Tour de France video - Smash it up!

Sometimes the pain of riding the three weeks of the Tour de France isn't enough. Cyclingnews takes a light-hearted look at the variety of different type of crashes that a rider may encounter during the three weeks of the Tour.

No wonder most mothers turn away when the peloton is within sight of the finish during the first week of the Tour. 200 riders pushing 70km/h with their heads down and only one thought in their minds, to finish first, is enough to make anyone nervous. Crashes during these stages will bring the loudest "oooo'ssss" from excited spectators lining the roads or watching at home, while those suffered while descending or taking a wet corner on a narrow road in central France will achieve the biggest "DAMN! That's gotta hurt."

Sometimes, just as you're getting a little bored watching the peloton cruising along the road towards the finish of the stage, a rider may think to himself that he too is bored and decides to test the skill of his fellow work mates, by squeezing through an impossible gap, only to find that, unlike a cat, he has no whiskers and his bars are just a little wider than he thought, and he brings the entire peloton down around him.