Apart from a quick incursion into the city centre, most of this is alongside the river Rhine, dead flat and dead fast. It is an early chance for the favourites to figure out who is where, and being relatively long for a first-day time trial, stronger time triallists like Chris Froome could gain some useful seconds.
The first major stress for the main men, with a nasty little third-category climb to the Vauban citadel at the finish. Often it is down to crashes or punctures as the field fight for position as Richie Porte can testify. The first set-piece summit finish on the short, brutal climb to a small ski station in the middle of nowhere where Froome won in If he loses even a few seconds, the pressure will be on.
A first dose of mountain work; the 12km first-category climb just before the finish is long enough to burn off any weaker elements and the 10km across a plateau gives them no chance to regain contact. Relatively easy with a pancake flat finish, so a return to terrain that suits the sprinters who have made it through the early mountains.
Each year has its dominant fastman and with Cavendish missing several months because of glandular fever , the smart money is on Kittel, who has age and experience on his side. Even flatter than the previous day, with only one fourth-category bump as the Pyrenees looms on the horizon. The big issue in these parts is often the summer sun.
This is the second of only three summit finishes — so it is a vital chance to gain time for any climbers. Continuing the trend for short, sharp mountain stages, this has three first-cat climbs in just over 60 miles. That means all bets are off. It is short enough to encourage some serious attacks.
