Stage 18, the Tour's last mountain day, was supposed to be brutal, dragout GC brawl. And though the profile was punishing, the lasting image was one of friendship, as Ineos teammates Michal Kwiatkowski and Richard Carapaz rode over the finish line with their arms around each other's shoulders, Kwiatkowski the winner by the technicality of getting his wheel over the line first.

Kwiatkowski, riding his seventh Tour, finally won his first stage after years of dedicated service to team leaders. Of all the Tour's twists, I never would have predicted "Ineos does something legitimately heartwarming."