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Denmark's Michael Rasmussen wins the gruelling 16th stage of the Tour de France in which 77 riders struggled home more than 44minutes after the victor
Never has so much grinding effort and pain been accompanied by such visual beauty and pleasure.
On days such as Wednesday, Tour de France riders become enveloped in a self-absorbed bubble of suffering and sweat as they move remorselessly through some of the most gorgeous, seductive scenery on earth. The outside world simply doesn't exist.
The contrast between the unfolding drama and the stage on which it is played out is mind blowing.
On the one hand, world-class athletes, at the end of their tether, are enduring the worst and most agonising days of their lives, heads down staring at the melting road or heart monitors, palsied mouths sucking greedily in search of oxygen.
No thoughts of the surrounding grandeur and the majestic eagles circling overhead. Or perhaps they were vultures sensing the kill?
On the other hand, sun-kissed spectators were enjoying their day of all days.
They listened to the radio, yarning with friends, heads up in amazement and drinking in new vistas.
One man's party quickly becomes another's purgatory; witness Floyd Landis cracking up late in the day on the Villarembert, the yellow jersey in tatters and perhaps a career in ruins.
Landis is booked in for a "career-saving" hip operation in September but after this capitulation does he have a career worth saving?
All America had been expecting him to assume Lance Armstrong's role of superhero but Armstrong never fell apart like this. After such a body blow, Landis needed to ride like never before to restore his reputation and self-respect.
At least Landis wasn't suffering alone. There was humiliation in every team hotel last night. An unprecedented group of 77 stragglers limped home 44 minutes 1 second after winner Michael Rasmussen - well beyond the cut-off point. For once, though, Tour organisers showed mercy and allowed them, en bloc, to continue to Paris.
The local tourist board wasn't complaining. It was on its knees earlier this week praying for the stormy weather to clear and was rewarded with a perfect day for the most scenic, as well as the toughest, stage of the 2006 tour. Just watch the holiday bookings soar next year after this television spectacular.
The edited highlights included the endless, and endlessly beautiful, Galibier before the peloton tackled the fabulous Croix de Fer and finally the 18 kilometres climb up to La Toussuire, which did for Landis and many others. The Galibier is the queen of them all - the highest col appearing regularly on the tour at 2645 metres and the third highest crossed by the race.
The tour's founder, Henri Desgrange, once proclaimed: "Oh Col Bayard, oh Tormalet! I will not shirk from my duty in proclaiming that beside the Galibier you are nothing but a pale baby; in front of this giant we can nothing but take off our hats and bow."
Which leads us to Federico Bahamontes, making his debut on the Galibier in 1954. The Spanish-born son of a Cuban immigrant won the King of the Mountains competition six times but was a shocking descendeur, taking corners with leg outstretched acting as an extra brake.
The first time he tackled the Galibier he arrived at the top 10 minutes in front but famously pulled over to enjoy an ice cream with fans.
Eventually, the chasing group arrived and Bahamontes bade farewell to his new friends before tucking in behind a known descendeur with local knowledge who would pick the best line.
It was perceived at the time as a PR stunt or an act of madness. Possibly, but there are those who would argue that Bahamontes should actually have been applauded for his sanity, a rare outbreak of such a balanced approach to life on the tour.
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