Tour de France 23, Stage 15: Follow the Leader

It may have been more accurate to title this painting, "Catch the Leader."  Marc Soler (UAE-Team Emirates) had jumped away from the group of leaders as they went over the top of the Col des Aravis.  He got a good advantage but didn't quite have the same level of descending skills as Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma).  Van Aert made up the deficit going back down the other side of the climb.  While both Krists Neilands (Israel-Premier Tech) and Wout Poels (Bahrain-Victorious) struggled to stay with Van Aert they did keep the Belgium in sight.  With 42 kilometers to go, they looked to be the group that would decide the stage.  The only possible variant is the both Soler and Van Aert have the top two guys in the general classification and they could get called to wait to help their leaders on the final climb of the day.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The painting was created using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from www.Richesonart.com. The work sells for $95 USD including shipping, but yes international shipping is both available and extra.

https://www.greigleach.com/large-multi-view/Tour-de-France--Tour-de-France-Femmes-2023/3965817-97-297438/Painting/follow-the-leader-tdf23-97.html

 

Tour de France 23, Stage 15: A Virtual Tie

Alas, all of the work Neilson Powless EF Education-EasyPost) has been doing to claim the Maillot a Pois and holding it longer than any American has ever done in the Tour meant he was unable to stay with the leaders on the next climb of the day.  So when Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) went over the top of the next climb, the Col de Aravis, his sprint went unchallenged.  It was cleared that Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) didn't have much interest in the King of the Mountains competition as he went over in second place.  More surprising was the Powless' teammate Rigoberto Uran didn't try to get the maximum points thus depriving the maximum points going to Ciccone.  Without doing that, Ciccone moved into a virtual tie with the American on the American team.  Since Ciccone had bested Powless on the two climbs thus far, he now had the virtual lead on the road.  It seemed unlikely that he would need to worry about the erstwhile wearer of the coveted Maillot a Pois.  In the distance you can just make out another of the American's in the race. That is Lawson Craddock (Jayco-Alula) riding on the Australian team.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The painting was created using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from www.Richesonart.com. The work sells for $95 USD including shipping, but yes international shipping is both available and extra.

https://www.greigleach.com/large-multi-view/Tour-de-France--Tour-de-France-Femmes-2023/3965799-96-297438/Painting/a-virtual-tie-tdf23-96.html

Tour, Stage 20: Never Give Up

Yesterday, Rafal Majka (Tinkoff) ensured that the Maillot a Pois was his, but there is always a chance that something could go wrong.  Bearing that in mind, Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal) was the guy who launched the break away with the intention of claiming as many points in the King of the Mountain competition as possible.  Plus each jersey comes with cash prized for the top three finishers, so making sure he was second, was good for the spirit and the pocketbook.  So it was that he jumped free of his break away companions and went over the top of the Col des Aravis.  De Gendt went on to go first over the top of first three climbs on the day.  Once done, he knew that his second place was safe.

This is a small original watercolor and ink painting that was created using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from Jack Richeson & Company.  This painting, along with all of my cycling art, is available through my artist website at www.greigleach.com.  While you are on the site, be sure to check out my other works of art and my two cycling books.  To purchase this particular painting, just follow the direct link at the end of this post.  Bear in mind that this is a one of a kind original and once it is gone, it is gone.

Be sure to check out my second cycling art book, Art of Cycling: Richmond 2015 UCI Road World Championships, available online or through your local book seller.

To buy this painting, follow this link:

http://www.greigleach.com/large-multi-view/Tour%20de%20France%202016/2828123-145-224974/PaintingNever%20Give%20Up%20TdF146-Greig-Leach.html#.V5QA0LgrLIU