Solution: Tour de France stage - NYT Crossword

I could see how people could get really stuck on one little letter in this clue, especially if they weren’t dead set on their answer at 25A. “Etage,” which does look like it could mean stage in French, actually means “level” or “floor,” if you’ve ever ridden in a French elevator. There’s another French word, ETAPE, that means “step” or “stage” and is used to refer to the segments of the Tour de France, as well as other bicycle races (you can join one around Loch Ness in April if you want to see a monster, or feel like one is eating your hamstrings).