It's now just over a week until the greatest annual sporting event on earth begins: the Tour de France. On 1st July the peloton tackle a 14km time trial through the streets of Dusseldorf followed by 9 flat stages favouring sprinters, 5 hilly stages for the rouleurs and breakaway riders, 5 mountain stages for the climbers and finishing with a 22.5km time trial in Marseille before the coronation of the Yellow jersey bearer in Paris.
It's shaping up to be a classic. Have we seen the end of Froome's dominance after his disappointing form in the Dauphine? Could his old ally, Richie Porte, slay the Sky monster? Will Quintana be able to achieve what he failed to do at the Giro? Is it to be Bardet's year - a rare French win? Or is Valverde's cunning and racing acumen going to steal the thunder from the GC favourites?
Nairo Quintana on a recce of one this year's mountain stages
Ride Velo have set up a Fantasy Tour de France pool on Scorito to keep your interest in the race going if it should start to flag on any transitional or sprint stages. You get to choose a group of 20 riders within a restricted budget. From that group of 20 you can choose 9 riders from each stage that you think will perform well on the day depending on the terrain. You also get to name a captain for each stage who will score double points.
At the end of the three weeks we should have a clear winner who will receive a prize from Ride Velo of the T-shirt or cycling print of your choice from our online shop. Who's going to be the real cycling expert?
Make sure you sign up before the 1st July for a chance to play and win. It's all FREE! Just click on this link to sign up.
