High temperatures and cross winds make for punishing conditions
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Yes, it was warm today(Image credit: Mark Gunter)
It's better to get it in your mouth!(Image credit: Mark Gunter)
Top up when you can(Image credit: Mark Gunter)
Martin Kohler takes on water(Image credit: Mark Gunter)
This is one way to beat the heat(Image credit: Mark Gunter)
Boasson Hagen even got water duties today(Image credit: Mark Gunter)
Ricardo Garcia Ambroa gained a few extra kilos(Image credit: Mark Gunter)
Matt Goss stocks up the aqua(Image credit: Mark Gunter)
Rohan Dennis in the break re-hydrates(Image credit: Mark Gunter)
Stage winner Andre Greipel tops up(Image credit: Mark Gunter)
With thermometers reaching a sweltering 40° Celsius and wind speeds getting up to almost 50km/h, Tuesday's first stage of the 2012 Tour Down Under tested the riders to the very edge of their limits. The 149km stage, from Prospect in the north of Adelaide to the town of Clare, was won in a controversial finish by Germany's Andre Greipel (Lotto-Belisol) and the first thing he probably wanted to do afterwards was to find a nice cool shower.
As you will see from our gallery, keeping as hydrated and as cool as possible was at the forefront of all the riders' minds, and that need also wasn't lost on the crowds that generously lined the streets. If the weather carries on like this then the rest of the race, which runs over five more stages up until Sunday 22 January, will be a war of attrition and a real test of who is able to handle not only the demands of the individual stages best, but also the conditions.
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