Thank you DtG.

Of course as each stage begins all the entrants are the peloton in both senses, and then as the different sections it breaks up into need to be distinguished so a main bunch take on that name. And then they are all again a peloton as they begin the next stage (unless it's a time trial) (except for riders who drop out or were disqualified the day before)....

My main point thruout my couple of posts has been that stage/road racing are multifaceted, multilayered reflections of a complex culture still foreign to most USers and many UKers, who have fairly recently gotten involved with a sport whose mainland-Europe traditions are by now convoluted big-money spectacles the majority of whose rltelevised race followers are privileged white folks. It's generally done thru gorgeous, televisable scenery. But at heart these days it's all about athletes working cheap while someone else profits, and it can be an ugly business like any other modern sport influenced by advertising dollars.

~Susan