Apart from the last 19km of grinding, wind-blown ascending, the stage is a long slog across Provence adding up to a total of 197km. Mostly flat, save for a couple short warm-up climbs. In all, a pretty typical stage for a Mont Ventoux climb.
Will Piepoli start? His asthma snag from the Giro could put him on hold for a few days while he officially clears his name (assuming that's a possible outcome). Anyway, the way Kashechkin looked yesterday, it won't matter much. Enjoy!