In temperatures that push towards the 40-Celsius mark, the peloton might seem to be the safest place to be, staying in the wheels and avoiding any over-exertion in the Tour de France furnace.
Attacking to get in the breakaway and then racing full-gas for the stage win, by contrast, might have seemed like a daunting prospect as the riders filled their jerseys with ice in an already-sweltering Carcassonne at the start of stage 4.