Tour de France 23, Stage 2: Every Second Matters

Not one to miss a trick, Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) had the legs to catch the attacking Simon Yates (Jayco-Alula) and to hold off Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) to claim the eight bonus seconds over the top of the Cote de Jaizkibel.  Clearly he wanted to push on down the other side of the climb, but he couldn't convince Vingegaard to go on the attack with him.  Each of them have gone too deep in previous Tours to be willing to spend to much energy in only the second day of twenty one days of the Tour de France.

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.

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Tour de France 23, Stage 2: Who's Around

The final climb of the day included an eight second time bonus for the first one over the top.  Plus it was pretty much a downhill run to the finish line 16 kilometers later in Saint Sebastien.  Never one to miss an opportunity, Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates), in his requiste Maillot Blanc, kept his head on a swivel checking out who was where.  He had his primary rival of the Tour, Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) right in front of him, but needed to keep taps on Vingegaard's teammate, Wout Van Aert and the ever aggressive, Julian Alaphilippe (Soudal-Quick Step).  He must have felt the Frenchman on his shoulder since he snapped his head in his direction as soon as the leader of Soudal-Quick Step moved up beside him.  However, to gain those bonus seconds they all still needed to pull back just over a minute on the lone fiugre in the Maillot a Pois.

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.

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Tour de France 23, Stage 2: Never Really Alone

Not the the French fans stay home, but the Basque fans seemed to be three deep along every kilometer particularly on every climb over the first to stages of the 2023 Tour.  By the time Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost) got to the penultimate climb of the day, the Cote de Gurutze, he had dropped his erstwhile break away companions.  While he may have been alone off the front of the peloton (by almost two minutes) he was hardly alone out on the climb.  Much has been made of the respect that the fans have been giving the riders, and I agree that none have truly endangered the peloton with foolish selfies and crazed running or flare burning, but I sure don't want that many people yelling in my face.

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.

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Tour de France 23, Stage 2: A Job to Do

With the Maillot Jaune on one of your teammates, it is your job to set the pace for the whole peloton, oft time all stage long.  While Tadej Pogacar is his team leader, his teammate Adam Yates is the one clad all in yellow at the back of the UAE Team Emirates line.  MIkkel Bjerg and Vegard Stake Laengen swapped turns on the front in the long slow chase of the rather strong three man break up the road.  Marc Soler was the man right in front of Pogacar clad now in the Maillot Blanc of best young rider.  At this point they were still over four minutes behind the Maillot a Pois of Neilson Powless with another 64 kilometers left to race to Saint Sebastien.  Has UAE misjudged the effort?

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. 

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Tour de France 23, Stage 2: More to Be Had

Sporting the Polka Dot jersey of the King of the Mountains, the American Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost) managed to jump across to Edvald Boasson Hagen (TotalEnergies) who had started the early break away.  The duo was soon joined by Remi Cavagna (Soudal-Quick Step).  Powless was there in hopes of adding to his lead in the KOM competition and the others seemed to be riding for a stage victory.  As they approached the summit of the first climb of the day, the Col d'Udana. they had built up an almost five minute lead on the following peloton.  Powless put in a successful dig to get over this climb first, but the others didn't give him much fight.  In fact they let him claim maximum points over the first four climbs 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. 

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Tour de France 23, Stage 1: Embracing Yellow

The Yates twins did managed to hold off the peloton to fight out the win in Bilbao between themselves.  Adam Yates (UAE-Team Emirates) was able to come around his brother Simon (Jayco-Alula) to claim the first Maillot Jaune of the 2023 Tour de France.  Simon had done a lot of the work to keep the two away so just didn't quite have the legs to stay with Adam in the final meters of the stage.  Adam gained four seconds on his brother at the end of the stage, and had a 12 second gap back to the rest of the contenders.  Since he will be pulling on the Maillot Jaune, Simon will start stage two in the Maillot Vert as the second place rider in that competition.  Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost) will wear the Maillot a Pois, and it should come as no surprise that Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates will wear the Maillot Blanc of best young rider due to his third place finish on the stage.

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. 

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Tour de France 23, Stage 1: Riding Alike

I tried hard to come up with a title that embraced the uniqueness of this moment.  I doubt that a pair of twins have ever sprinted for a stage victory that would also award the Maillot Jaune in the Tour in its over hundred year history.  That is exactly what is going on, Simon Yates (Jayco-Alula) had gotten away on the final descent with his twin brother, Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates) in tow.  The two opened up a ten second gap on the marquee riders of the Tour rather quickly.  They worked together descending the Cote de Pike continuing to build on their advantage.  With a climb up to the finish line in Bilbao, it was a good chance the two climbers would be able to vie for stage honors between themselves.  

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-2023/3962895-4-297438/Painting/riding-alike-tdf23-4.html

 

Tour de France 23, Stage 1: Sprinting for Polka Dots

Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost) was just able to out sprint a frustrated Georg Zimmerman (Intermache-Circus-Wanty) to claim the five KOM points on offer at the top of the Cote de Vivero.  Given the climbs Cat 2 rating, it gave the American on the American team enough points to pull on the Maillot a Pois at the end of the opening stage of this year's Tour.  Zimmermann pounded his bars in disappointment, but then reached out and congratulated Powless on this sprint.  No sense making any enemies in the peloton on the first day of the Tour.

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. 

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Tour de France 23, Stage 1: The Best of the Rest

With the five man break away still up the road, the intermediate sprint in Gernika-Lumo was for sixth place.  But, the race for the Maillot Vert is all about earning points everyday, not just winning stages.  So is was Mads Pedersen in the new colors of Lidl-Trek out sprinting a resurgent Peter Sagan (TotalEnergies) with Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) just on the wheel of the retiring Sagan.  With the larger share of points already gone, and even more to be awarded at the finish, Pedersen was not destined for the sprinter's jersey today.  But with two more lumpy days to go before the flat stages he may yet have a chance to wear green.

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.

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Tour de France 23, Stage 1: Who Is Going to Chase?

When Jonas Gregaard (Uno-X) had attacked the second time on the first climb of this year's Tour, Balentin Ferron (TotalEnergies) and Simon Guglielmi (Arkea-Samsic) looked at each other hoping the other would take up the chase.  These three had been joined by two others in the early break away.  They managed to stay away for roughly a 100 kilometers, but with a Yellow Jersey awaiting the winner of the stage, their efforts were doomed from the start.  While they traded the lead in the King of the Mountains competition amongst themselves, they were caught before the big climb of the day.  Perhaps one of them will come away with the most Aggressive Rider prize, but otherwise they came away empty handed in the end.

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.

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