The first road stage is the longest of the opening week, 214 km out of the principality and north west into Provence. It carries more than 2,300 metres of climbing without a single hard ascent, because the road through the Var and the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence almost never stays level for long. The finish at Manosque, a market town on the edge of the Luberon, comes at the end of a gradual rise rather than a climb. Days like this are decided by whether the breakaway is given room, and by how much the mistral off the plateau splits the bunch. For the overall contenders the job is to stay upright and near the front. The race remains in France for two more days.