Tour's Stage 6 Finishes In The Rain

Stage six of the Tour de France started in Gerone and ran through several Spanish vacation spots and finished in Barcelona -- locations that are usually sunny and hot this time of year. But today was an exception, and the last half of the race was run in the rain and a cool 75 degree temperature.

For a while it looked like a stage might be won by a breakaway rider two days in a row (which would be a real rarity). Scotsman David Millar led the race for slightly over 110 miles. The only problem for him was that it was a 111 mile course. Millar was caught by the peloton with about one-half mile to go, and then the sprinters took over.

The final sprint was won by Norweigan Thor Hushovd of the Cervelo team (pictured). It's kind of fitting that Hushovd would win the sprint held in the rain, since his nickname is "God of Thunder". Second place was claimed by Oscar Freire who cycles for Rabobank.

There were a couple of crashes near the finish on the slippery road, and this caused some gaps in the peloton. Because of this, some of the leaders lost some time, although the first five overall places remained the same.

There should be a big shake-up in the standings after stage seven though, as the race enters a stretch of the mountains that should favor only the best climbers. The course has a catagorey 4 climb, two catagorey 3 climbs, a catagorey 1 climb, and finishes at the top of a climb that is so difficult it is not even rated. This stage will separate the men from the boys. Here are the current leaders:

YELLOW JERSEY (OVERALL LEADERS)
1. Fabian Cancellara (Saxo Bank)
2. Lance Armstrong (Astana)..........0.002
3. Alberto Contador (Astana)..........0.19
4. Andreas Kloden (Astana)..........0.23
5. Levi Leipheimer (Astana)..........0.31
6. Bradley Wiggins (Garmin)..........0.38
7. Tony Martin (Columbia)..........0.52
8. Christian Vande Velde (Garmin)..........1.16
9. Gustav Larsson (Saxo Bank)..........1.22
10. Maxime Monfort (Columbia)..........1.29

GREEN JERSEY (SPRINTERS)
1. Mark Cavendish (Columbia)..........106 pts
2. Thor Hushovd (Cervelo)..........105 pts
3. Gerald Ciolek (Milram)..........66 pts
4. Tyler Farrar (Garmin)..........54 pts
5. Fabian Cancellara (Saxo Bank)..........53 pts
6. Jose Rojas (Caisse)..........53 pts

POLKA DOT JERSEY (CLIMBERS)
1. Stephane Auge (Cofidis)..........14 pts
2. Jussi Veikkanen (Francaise)..........9 pts
3. David Millar (Garmin)..........8 pts
4. Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step)..........8 pts
5. Tony Martin (Columbia)..........6 pts
6. Anthony Geslin (Francaise)..........6 pts
7. Koen De Kort (Skil-Shimano)..........6 pts

TEAM LEADERS
1. Astana
2. Saxo Bank..........2.33
3. Columbia..........2.45
4. Garmin..........3.05
5. Liquigas..........4.26