Orica Greenedge romp to fastest TTT ever putting Gerrans into Yellow

For the longest time it looked as though the Omega Pharma Quick Step boys would win the day having set the fastest time and the fastest average speed in team-time-trial history, but then the unlikely winners in Orica-GreenEdge arrived up the Promenade des Anglais in Nice at an average speed of 57.841 kilometres per hour to beat them by three quarters of a second and put their man, and stage two winner, Simon Gerrans into the Yellow jersey.

The Australian team certainly send their nine riders over the finish line with greater effect than they do the team-bus, and their average speed was enough to beat the 57.324 km/h set by Lance Armstrong's Discovery Channel team back in 2005. And before you start to panic by drawing a link between that team and their shady past and this Tour, remember that Orica-GreenEdge put their marker in over a 25 kilometre course that was completely flat on a beautiful day on the South coast of France. By comparison the Discovery Channel time was set over a much longer 67.5 kilometre course.

It was a fantastic stage and for me watching it brought back fine memories of being in Nice. I arrived there two years ago to the day on my honeymoon, which left me wondering whether I got married two years too early or the tour arrived two years too late? Wouldn't my wife have been delighted when having rolled into town and upon wondering what the large crowds were all about I informed her that, "What a coincidence, the Tour just so happens to be here also." Nice is a nice city, it's got a fantastic beach and in the old part of town there are some quaint little restaurants squeezed into those little narrow cobbled streets.