WORDS OF THE TOUR #3: Echelon

When you see a wind-battered stage, you will often see the riders line out into the famous ‘echelon‘ formation,  arranging themselves diagonally across the road to gain maximum protection from crosswinds and put trailing riders into difficulty.

But where does the term come from?

In fact, an échelon – which literally means ‘step‘ or ‘ladder rung‘ – is originally a French military term where units (troops, cavalry, aircraft, etc.) would be arranged behind and to the side of one another for tactical reasons.

So now you know!