14 DAY TRIAL // The second rest day tends to be a moment for riders to re-evaluate their goals, for teams to see who has any energy left for the final days of Le Tour de France, and for fans to consider what has happened up to this point and accept the fact that the current edition of the biggest bike race in the world is nearing its end.
One of the biggest problems with Pro Cycling Manager 2014 when it comes to team organization and control features is that there’s nothing to do during the rest days that are part of the three Grand Tours.
No one just stays in the hotel to sleep on this day, and the activities they undertake can be crucial for their results in the coming six days.
The favorites take a teammate or two and go to do some recon work, mostly in the mountains, while also riding some 60 to 100 km in order to make sure that their form does not drop.
The managers talk with the entire team, with some tactical analysts and take the time to explain what’s expected of the riders next, while the soigneurs and the doctors try to get their energy levels back up, which is hard but not impossible to do.
There’s also a lot of talking to the press, and the big favorites who are still in the running will try to get into the heads of their rivals in order to force them to make a mistake.
None of these activities is part of Pro Cycling Manager 2014, which is a shame.
In the real world competition the Yellow Jersey belongs to Nibali, from Astana, who has a commanding lead over his nearest rivals and has the skills to take it to Paris, as long as he manages to stay away from any crashes in the coming days.
The big battle will probably be the one for second place, where Valverde from Movistar will have to perform to the best of his abilities in order to stay ahead of Barden and Pinot, who are younger and seem to be determined to go on the attack as soon as possible.
The coming mountains stages and the final time trial are all important and with teams either depleted or tired it will be interesting to see who manages to implement the best possible tactics in order to get wins and to keep Yellow Jersey secure.