came here, this was all swamp. Everyone said I was daft to build a castle on a swamp, but I built in all the same, just to show them. It sank into the swamp. So I built a second one. And that one sank into the swamp. So I built a third. That burned down, fell over, and then sank into the swamp. But the fourth one stayed up." I couldn't resist. :p

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