Why Sunday’s stage of the Tour de Yorkshire might be the hardest ever on British soil

Yorkshire is known for its testing roads and demanding climbs, but stage four of this year’s Tour de Yorkshire could well be the hardest ever laid out on British soil. We previewed part of the course with Madison-Genesis to see what lies ahead on Sunday - Photos by Luke Webber/Madison

Madison Genesis take a look at the route of stage four of the 2018 Tour de Yorkshire.

(Image credit: Luke Webber)

With the rain lashing against my hotel window, riding the punishing stage four of this year’s Tour de Yorkshire isn’t exactly appealing. I start to wonder if my subconscious has made me forget my helmet on purpose — the perfect excuse for staying indoors.

Either way, no such reprieve is given as Connor Swift has a spare helmet in the back of his van — he hadn’t been sure which colour would suit him best when leaving the house. His indecision has ‘saved’ me.

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Paul Knott is a fitness and features writer, who has also presented Cycling Weekly videos as well as contributing to the print magazine as well as online articles.  In 2020 he published his first book, The Official Tour de France Road Cycling Training Guide (Welbeck), a guide designed to help readers improve their cycling performance via cherrypicking from the strategies adopted by the pros.