Quote Originally Posted by VanChilds View Post
Well I get the "Hey go get me a latte" support but I don't really understand during the actual race. I would think you would set the highest sustainable pace for each leg.
First of all, you have to realize just how much of a difference it makes in cycling whether you are leading a group (ie. being head front in the wind) or just keeping the wheel of a person in front of you. Except for on steep uphill climbs, this really makes all the difference in the world.

It is therefore a prerequisite for any 'captain' hoping to do well in the race to have helpers, willing to exhaust themselves in order to enhance the chances of their teammate. If everybody were just racing as individuals, no one would have any incentive to not just hide themselves in the bunch, saving the energy for later. In other words, the race would most likely get very slow and boring, except for - maybe - the last 15-20 km.

Furthermore, a stage race like this includes, as amat mentioned, a variety of different types of stages, and those varieties appeal to different kinds of cyclists.

For example, Fabian Cancellera is by far the best time trialist in the world at the moment, as he showed winning stage 1, but while those 80 kg of musclemass work to his benefit riding alone on a flat road in the wind (or downhill), the 45kg mountain specialist will beat him on a mountain finish every time. The lightweight climber, on the other hand, will have no chance in the finish on the more flat stages, when the sprinters (eg. four-time stage winner Mark Cavendish) hits the finish line with 75-80 km/hour. Of course, the ones with a chance to win the overall race, are the ones capable of both riding in the mountains, time trials etc.

Anyway, most teams will feature a diverse group of riders in order to give the team a chance to compete in the varuous dimensions of the race. E.g. Team Cervelo has last years winner Carlos Sastre, a light Spaniard who excel (only) in the mountains, and Thor Hushovd, a Norwegian sprinter who is maybe the favorite to take the (also rather prestigious) sprinter's jersey, but who will be severely struggling the moment the riders hit the bigger mountans.