<figure ><img title="Cycling: 102nd Tour de France / Stage 13" src="http://cdn.velonews.competitor.com/files/2015/07/20155085-275465-320x213.jpg"/><p>Jean-Christophe Péraud spent Friday evening covered in bandages after a bad crash, but he made the start for Saturday's stage 14 undeterred. Photo: Tim De Waele | <a href="http://www.tdwsport.com" target="_blank">TDWsport.com</a></p></figure><p>RODEZ, France (VN) — Jean-Christophe Péraud (Ag2r-La Mondiale) left the peloton in awe Friday when he crashed hard, got back on his bike, and rode all the way to the line covered in blood, bandages, and bruises.</p>
<p>Nothing was going to stop the 38-year-old French veteran. After race doctors attended to his horrific abrasions, Péraud even brought water bottles up to his teammates. </p>
<p>And on Saturday, a battered but not beaten Péraud toed up to the start line. </p>
<p>“Between the heat and the wounds, I expect a tough day,” Péraud told AFP on Saturday. “I didn’t sleep well last night, and I woke up a few times from the pain. I hope to have better days ahead.”</p>
<p>At about 135km into Friday’s hot broiler of a stage, Péraud crashed heavily on rough tarmac as the peloton clipped along at a high pace. Though he quickly remounted, the cuts and abrasions looked horrific. Blood poured off his left arm and hip, made even worse by the heat and sweat.</p>
<p>“Jean-Christophe is a tough guy,” said Ag2r-La Mondiale manager Vincent Lavenu. “He proved it last year with second in the Tour, and he proved it again [Friday]. He deserves the accolades, he’s an example.”</p>
<p>Péraud suffered gashes, cuts, and scrapes to his left side, but X-rays overnight revealed no broken bones. AFP reported it took team staffers 45 minutes to dress his wounds before Saturday’s stage.</p>
<p>This Tour hasn’t gone the way he wanted. A winner at the Critérium International in March, Péraud’s podium hopes faded in the Pyrénées, when he lost nearly 22 minutes on the stage to Cauterets. </p>
<p>Despite the GC disappointment, his courage Friday reconfirmed his reputation as one tough customer.</p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="http://velonews.competitor.com/2015/07/news/peloton-in-awe-of-peraud_378603">Pelotonin awe of Peraud</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="http://velonews.competitor.com">VeloNews.com</a>.</p>
View the full article
<p>Nothing was going to stop the 38-year-old French veteran. After race doctors attended to his horrific abrasions, Péraud even brought water bottles up to his teammates. </p>
<p>And on Saturday, a battered but not beaten Péraud toed up to the start line. </p>
<p>“Between the heat and the wounds, I expect a tough day,” Péraud told AFP on Saturday. “I didn’t sleep well last night, and I woke up a few times from the pain. I hope to have better days ahead.”</p>
<p>At about 135km into Friday’s hot broiler of a stage, Péraud crashed heavily on rough tarmac as the peloton clipped along at a high pace. Though he quickly remounted, the cuts and abrasions looked horrific. Blood poured off his left arm and hip, made even worse by the heat and sweat.</p>
<p>“Jean-Christophe is a tough guy,” said Ag2r-La Mondiale manager Vincent Lavenu. “He proved it last year with second in the Tour, and he proved it again [Friday]. He deserves the accolades, he’s an example.”</p>
<p>Péraud suffered gashes, cuts, and scrapes to his left side, but X-rays overnight revealed no broken bones. AFP reported it took team staffers 45 minutes to dress his wounds before Saturday’s stage.</p>
<p>This Tour hasn’t gone the way he wanted. A winner at the Critérium International in March, Péraud’s podium hopes faded in the Pyrénées, when he lost nearly 22 minutes on the stage to Cauterets. </p>
<p>Despite the GC disappointment, his courage Friday reconfirmed his reputation as one tough customer.</p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="http://velonews.competitor.com/2015/07/news/peloton-in-awe-of-peraud_378603">Pelotonin awe of Peraud</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="http://velonews.competitor.com">VeloNews.com</a>.</p>
View the full article
