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This year I restrained myself from posting about the Tour every day, but of course, I watched each stage with great interest. And it was an exceptionally interesting Tour, with a great route featuring lots of interesting stages. For the first time in many years all of the best stage racers in the world were present: 2012 champion Alberto Contador, 2013 champion Chris Froome, defending champion Vincenzo Nibali, and 2013 runner up Nairo Quintana. And there were lots of promising dark horses too, like American Tejay Van Garderen and Alejandro Valverde, as well as a slew of great French hopes like last year's runner up JC Peraud and Thibaut Pinot.
It ended up being the best Tour ever - certainly since I became a cycling fan - with great racing by amazing riders on a beautiful course. It seemed each day had an interesting storyline, whether it was the sprinters - Andrew Greipel vs Mark Cavendish vs Peter Sagan - or the potential breakaway winners - or the green jersey competition - or the huge GC battle. And mercifully there were no doping controversies ... yay. There was talk of doping when there were great performances, but no actual doping. Maybe even the talk will end soon... Onward!
Stage 1 - Sat July 4, 2015 So it begins ... stage 1, the Grand Depart. This year it took place in Utrecht, in the Netherlands, and it was a short individual time trial, just a bit longer than a prologue. The huge Dutch crowds watched Australian Rohan Dennis powered to an impressive victory, recording the fastest average time ever in a Tour de France time trial. Favorites Tony Martin and Fabian Cancellara were close behind to get 2nd and 3rd. The local favorite Tom Dumoulin finished a strong fourth, but the crowd and indeed the country was rooting for him to win.
Stage 2 - Sun July 5, 2015 Stage 2 presented an interesting early challenge to the peloton; pan-flat, but with the prospect of wind and weather causing echelons along the Dutch seacoast, with a finish along Zeeland's Delta Project, a huge series of dams and artificial islands which hold the sea back.
Meanwhile, back in the field, the big news was a split in the field following a crash, which left Movistar and Astana nearly a minute and a half behind the peloton, costing favorites Vincenzo Nibali, Nairo Quintana, and Alejandro Valverde critical time relative to Alberto Contador, Chris Froome, and Tejay Van Garderen. The old adage that you can't win the Tour in the first week, but you can lose it, was definitely proved once again. Also caught out was Rohan Dennis, wearing yellow; his BMC team opted to press ahead for Van Garderen, abandoning Dennis and allowing Cancellara to take yellow. This was the sixth time in his long and storied career that Cancellara found himself wearing the leaders jersey early in the Tour.
Stage 3 - Mon July 6, 2015 Stage 3 was a flat stage in Belgium, but as all good Belgian stages with a killer little kick up at the end, the Mur de Hoy famous for being the finish of the Liege-Baston-Liege race. As it turned out, the climb at the end was the least of the peloton's problems; a huge crash midway through the race took out several riders, injured yellow-jersey wearer Fabian Cancellara (who would drop out of the race after managing to finish), and forced an unprecedented neutralization of the entire race for 20 minutes at the bottom of the penultimate hill.
The best news of the day is that despite the horrific crash and the loss of Cancellara, the main contenders remained unscathed.
Stage 4 - Tue July 7, 2015 Since the Tour found itself in Belgium, what better than a stage with cobblestones, a la Paris-Roubaix? And indeed stage 4 delivered, with seven sections of pavé. Unlike last year there was little rain and few crashes, but it was a flat-out blast through the countryside, with clouds of dust everywhere and desperate chasing across gaps.
There was considerable GC action with Vincenzo Nibali pressing attacks in the late going, but in the end all the GC contenders finished safely together. The main effect was a general soreness in everyone's legs. There's an ongoing debate about whether cobbles belong in the Tour, and I'm firmly in the "yes they do" camp. It's a true test of bike riding, a major part of the sport, and it makes for great spectating. I hope they include a stage with pavé every year.
Stage 5 - Wed July 8, 2015 And so finally the Tour found itself in France, and there was a flat stage which ended in a field sprint, and it was good. The stage rode through the parts of Northern France where huge battles took place during World War I, and many of the graveyards and memorials were visited or ridden by, as various commemorative events took place.
Stage 6 - Thu July 9, 2015 Stage 6 of the 2105 Tour was mostly flat, through rolling countryside and along the Breton shore, ending with a steep final ascent into Le Havre which promised to break up a field sprint. Etixx-Quickstep's Zdenek Stybar survived last-minute crashes amid the final attacks to bring home the victory, while his teammate Tony Martin crashed heavily, finishing the stage but later dropping out of the Tour.
The GC contenders had another quiet day and there were no changes in the overall classifications.
Stage 7 - Fri July 10, 2015 Another flat transition stage, and another bunch sprint; but this time a different winner, Mark Cavendish broke his dry spell and came out on top. This was just about his last chance until Paris, as the remainder of the "flat" stages in this year's Tour are pretty bumpy and/or have uphill finishes.
Stage 8 - Sat July 11, 2015 Today's stage 8 was one of those lumpy stages you figure might go to a breakaway,especially because of a stinger at the end, the steep Mûr de Bretagne. But the field came together and then Alexis Vuillermoz attacked to take the win, barely holding off a hard-charging Dan Martin. It was the first French victory of the Tour.
Man of the teams took the stage off, resting up for the pivotal long team time trial tomorrow.
Stage 9 - Sun July 12, 2015 The relatively long and bumpy team time trial of stage 9 was predicted to be crucial for the overall GC battle, and in the event it was pretty exciting, although it produced few changes overall. Team BMC had hopes of repeating their recent victory in the Criterium du Dauphine, and putting Tejay Van Garderen in yellow. As it turned out they did win, but barely, and didn't quite gain enough time on Team Sky to dislodge Chris Froome from yellow.
Rest Day 1 - Mon July 13, 2015 And so the first week of the Tour draws to a close, with nine tough stages including the tour's only ITT and TTT done. Ahead lie three tough mountain stages in the Pyrenees, four transition stages through the South of France, and then four concluding stages in the Alps, before the final parade to Paris. Some conclusions from the first week:
Stage 10 - Tue July 14, 2015 So finally the Tour reached the mountains ... the first decisive stage in the Pyrenees, where the true contenders would be revealed and the pretenders would be exposed. A long flat prelude to get everyone warmed up, followed by a difficult mountaintop finish atop the HC climb to La Pierre-Saint-Martin. And Chris Froome dominated the field, powering away to victory, decisively gaining time on all his rivals. It might be that this one climb determines the winner of the Tour.
As the climb continued inexorably on only Nairo Quintana was able to stay with Froome, and soon he too was dropped, leaving Froome to ride on alone to victory. It may be too early to declare Froome the overall winner, but it's clear that Nibali and Contador just don't have what it will take this year. Meanwhile Tejay can hope for a podium, if not the overall victory, and Quintana seems like Froome's main competition.
Stage 11 - Wed July 15, 2015 Stage 11 featured an HC climb up the legendary Col du Tourmalet and a mountaintop finish to Cauterets, but even so it felt a bit of an anticlimax after yesterday. There would be fireworks on the last climb, but perhaps a chance for a break. And so it was. It seems in every Tour there is a decisive moment when the GC battle is shaped, and almost every stage after that features two races, one for the win, and one for GC. Stage 10 of this year's Tour was that moment, and sure enough there was a lot of energy expended on getting in a possibly-winning breakaway.
Rafael Majka got in the early break with two options, first, to help Albert Contador later should he attack on GC, and second, to hunt for the win. After a while the first option faded, and he powered on to take the stage, in fine fashion reminiscent of his KOM-winning form from last year, when he also won two mountain stages. Also in the mix was Dan Martin, who finished a strong second. Among the GC contenders Vincenzo Nibali was again dropped on the final climb, but the rest of the favorites finished together. There was speculation that Valverde and Quintana might try a two-pronged attack on the final climb, but it fizzled. It could be that they try to hang in there tomorrow, and then reserve their real attacks to try to take back time for the Alps.
Stage 12 - Thu July 16, 2015 The mighty stage 12 of the 2015 Tour featured four big climbs, including two Cat 1 trips up the Col de la Core and the Port de Lers, before finishing on the HC Plateau de Beille. Adding to the fun, most of the stage was raced in a continuous downpour. Sensing the possibility of victory, a 22-man break formed early, and broke and reformed several times before decanting down to seven strong riders. With 11Km left on the final climb Joachim Rodriguez attacked and rode away to a strong victory, his second of the tour.
Meanwhile man-about-the-peloton Peter Sagan once again took maximum points at the intermediate sprint to secure his hold on the green jersey. It seems clear now that he's going to win his fourth consecutive green jersey if he makes it to Paris, as he's able to score points every day, regardless of the course profile. And so now the peloton head off across Southern France for four transition stages, which are each lumpy enough with enough variation to make it difficult for pure sprinters to win.
Stage 13 - Fri July 17, 2015 Stage 13 looked like possibly it could end up in a field sprint, or possibly a breakaway could survive. In the event, the peloton kept an early break close all day, and eventually reeled them in, having however shed many of the pure sprinters on the lumps leading into the finish.
The GC contenders were content to ride along in the peloton and finished together without incident or any changes to the overall standings.
Stage 14 - Sat July 18, 2015 With a rather unusual profile, stage 14 seemed like a perfect opportunity for an intrepid breakaway to stay clear, packing a considerable punch however in the final uphill finish. The peloton seemed to relax right away and a large breakaway pulled clear. Peter Sagan took maximum points at the intermediate sprint, after which there was a decanting and a smaller break pressed on.
Long after the win, the GC group reached the final climb and we were treated to another great race to the finish, with Nairo Quintana attacking at the end, only to be caught by Chris Froome. The pair gained further time on the rest of the competition, especially Tejay Van Garderen who was inexplicably dropped early on the climb.
Stage 15 - Sun July 19, 2015 Stage 15 looked like it might feature yet another breakaway, but the finished turned out to be too flat and hence too tempting for the sprint teams, and they kept things well in hand. After a largely uneventful if pretty fast chase, the field came together into the finish at Valence, and Andre Greipel out sprinted the field once again to take his third victory of the Tour. Peter Sagan tried gamely but came up short, finishing fourth and holding onto the green jersey.
Stage 16 - Mon July 20, 2015 The last of the four transition stages looked set to be perfect for a breakaway, and indeed the last chance for opportunists in this year's Tour. Two large breakaways escaped, with Peter Sagan once again animating the front in search of more green jersey points. Eventually the breakaways merged, leading to a series of attacks which were each pulled back.
That brings everyone to the second rest day. And then fireworks in the Alps!
Rest Day 2 - Tue July 21, 2015 The peloton reached the second rest day after a tough second week. A lot of tired legs gratefully took the day off. (But not too "off"; most riders still rode for a few hours to keep their bodies in race mode.) Immediately ahead lie four mountain stages in the Alps, including the queen stage and a mountaintop finish at Alpe d'Huez, and then the ceremonial final day's sprint in Paris. Some conclusions from the second week:
Stage 17 - Wed July 22, 2015 As predicted the first of four serious Alpine stages produced excitement and drama. A huge break of 31 riders took off early, hoping to be left alone, but there was a gradual shuffling and decanting that reduced the group to a small number of strong climbers. Further back the GC attacks came fast and furious, as Alberto Contador, Vincenzo Nibali, and Nairo Quintana each tried to take time on Chris Froome. And further back yet, in the days saddest story, Tejay Van Garderen suffered from a chest cold acquired on the rest day and was dropped immediately, before he finally withdrew from the Tour.
In the GC battle further down the hill the contenders tried everything to put pressure on Team Sky. In the end Quintana was able to beat Froome to the line, but didn't pull any time. Nibali gave up more time and Contador suffered an untimely crash at the foot of the final climb which cost him over two minutes, virtually ending any chance he might have at winning. It was a great day of racing with incredible views of the mountains as a backdrop; can't wait for tomorrow!
Stage 18 - Thu July 23, 2015 A long stage with seven categorized climbs including the massive HC Col du Glandon led to more great racing in the 2015 Tour's stage 18. Another large break of 29 riders got clear early, and it seemed any one of them might survive to the end, with the peloton mostly interested in the GC battle. There were two great races on the huge Glandon, the race for the stage, won by Romain Bardet as he slipped off and opened up a lead on the long long downhill, and the race for GC, featuring multiple attacks by all the usual suspects.
The race for King of the Mountains also heated up - finally! - with Joachim Rodriguez and Romain Bardet in a pitched battle. Sadly for both of them it's likely that the overall winner will have to do well in both of the final mountain stages to stay in front, and will probably win the KOM as well. Such is this year's course ... too much climbing and too many mountaintop finishes for there to be a separate King of the Mountains. It was great to see all the contenders animated and attacking, and it bodes well for tomorrow's queen stage of the Tour.
Stage 19 - Fri July 24, 2015 When the 2015 Tour route was announced Stage 19 looked to be decisive, and so it was, featuring an early Cat 1 climb right out of the gate up the Col du Chaussy, and then a huge HC climb up the Col de la Croix de Fer (the other side of the Col du Glandon from yesterday), a short climb up the steep Col du Mollard, a steep descent, and then finally a Cat 1 climb up to the finish at La Toussuire. It turned out to be one of the most eventful races of a colorful Tour. Unexpectedly Alberto Contador attacked right on the first climb, bringing along Alejandro Valverde and Team Sky's Geraint Thomas, and blowing up the peloton right from the start. Chris Froome soon found himself isolated for the first time all Tour, and for the first time seemed a bit vulnerable. On the long ascent of the Col de la Croix de Fer it seemed Astana and Vincenzo Nibali were massing for an attack. With about 5km to go Chris Froome had a slight mechanical and poof, Nibali picked that exact moment to attack.
Anyway Nibali pressed his attack and held it, winning the stage to gain back over a minute on Froome, and move solidly back into the top five. It was the first time all Tour that he seemed to have the resolve and power he had last year, and it makes one wonder what might have been, and what could happen tomorrow. Meanwhile on the final climb Nairo Quintana also attacked, and was also able to bring back time on Froome, about 30s. He moved to within a plausible attacking range of the overall lead, given the climbing on tap tomorrow. Too bad he and Valverde weren't able to sustain this type of one-two punch back in the Pyrenees. So it all sets up a great penultimate stage tomorrow, finishing atop Alpe d'Huez. Should be a perfect end to a great Tour!
Stage 20 - Sat July 25, 2015 Which brings us to stage 20, the final Alpine stage and the final "real" race of the 2015 Tour. This stage was originally supposed to pass over the Col du Galibier, but a tunnel blockage forced a re-route, and now the peloton passes over the Col de la Croix de Fer again, this time from the other side, before finishing atop the iconic Alpe d'Huez. The peloton pretty much held together over the first climb, but a small group of attackers got away on the descent including Thibaut Pinot and Ryder Hesjedal. Pinot ended up hanging on to win, gamely fighting his way through the massive crowds on the Alpe.
The final GC overall looks almost exactly as you might have predicted, with the "big four" of Froome, Quintana, Nibali, and Contador all in the top five, joined by Valverde. (Too bad Tejay Van Garderen dropped out, he had a real chance to break into that group.) The top ten was rounded out by more usual suspects, Robert Gesink, who had a great Tour, Bauke Mollema, Matthias Frank, Romain Bardet (the top French rider), and Pierre Roland. Whew. What a great day of racing, capping a great three weeks. And so tomorrow we have the final ceremonial stage to Paris, which will feature the final non-ceremonial and hotly contested sprint for the final win.
Stage 21 - Sun July 25, 2015 The final stage of the 2015 Tour was reached after an air transfer from Grenoble, and featured the usual picture opportunities and champagne toasts on the way into town, before the usual 13 increasingly furious circumlocutions of the Champs-Élysées. On this day the rain came, and the organizers chose to take the final times on the first pass through the finish line, neutralizing the race and avoiding any last minute mishaps. The road did dry a bit for the final, and the sun poked through, and Andre Greipel once again dominated his sprint compatriots to take his fourth stage win.
So ends another great Tour. Wow. As usual I can't quite believe it's over, and that I'll have to wait nearly a whole year for the next one. I would be remiss if I didn't mention the extreme lameness of NBCsn, who kept cutting away from the final stage to show some NASCAR race. They nearly missed the final podiums altogether, and there were no post-podium interviews or final thoughts from Phil and Paul, etc. Completely stupid and horrible planning to break away from the finale of a three week event, blech.
So the 2015 Tour de France is over. Yay and boo, it was great, and I'm sad it's over. Some final thoughts:
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Okay cycling fans, here's what you've been waiting for ... my galactic 2015 Tour de France post.
I've made one giant review post here, briefly recapping each of the tour stages. To enhance my enjoyment, I created Google Earth flybys of each stage - I've posted them here - and downloaded and edited each of the stages as broadcast on NBCsn - I've posted links to the torrents. 
Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen remain on top of their game (pictured at right), and the NBCsn supporting team of Todd Harris, Bob Roll, Christian
Vande Velde (pictured above), along with the inimitable Jens Voigt are excellent.
In the announcing peloton, Jens Voigt is rookie of the year. So often he makes an observation about the racing and you say "yeah, of course, that's obvious". But at first it was only obvious to him :)
Final Thoughts - Mon July 27, 2015
The on-screen graphics are getting better but the tech still lags way behind what could be done. In particular showing the gradient during climbs (as they do in the Giro and Vuelta) would be great, and showing the speed differential between the breakaway and the peloton. Each year they get a little better...
