Tejay van Garderen has been climbing really well in the first part of the Tour de France and is now going into his first big test in the Alps. The American just wants to continue his steady riding and hopes to move up the overall standings by virtue of his consistency.

Daniel Oss was eighth for the BMC Racing Team in Thursday's bunch sprint finish and teammate Tejay van Garderen moved from seventh to sixth in the overall standings on the eve of the Tour de France's first day in the Alps. Oss notched his fourth top 10 result of the race, adding to a sixth-place finish on Stage 7 and 10th place on Stages 3 and 4.

"We tried another sprint and I have to thank the team," Oss said. "We are trying as much as possible to get onto the podium or to get a win. We also feel good with Tejay. He is staying safe. So we are looking forward with him, too."

Alexander Kristoff (Team Katusha) took the stage win of the 185.5-kilometer race ahead of points classification leader Peter Sagan (Cannondale Pro Cycling) and French national road champion Arnaud Démare (FDJ.fr).

Van Garderen finished 39th and in the same time as the stage winner. His move up the overall standings occurred as previous fifth place rider and Stage 11 winner Tony Gallopin (Lotto-Belisol) lost more than five minutes on the day.

"It was a hard day, just with the winding and twisty roads – up and down all day," van Garderen said. "But it was fairly relaxed out there. I like how I am feeling and I like where I am sitting. So I just need to keep doing my thing."

Vincenzo Nibali (Astana Pro Team) kept the overall lead, 3:56 ahead of van Garderen.

BMC Racing Team Sport Director Yvon Ledanois said warm temperatures made a tough day even more challenging.

"With this weather, there was a lot of tension and it was up-down, up-down all day – never flat," he said. "It was very hard for the riders and the finale was also dangerous. But this result was not bad. We don't have a real sprinter. But Daniel did a good job."

Friday's opening day in the Alps features three categorized climbs, including a summit finish at the end of the 197.5-km stage.