Why do Tour de France cyclists ride their bikes on rest days?

New York Times

3 days ago

You're two-thirds of the way into the most gruelling, demanding bike race on earth.
You've ridden 2,389 kilometres (1,484 miles) in the previous couple of weeks, with a solid proportion of those being up and down some of France's most unrelenting mountains.
Throw in the searing heat, the crashes, the incessant aches and pains, plus the intensity and the nervousness that cycling in the Tour de France brings on a daily basis and, when you've got a day off, you might never want to see a bike again.
So what do you do on your rest day? You get on your bike of course.
It's a curious notion, but one that is backed up by science. Not that all the 166 riders still in the race who have a free day in Montpellier today (Monday, July 21) will do the same thing.
A few may choose not to ride at all, perhaps to alleviate minor injuries or irritations, but most will get the legs pumping.
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'The main aim for us is that it's a real recovery day,' Loic Segaert, a coach for Bahrain Victorious, told The Athletic.
'The ride also shouldn't be an obligation — we want to have them all on the bike to have an active recovery, to not have sore legs the day after, but on the ride itself, actually we leave our guys free.
'We will motivate them to not ride all day at 20kph, let's say, and to have zero force on the pedals — but if somebody just wants to do it steadily, easy, this is fine.
'A few others will try to raise the heart rate a little bit to get some effort done, to not go too fresh into the next day, to stay in the rhythm.
'It also depends on what your target is for the next stage.'
Rest day on #TDF2025 = Coffee ride ☕️🚴‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/5qUVvSst49
— Équipe Cycliste Groupama-FDJ (@GroupamaFDJ) July 15, 2025
Riders who are targeting getting in the breakaway the following day may have a more active rest day than others, then.
The day after this rest day sees the riders head up one of the most iconic cycling destinations in the world, Mont Ventoux. It will be a brutal, punishing experience and going up stiff and cold isn't really an option.
Former Team Sky rider Russell Downing once explained how an inactive rest day cost him dearly during his Grand Tour debut in the 2011 Giro d'Italia.
'It was a hard race, the weather was bad and by the first rest day I was really tired,' he told Cycling Weekly.
'The others asked if I was going with them, but it was cold and raining and I said I'd go on the turbo in the hotel basement instead. I did that for about 45 minutes, just very easy, then went back upstairs to lie down.
'Next day, I was nailed for the whole stage, just hanging on. I was OK the day after, but I'd learnt my lesson and rode with the boys on the next rest day.
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'If you don't ride reasonably hard on the rest day, your body thinks you've stopped and switches off ready for deep recovery. You've got to keep it firing for the whole three weeks.'
Another staple part of the rest day, other than media and sponsor duties, is finding a good coffee shop.
Which pastries have the Tour de France riders been eating on their rest day? 🥐🧁 pic.twitter.com/875dR9VdI1
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) July 15, 2025
Segaert says that was high on Bahrain Victorious' priority list during last week's rest day.
'Just have an easy ride, good roads, no stress, find a nice coffee stop, which was a pretty popular one as I heard half of the bunch was there,' Segaert adds.
'For them, (coffee) is part of being relaxed. Maybe you and me, we are happy to go to a bar in the evening and drink a beer. Let's say this is their relaxing time, their chatting time, a little bit of holiday during this three-week big effort.
'Massage is also part of (the rest day), osteo-treatment is part of it. As on the day before, we had a long transfer post-stage, and there was actually no option to do it in the evening.
'The rest day is one day they can sleep for longer in the morning, have a relaxed breakfast, go for a ride, have a free afternoon except for a one-hour massage, and 30 minutes of osteotreatment. Maybe if some of them have family or a girlfriend passing at the hotel, they can have a relaxing afternoon and then an early dinner and sleep.'
Enjoying the rest day coffee ride ☕✅ pic.twitter.com/CeXOQWEGMQ
— #TeamVingegaard (@vingeupdates) July 15, 2025
It's a day to relax – but switching off during the Tour de France isn't really an option, as none other than Netherlands national team manager Ronald Koeman observed when he joined Visma–Lease a Bike during last Tuesday's rest day.
Koeman was surprised that pretty much anyone can join in a team's rest day ride, with amateur cyclists following the pros around France.
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'There's so much money in cycling — people invest in nutrition, fitness and data — and then some idiot who rides along as an amateur just bumps into Jonas Vingegaard,' he told WielerFlits.
'I find it truly unbelievable that this is possible and allowed. It's nice that they're so approachable, but a bit of safety and peace of mind are also important.'
Honored to welcome the visit of football legend Ronald Koeman during the Tour de France rest day ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/uu6YCwtvQf
— Intermarché-Wanty (@IntermarcheW) July 15, 2025
Vingegaard concurred, adding: 'I actually agree with it. I remember a reconnaissance from two years ago of the time trial to Combloux. Several cyclists were also riding there, and they almost brought Wilco Kelderman down. It can indeed be dangerous.'
EF Education EasyPost rider Kasper Asgreen rode 40 kilometres on last Tuesday's rest day.
He told The Athletic: 'I think it's very individual. I've also had team-mates who prefer to just take the day off. For me, I prefer to ride easy. I did a bit of a shorter loop than some of the other guys today.
'Some guys do a bit longer, some do efforts. I think it's just whatever you feel comfortable with really and what makes you feel good the next day. Luckily, we go through a lot of kilometres in a year, so you have a pretty good idea of what you normally like to do.
'For my own self, just really easy, 180, 200 watts, spinning the legs, but yes, like I said, some guys also like to go out and either do some sprints or some longer efforts at threshold or zone three or whatever, like it's highly individual.'
Additional reporting by Jacob Whitehead