Stage 8 - Tour de France 2020

Stage 8 Cazeres-sur-Garonne to Loudenvielle  140 km; 3701 total climbing; 1748m Max elevation ; 13% max grade; 3 climbs 1 sprint.  I read a comment on Twitter from one of the best riders that they thought the way the tour was laid out with one sprint in the middle of difficult climbs each day leads to sprinters mixed in with the climbers for too long in the race each day.  I guess we will see as they go into the Alps next week.
This stage turned out to be as exciting as yesterday's race.  The French Primate Minister was a guest in the Official Race car today.
13 riders were in the breakaway.  It was mentioned that the Pyrenees can be scarey because they are shorter and steeper than those in the Alps.  I posted a photo of the windy descent above if you don't think that isn't true.
If I were to be there in person I would probably choose to be at the roadside on a climb so you can actually see the entire Tour come by a lot slower and can cheer them on.  Even with Covid-19 masks were worn by all the fans and Tour officials and some of the fans get very carried away with how close they come to the riders near the top.  Chris Horner told us after his Tour in Bend (Joe participated) that it really pumps the riders up to have fans cheering and running beside them as they getting towards the top of a climb.  It still makes me nervious, especially when they touch them!  
A race favorite to win the Tour coming in is Thibaut Pinot from Groupama-FDJ was off the back with his team surrounding him, encouraging him to keep going and this was to be the story of the day because his hopes to keep cclose to the other favorites were now dashed.
The breakaway did very well the entire way to the finish.  Nans Peters  of AG2$ La Mondiale won the stage. American Neilson Powless again was in the breakaway attacking and almost crashed rounding a corner into the grass with the fans and came right back out again like nothing had happened - he finished 5th.