Today’s stage begins in La Baule, whose eight-kilometre beach was the site of the very first Tour village in 1988. It’s a coast-to-coast ride (admittedly the same coast), as we’ll finish a few miles north in Sarzeau, after plunging into the Breton countryside and enjoying some of the quiet country lanes that have helped Brittany become the region of France where cycling is most popular (and there’s some stiff competition!). We’re likely to be helped along by the wind for the first 100km, but we’ll probably have it in our faces as we head back towards the Atlantic.
