The stress of stage 10 of the 2020 Tour de France was like salt in the sea breeze all the way. The result sheet shows that Sam Bennett beat Caleb Yuan and Peter Sagan in a group kick on the island of Ré. And no doubt in later years, fans will look at the results and assume that this was a flat stage, a welcome relief in between the mountain ranges, a day for long harmless breaks and sprints.

That was quickly blown out of the water. A textbook two-man breakaway by Michael Schiele and Stefan Küng returned within the hour. There was no chase, and the team, trying to keep themselves and their leader out of trouble, ran so fast that the Swiss duo were caught.

The combination of road furniture, narrow roads, and weather made for a stressful race from start to finish. Crashes and crosswinds split the group again and again. Each time the pack regrouped, much blood was spilled, the race kit was shredded, and the riders looked unhappy.

It was hard to watch. Bernhard Eisel, in his post-stage comments on Eurosport, asked viewers, "Did you enjoy it? 'I don't like this year's Tour very much.'

"Yesterday was a rest day and today was another stressful day. Every stage I've seen so far has been stressful. It was a bunch sprint, but for me, the stress of getting across the line is too much for the racers."

Stress comes with the Tour. If you ask riders what makes the Tour de France different from other races, they will tell you two things. The Tour de France is bigger than any other race. And it is more stressful.

The stresses are big and small and affect everyone. The pressure from fans, the media, sponsors, and their own expectations slowly push the riders over the edge. Contract year. Stress. Sprinters who have yet to win. Stress. Leading outrider. Stress. Stress. Has won the green jersey seven times, but an eighth won't be so easy. Stress. Not only the players, but the coach faces the exact same pressures, with the added stress of having his decisions and orders carried out by proxy.

Having a couple of riders on the team who aren't getting along, or two GC riders who don't get enough help from the bigger riders in a crosswind stage, that's all stress too. Race organizers are under pressure, of course, and every race is full of near-misses and dangerous situations. And I don't have to explain the stress to the journalists who follow the Tour. We eat it, digest it, and turn it into content by 8:00-9:00 p.m. every day.

When a person feels threatened, the nervous system responds by flooding the body with stress hormones. Adrenaline and cortisol speed up the heart rate, the senses become acute, and concentration sharpens. The body is preparing for fight or flight. The trouble for Tour de France athletes is that they are always in a state of both fight and flight. Acute stress will get you out of a tight spot, but chronic stress will only exhaust the body.

The 2020 Tour peloton already looks worn out. Organizers ASO are making the flagship event have fewer quiet days and straight sprint days. It has only been a little over a decade since the Tour started with a regular schedule of seven or more flat days. But the 2020 route looks more like an obstacle course than any previous event, with mountains on days 2, 4, 6, 8, and 9. In between, the winds will blow. On the first day, rain mixed with months' worth of diesel, gasoline, and brake pad powder turned the roads into ice rinks.

Of course, the ASO cannot control the weather, even knowing that stage 10 is likely to be windy. And the Tour requires a high level of excitement. But if you put a nervous, stressed peloton on a narrow road with dozens of roundabouts and road furniture, the chances of a crash are high.

At the end of the stage, the victorious Sam Bennett, shown on television, was embraced by his teammates, a big smile on his face, and momentarily relieved of the pressure. For at least one rider, the stress was completely gone. For the other players, another stressful day awaits them tomorrow.

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