Ryder Hesjedal of Victoria had a couple of goals in mind coming into the 2013 Tour de France: Stay healthy and stay out of the kinds of traffic jams that produce crashes.
You can hardly blame the Islander after he crashed out of the 2012 Tour de France and 2013 Tour de Suisse and became ill and had to also abandon the 2013 Giro d鈥橧talia after winning it the year before.
But sometimes it鈥檚 simply just too hard to avoid clutter in a cycling race.
Hesjedal was involved in a crash, as the 100th Tour de France opened Saturday with the 213-kilometre opening stage in Corsica, but survived to finish 91st on the day.
If he stays clear of trouble, Hesjedal could make a major impact on the Centennial Tour because he believes he鈥檚 in choice shape.
鈥淚 have had great form all year. I had some bad luck with getting sick and crashing, but my condition has been great and I am happy and excited to be here now and build on that condition,鈥� he said, before hitting the road for the opening stage.
Hesjedal鈥檚 blip Saturday was minor compared to the major incident. A team bus got caught under the scaffolding at the finish line, causing a messy ending with more than 20 riders falling. Marcel Kittel of Germany survived the jumble to win the stage while many of the world鈥檚 most notable sprinters were caught up in a frustrating first day.
All 198 riders were awarded the identical time of four hours, 56 minutes, 52 seconds.
It was a sprint stage, so Hesjedal wasn鈥檛 expected to be much of a factor, regardless, because he鈥檚 best known as a climber and is also a decent time trialist.
Garmin-Sharp has taken on the unorthodox strategy in the 2013 Tour of going with a lead-rider-by-committee approach with the spotlight placed not solely on Hesjedal but also splashed on emerging younger riders Andrew Talansky and Dan Martin.
As always, the modest Hesjedal puts team first.
鈥淭his is the strongest team we have ever had at the Tour de France, and my goal is the team performing at the highest level together,鈥� said the Colwood-raised 32-year-old three-time Olympian, who won the 2012 Giro d鈥橧talia and was sixth in the 2010 Tour de France.
鈥淥ur goal as a team is to do the best we can as a team. We are strong and motivated and we鈥檙e going to animate the race.鈥�
Hesjedal is one of three Canadians in the Centennial Tour. David Veilleux of Cap-Rouge, Que., was 84th on Saturday and veteran Svein Tuft of Langley 167th.
Today鈥檚 second stage, also on the island of Corsica, is 97 kilometres but more hilly with four medium climbs scheduled. The Corsica odyssey concludes with Monday鈥檚 145.5-kilometre third stage from Ajaccio to Calvi that also features mid-level climbs. The Tour heads to the mainland with Tuesday鈥檚 fourth stage in Nice, where Hesjedal and his Garmin-Sharp mates will look to make a statement in the team time trial.
The 21-stage Centennial Tour concludes with the first-ever night finish July 21 in Paris.
