Rolland received his nickname in the French press after his win at the La Toussuire ski resort last week followed a victory in the l'Alpe d'Huez in 2011. Evans, Rolland and the 154 other riders left in the 99th Tour will have plenty of time to ponder the upcoming one-two punch that is the 16th and 17th stages of the Tour ? as the Pyrenees mountains are visible on the horizon from Pau, the medieval city where the race pauses for its last rest day. A little bit of a lie-in, a couple miles out on the bike to keep the momentum going, a bite to eat, massage, media, a meal, sleep. Among the Pyrenean peaks that will haunt riders' dreams on their day off are a chain of mountains so difficult they have been known as the "Circle of Death" since they first became part of the Tour course in 1910. The 99-mile route from Samatan to Pau had a mostly flat layout, but teams with strong sprinters didn't try to chase down the breakaway riders as fatigue kicked in following a fast start.
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