Snow, rain, sleet, cold and wind - all ingredients for a fun day out on the bike for the riders at Paris-Nice
For a race nicknamed the ‘Race to the Sun’, there’s a significant lack of sun on stage one of Paris-Nice, with riders battling snow, rain, sleet and cold.
The 198km between Condé-sur-Vesgre and Vendôme, south west of Paris, will feel a lot longer in the very wintry conditions, with the support crews in the team cars tweeting the miserable conditions.
>>> Pro’s-eye view of the 2016 Paris-Nice prologue (video)
The Paris-Nice twitter account tweeted this video of the snow pouring out of the sky ahead of the race.
Etixx-Quick Step held a little competition – feel free to photoshop a sun in there to win…
They call it "The Race to the Sun". 10 points if you can spot the sun in today's #ParisNice stage 🙂 pic.twitter.com/UOiPamHsKd
— Quick-Step Cycling (@quickstepteam) March 7, 2016
BMC went down a similar line of wordplay.
Here's hoping that #ParisNice really will be 'the race to the sun' because right now, we've got snow! https://t.co/67NbZcFqau
— BMC Racing Team (@BMCProTeam) March 7, 2016
Commentator Rob Hatch is at the finish line for Eurosport, but it looks like it’s a pretty miserable place to be.
https://twitter.com/robhatchtv/status/706820894912544769
Surprisingly there are some bare legs on show in the peloton. Knee warmers are a must, but several riders not covering their calves – perhaps that’s why they’re at the back.
Il neige à nouveau sur @ParisNice / It's snowing again on @ParisNice #ParisNice pic.twitter.com/yrUWFPuw0r
— Paris-Nice (@ParisNice) March 7, 2016