Yesterday’s 10.9km dash from Loudenvielle to the altiport at Peyragudes was everything a laboratory style threshold test tries to be: short enough to demand an unbroken, near maximal effort, yet long and steep enough (8km at ~7.8%, ramping to 16% on the runway) to expose every watt per kilogram you can or cannot produce. In other words, Stage 13 gave us the rare privilege of watching the world’s best climbers sit a public Functional Threshold Power (FTP) exam — with TV cameras as invigilators.
1. Pogacar vs. Vingegaard: the numbers never lie
Tadej Pogacar covered the course in 23 min flat, distancing Jonas Vingegaard by 36cs and stretching his overall Tour lead to 4min07s. (Reuters) Vingegaard called the ride “one of my best performances”, and that is precisely what makes the gap so telling: both men emptied the tank, yet Pogacar still had margin. Given how close they usually track on long climbs, I suspect the Slovenian could have found another handful of seconds had the yellow jersey been in doubt.
Remco Evenepoel’s deficit — 2min39s on the day and now 7min24s on GC — confirms what pure physiology predicted: his flat TT horsepower doesn’t fully transfer once the gradient tilts past 8%.
2. Equipment choices: aero versus agile
On paper, the opening 2–3km of the valley floor rewarded an aggressive aero position. Vingegaard arrived with a full TT rig (aerobars, deep helmet, slabsided frame), whereas Pogacar rolled down the start ramp on a stripped back climbing bike — bottle cages and all. Conventional wisdom would have handed the first time check to Vingegaard, yet Pogacar was already fastest at the 4km split.
The lesson is simple: Pogacar was so much stronger than Vingegaard that he set the fastest opening split on the flat section despite riding a less aero, lighter climbing setup—exactly where the Dane’s wind cheating bars and helmet should have given him free speed. When raw threshold power is that superior, the watts you lose to extra drag barely register, while the extra weight and cramped hip angle of a full TT rig quickly become liabilities once the road tilts to 8?%.
3. Why this really was a threshold test
Look at the power requirements TopEndSports previewed: 6.0-6.8 W/kg for ~17min on the main climb, then 7.5-8.5W/kg for the final minute on the runway. That is textbook “upper threshold then anaerobic capacity kicker” — identical to the classic 20-minute FTP test many of us run each winter, only performed at 1,600m altitude under global scrutiny.
Because the effort sits so squarely on the lactate turnpoint, yesterday’s finishing order is likely to stay intact on the four remaining summit finishes unless someone implodes metabolically or the weather turns epic.
4. Translating the pro spectacle to your own training
- Benchmark your climb: Find an 6-8km ascent that lasts 18-20min at race pace. Ride it after a solid warm-up, treating the first 2km as controlled tempo before settling at 95-98% of recent FTP, then sprint the final 500 m. Compare your average power to past tests.
- Pace by perceived exertion, not devices: Pogacar rode without a radio and still nailed his splits. Once a month switch off the power screen and climb by feel; it sharpens internal pacing and confidence.
5. What to watch for next
Stage 14 strings together Aspin, Tourmalet and Peyresourde before the drag race up to Luchon-Superbagnères, a route that rewards patience as much as panache. I expect Vingegaard to bide his time, letting the cumulative altitude meters sap everyone’s legs rather than throwing early haymakers. If he can stay welded to Pogacar’s wheel until the final kilometre, a stage win is still on the cards—even if reclaiming yellow looks unrealistic with a four-minute deficit.
That said, the Tour is long, the Pyrenean heat can be merciless, and altitude has humbled giants before. Shadowing Pogacar, conserving matches, and being ready to pounce should the Slovenian falter is Vingegaard’s safest path to the podium—and, should a miracle unfold, to seizing centre stage.
Closing thought
I’ve spent two decades linking lab data to road results, and few Tour stages have illustrated that bridge as starkly as this mountain TT. It wasn’t only a two horse show, either—Red Bull BORA’s Primož Roglic and Florian Lipowitz punched in the third and fourth fastest times, underlining their credentials as stage hunters on the four summit finishes still to come.
If you ever doubt the relevance of your own threshold test, replay the Peyragudes footage: same science, just a bigger stage. Now go find your local climb, pin a virtual number on, and see where you’d rank in your own personal Stage 13. Better yet, keep watching the Tour—every watt the pros fight for is a master class waiting to be applied on your next training ride, and Roglic or Lipowitz may yet turn those watts into a late race victory.
Ride smart, test hard, and enjoy the show.