The 2011 Tour de France enters the Pyrenees Mountains on Thursday after having a couple of medium mountain stages last weekend. Stage 12 starts at Cugnaux and makes it way southwest to Sarrancolin for the sprint section of the day. This comes 116 km into the 211 km (131 mi) route. The race then pivots at Guchen, where the cyclists the winding roads leading to the first climb of the day.
At Hourquette d'Ancizan, a Category 1 climb, the racers go up 9.9 km at the 141.5 km mark. But that won't be the end of the climbs. About 35 km later, there is a 17.1 km climb at Col du Tourmalet, a Category H test. If the riders aren't worn out at the end of that, they have another Category H climb to reach the finish line at Luz-Ardiden.
Race coverage begins earlier than usual on VERSUS. It starts at 4:30 a.m. MT.
Here is the current top 10 leaderboard, which is bound to see some shakeups after Stage 12 finishes:
| Place | Rider | Time | Gaps |
| 1 | Thomas Voeckler | 45h 52' 39" | |
| 2 | Luis-Leon Sanchez | 45h 54' 28" | + 01' 49" |
| 3 | Cadel Evans | 45h 55' 05" | + 02' 26" |
| 4 | Frank Schleck | 45h 55' 08" | + 02' 29" |
| 5 | Andy Schleck | 45h 55' 16" | + 02' 37" |
| 6 | Tony Martin | 45h 55' 17" | + 02' 38" |
| 7 | Peter Velits | 45h 55' 17" | + 02' 38" |
| 8 | Andreas Kloden | 45h 55' 22" | + 02' 43" |
| 9 | Philippe Gilbert | 45h 55' 34" | + 02' 55" |
| 10 | Jakob Fuglsang | 45h 55' 47" | + 03' 08" |
For in-depth coverage of the race, visit out cycling blog, Podium Cafe, and our SB Nation StoryStream.