With Mathias Frank out of the race, IAM is in search of stage wins in their first Tour de France but so far they have not made much of an impact on the mountain stages. However, climbers Marcel Wyss and Sebastien Reichenbach promise to attack in tomorrow's final stage in the Pyrenees.

The second stage in the Pyrenees resulted in a second solo victory for Rafal Majka (Tinkoff-Saxo).  Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) made a huge step in the direction of winning his first Tour de France by taking third on the stage and padding his overall lead.  

Though IAM Cycling was deprived of Reto Hollenstein’s services after he suffered a pneumothorax on the right side in a crash the day before, the Swiss Pro Continental team could look to Marcel Wyss to ride strongly throughout the day, finishing in 25th place just 4’54” behind the winner. 

Wyss explained how he managed his efforts throughout the difficult 124.5 kilometer stage that featured three first category cols before the final 10 kilometer beyond category climb. 

“I went à bloc the entire day.  Katusha did not want to let the breakaway go before the first climb.  We were doing more than 50 km/h average during that first hour of the race.  It was necessary for me to adopt as steady of a pace on the climbs as well as the descents after an effort like that. 

"I was feeling good, but I did not have the necessary strength to follow with the best on the final climb.  I hope that on the last stage in the mountains, I will find a way to participate in the meat of the action.”    
 
Sébastien Reichenbach, IAM Cycling’s other designated climber, devoured apricots straight from the Valais, his home region in Switzerland, after having enjoyed his best ride through the Tour de France mountains. 

“We succeeded in getting Martin Elmiger in the breakaway again.  Unfortunately, Katusha was under orders not to let that break go, so I tried my luck on two other occasions to get into the front break.  I burned up a lot of my matches in the effort and took more than 50 kilometers to recover some snap in my legs again, so I was not able to hook onto the front group when the fireworks started.  

"I finished in a later group.  But my sensations were good and I will continue to hope that I will find a good opportunity to show what I can do in the final Pyrenean stage.”