Tour de France stage 14 as it happened

Thanks for all your texts, tweets and company today. It's been another solid day's riding by Team Sky and Monday's stage 15 should pose no serious problems. A sprint finish is expected in Pau and Chris Bevan will be here to take you through it. I'll be back next Saturday to hopefully watch Wiggo create history.

The report on today's stage is starting to take shape and I'm sure more will follow on the carpet tacks on the road horror. I wonder if that may rescue Chris Froome from any awkward questions on his appearance in today's L'Equipe?

Here's Cadel Evans's BMC team-mate George Hincapie on the problems on the final climb: "There was clearly something on the road. Everyone was flatting and I've never seen anything like that. It was a stressful moment and it's a good thing we were all there to help [Cadel] back. He flatted three or four times. The mechanics did a great job and the whole team stepped it up."

Peter Sagan reveals he missed the attack of Sanchez because he was having a bit of a feed to set himself up for the final 15km - he puts it down to a lack of experience. The peloton comes under the Flamme Rouge - 1km to go and with all that has gone on, surely they will just ride over the line.

The peloton is still drifting towards the finish as they pedal under the 5km to go banner. Team Sky are at the front of the bunch, with BMC tucked in behind.

The peloton will not be home for a little while yet. They were 17 minutes down the road when Sanchez crossed the line. They have worked hard to reel in that little rapscallion Rolland who attacked while they were waiting for Evans.

And here comes the sprint for the minor places. No big surprise here as Sagan steps on the gas to leave everyone in his wake to take second place.

And here comes Sanchez into Foix and he's celebrating a long way from the line here as he sits up on his bike and acknowledges the crowd as he heads towards his fourth stage win.

The official Tour website confirms that Sagan is going to win the combativitiy award today for his sensational effort in keeping up with climbing specialists over two mountains.

Is there one last effort from Sagan here? He has buried himself today and I'm not sure he has the legs to get after Sanchez who is 1.5km from the finish.

If that is true, that is truly awful. That kind of thing went on in the early days of the Tour de France in the early 1900s, but surely not now? Up ahead the Sanchez is closing in on a terrific stage win. He is 3km from the finish with a 41-second advantage. "It's all over," opines Graham Jones on BBC Radio 5 live Sports Extra.

It's been a difficult tour for Rabobank - they have just four of their nine riders left in the race but Sanchez is head down and pedalling furiously as he opens up a 22-second lead. Sagan is pulling along the pursuers. Just 5.5km remaining. Back in the peloton and Lotto are leading as the pace quickens. Rolland is a couple of minutes ahead of the peloton after his cheeky little dig while Evans was off his bike.

Interesting sub-plot up front then. A canny move by Sanchez. Will Sagan go chasing? You can bet he won't get too much help from the other three riders with him because they all know Sagan will win a straight sprint to the line.

Cadel Evans is off his bike again and this time it's a new front wheel for the Aussie. Unbelievable bad luck for Evans - what will the peloton do now? They could end up being swept up by the broom wagon at this rate! Up front Luis Leon Sanchez makes his bid for the stage win with 11km remaining.

Up at the front of the road, we have five riders back together. Sagan, Gilbert, Casar, Izaguirre and Sanchez - they are just 13km from the finish. The group Wiggins was with are sitting up, waiting for the yellow jersey. Evans is still around 45 seconds behind Wiggo.

And Wiggins is coming to a halt here. He drops his bike on the grass verge but his team car is right with him and he's getting a new bike very quickly and he's off and riding again.

The Australian gets another new back wheel and his mechanic falls into a roadside ditch - all a bit comical but you've got to feel for Evans. The defending champion has lost around one minute to the group which contains Wiggins, Nibali and Van den Broeck.

Wiggins and the Sky boys are not taking advantage of this - race etiquette dictates you don't take advantage of a mechanical problem - but Pierre Rolland of Europcar is off and racing. And Evans has another problem!

Wiggins takes up the pace in the peloton and Mick Rogers has joined the fun at the front. Nibali pops up to keep Wiggo company and the Brit gives a shake of the head after an over-enthusiastic fan gives him a pat on the back.

Wiggins, with Froome and Porte for support, is through the 1km to go barrier. Can't see anybody attacking now on the way up - could Nibali go for it on the descent? Up ahead, Sagan is disappearing off into the distance. Will be a struggle for the Slovakian to stay away all the way to the finish though - 25km remaining for them.

The leaders well into the descent with Casar out on his own, leading Izaguirre and Sagan by 20 seconds or so with Gilbert a few more seconds back. They have about 35km left to go into Foix. At the back of the peloton, riders are dropping away at an alarming rate and we are yet to hit the real steep ramps.

Cadel Evans has hit the front. The defending champion is out of his saddle and taking the race to Wiggins. Vincenzo Nibali is also up near the front but no panic from Wiggins, in his customary position, sitting in his saddle and keeping his usual tempo.

Sandy Casar jumps out of his saddle and tries to accelerate up the steepest part of the slope. Casar is a Frenchman and the crowd is loving this. Barely enough room for the riders to squeeze through. Gilbert trying to keep pace but dropping back a bit. And here comes Sagan again, getting into Gilbert's wheel.

Izaguirre of Euskaltel has also gone with the leading duo and Sandy Casar is joining them. Sagan toiling a bit but he's keping the leading quartet in his sights. This is brutal and will make for even more interesting watching when the peloton gets here.

And here's the first injection of pace Philippe Gilbert gets in the wheel of Rabobank's Luis Leon Sanchez and the two edge clear of the other nine. At the bottom of the slope, Cav leads the peloton onto the climb.

It's a big if though. Still 4km from the summit and both of Rabobank's riders in the breakaway are leading the way. Crowds building as we near the top. Reports suggesting that the road narrows considerably towards the top and there are bits where the road is no more than two metres wide.

Sterling effort by Gautier who is back with the leading bunch and they are 5km from the summit. Mur means wall - the big ramps are coming. 15 minutes, 45 seconds back down the road, Cavendish is continuing on the front on drier roads and Wiggo can breathe easy for a few more minutes.

The Mur de Peguere was originally going to be included in the Tour de France in 1972, according to Simon Brotherton on BBC Radio 5 live Sports Extra but it was taken off the route after protests from the riders.

The Mur de Peguere, a 9.3km climb with an average gradient of 7.9% but some bits are up to 18% remember. Slow down a bit Cav. Team Sky's sprinter haring off down the mountain, leaving his team-mates well behind.

The peloton goes over the top of Port du Lers and it's a slippery, slidey descent, nobody taking any chances here. Narrow roads, hairpin turns, big drops, you've seen it all before. Cavendish is plotting the route on the front.

"This climb is all about the final 3km," says BBC Radio 5 live Sports Extra commentator Graham Jones as the leaders hit the bottom of the slope. "I'm hoping to see some fireworks," he adds. "Of course we all want to see Bradley Wiggins win and Chris Froome come second though."

Gautier continuing to try and get back up with the leading bunch who are sitting up a bit, taking off their waterproofs and returning them to the team cars. The Frenchman is still 40 seconds back though as they approach the valley floor and then it's immediately straight up the Mur de Peguere. The 10 out front lead the peloton by 13'50" as they go inside 50km to go.

Cyril Gautier taking big risks speeding down the hill. He had a problem with his chain and lost touch with his fellow escapees. The road is very damp and that means it's slippery. On the other side of the hill, Bernie still chugging up and Cav is right there next to Wiggo. Nobody looking like making a move at present.

Hoods and umbrellas going up as the drizzle gets a little heavier and the the leading bunch get within 1km of the top. Bernie Eisel still pulling the peloton along with Cavendish still sitting in there, rocking and rolling a bit but he's doing better than Greipel today. The German who won yesterday's stage is dropping back - possibly just to get a waterproof top though.

A quick reminder of our leading 11: Eduard Vorganov of Katusha, FDJ's Sandy Casar, Cyrli Gautier of Europcar, Luis Leon Sanchez and Steven Kruijswijk of Rabobank, Gorka Izaguirre of Euskaltel, Sebastien Minard of AG2R, Peter Velits of Omega Pharma. Philippe Gilbert of BMC, Sergio Paulinho of Saxo Bank and Peter Sagan of Liquigas. They are 2km from the summit.

Tommy Voeckler drops back to his team car to drop off an extra layer of clothing and have a few words, no huge effort needed to get on to the back of the peloton, which is creeping up the mountain behind Team Sky. Heavy cloud cover up the road, possibly a spot of rain in the offing and that could make descending fun. The lead is holding at 14'30".

Guy has texted in again to say that HMS Ocean is indeed in London, for the Olympics. Hope you enjoy. Have a feeling we may be having a bit of coverage of that event on this very website. No breaks in the peloton yet, Cav still sitting second wheel. The leaders are just 5km from the summit.

Real mix of clothing on the slopes of the Port de Lers. Some hardy folk in short sleeves and shorts, others decked out in full-on rainwear and the peloton is oficially on the climb to the summit - just 11.4km to the top.

Cavendish is sitting second wheel on the front of the peloton, helping out with the pace before he disappears out the back door in 10 minutes or so when the road starts to go up. 75km to go for the leaders, a little more for the peloton.

The 11 out front are sticking together on the climb, so far. Surely it's not going to be too long befor it's bye-bye Sagan. The Liquigas sprinter is out of his saddle already and flicking through his gears trying to find the right one.

That has to be the most remote Chateau I have ever seen. It's another of the Cathar strongholds and again it's stuck on top of a huge hill. There must be a road up there these days because there's plenty of tourists milling around. Not a huge amount to look at though, the Chateau de Miglos is missing a couple of walls and a roof. The lead is 14'18" as they hit the Port de Lers.

Anybody expecting fireworks on the climbs today? The leading 11 are close on 14 minutes up the road and approaching the foothills of the first big mountain of the day, the 11.4km climb up Port de Lers. The gradient averages out at 7% and the summit is at 1,517m.

Great pictures of the ruins of an old chateau perched precariously at the top of a col - wouldn't have fancied attacking that in medieval times. In fact, a bit of research suggests that is was the Chateau de Montsegur, scene of the massacre of 220 Cathars in 1244.

The riders speed past one of those brown signs you get in France that publicise places of interest to visit. This particular one was for the Chateau de Foix. There must be a quicker route to our destination today then because the riders still have 97km to go. The leaders are 5km from the intermediate sprint.

Here's super-dometique Cavendish. The world road race champion has been back to the team car and picked up some jackets for his team-mates. He doles them out, nice special yellow one for Wiggo - getting ready for the mountains and obviously expecting the temperatures to drop a few degrees today. Eyes right from the peloton as they whizz past a group of cheerleaders waving their pom-poms. The leaders are around 12 minutes clear - 12km to the sprint.

Lots of smiles in the peloton, with Cadel Evans having a good chat with a BMC team-mate while Frank Schleck notices the TV camera is on him and offers a nice cheery wave. Bet the smiles disappear later. Wiggins, head down, concentrating on the wheel in front, that of team-mate Christian Knees.

Team Sky in their usual position with Liquigas, the team of Vincenzo Nibali, taking it easy in their slipstream as the 11 out front, with Gilbert setting the pace, eek out a lead of more than 10 minutes.

The leaders are forging ahead some nine minutes clear of the peloton - the riders clearly saving themselves for the exertions to come. Meanwhile, back to Box Hill bashing...

Steve from Surbiton, via text on 81111: "Just back from a ride which included Box Hill. It really isn't that bad, Cav shouldn't have issues with it, even going up it 9 times. Plus, now it's been resurfaced, it's smoother than a cashmere codpiece!"

Another texter, who didn't include their name, points out Cav won Milan-San Remo "which features the Poggio rather than a Surrey speed bump".

The leading 11 are more than seven minutes down the road. Team Sky so unbothered by the break that half of them find time to irrigate the land. Just under 30km remaining to the intermediate sprint.

BMC's Belgian champion Philippe Gilbert got himself in the counter-attacking bunch and they have now caught the leading trio to form an 11-strong alliance. The lagging bunch are back with the main peloton and we are back to two groups on the road as we reach 63km raced.

Those in the counter-attacking bunch are Eduard Vorganov and Gianpaolo Caruso of Katusha, FDJ's Sandy Casar, Cyrli Gautier of Europcar, Luis Leon Sanchez of Rabobank, Jon Izaguirre of Euskaltel, Sebastien Minard of AG2R and Peter Velits of Omega Pharma.

We have several groups of riders on the road at present. Sagan, Kruiswijk and Paulinho continue to lead but a group of seven have shot off the front of the peloton to try and join them. Then comes Wiggo, Froome, Evans and Nibali at about 40 seconds behind the leaders. About one minute behind them is the bunch containing Frank Schleck.

Sagan's trio is nudging out to 20 seconds. Team Sky will not be too fussed about leading the chase because Kruiswijk is the best-placed rider in the general classification - more than one hour down on Wiggins.

The sprinters are already finding the going tough. Vacansoleil's Kenny van Hummel and FDJ's Yauheni Hutarovich are already forming the grupetto off the back of the peloton. Meanwhile, some interesting quotes attributed to Team Sky's Chris Froome in French sports paper L'Equipe...

Sagan's bid for glory is over almost as quickly as it started and the riders are all back together as they start climbing the Col du Portel. But here goes Cofidis rider Rein Taaramae.

We are 15km into today's stage and so far the 163 riders remaining in the race are still racing along together - all escape attempts are being chased down. Expect that to change extremely quickly once they hit the slopes of the Col du Portel at 22km.

And finally, Ellingworth on the post-Tour plans: "Finishing the Tour then five days recovery is just enough for them. They are seeing it as one big race. We fly in on Sunday night from Paris to London. We've had many successes in the last few years, we are becoming a force in cycling. It is because of British Cycling's development programmes and we have worked hard with the riders. They truly believe that this is how every team should be run."

And for those of you wondering about the form of Cavendish: "Cav is good. We looked at all the info last night and his form is very good. He's had one stage win and he said going into the race that he would be happy with that. The big focus for him is the Olympics [road race] and we are managing that every day now."

Ready for a bit more Ellingworth? This time on Wiggo and second-place rider Chris Froome: "We are fairly confident, Bradley's condition is good and the guys around him are all doing well. Chris is going really well. We go on evidence going into the race, Bradley has shown great form all season. Chris stuck to the game plan. The other day he was told over the radio that Bradley wasn't there and he waited for him. It is very unlikely that Chris could challenge Bradley anyway."

While the peloton sorts itself out, here's a few words from Team Sky coach Rod Ellingworth. He was speaking on BBC Radio 5 live's Sportsweek programme this morning: "When we set this team up one of the ambitions was to win the Tour so it's not a total surprise [to have Bradley Wiggins in the lead] but to be doing what we are doing is great."

Several riders have already had a dig off the front of the peloton but a tailwind is keeping the pace high and making breakaways difficult. The bunch is all together through 5km. Another 17km or so to the bottom of the first climb of the day. It's the category two Col du Portel which is 5.3km in length with an average gradient of 6.3%. The riders ascend about 315m to the summit at 601m above sea level.

Hello and welcome to stage 14 of the Tour de France. If Cavendish is hurting this morning, he won't like the look of today's stage. We are heading back in to the mountains. A category two climb at the start of the 191km race is followed by two category one ascents a little later. The second features gradients of 18% near the top. That's about a one-in-five climb if you prefer.