The Cycling News forum is looking to add some volunteer moderators with Red Rick's recent retirement. If you're interested in helping keep our discussions on track, send a direct message to
In the meanwhile, please use the Report option if you see a post that doesn't fit within the forum rules.
Thanks!
jens_attacks said:aru will attack on rabassa. all i know.
Kwibus said:Red Rick said:42x16ss said:That came to my mind as well. Gardeccia was nearly 100kms longer though. This doesn't go as high or far but the constant gradients are going to give someone an opportunity to do something epic.LaFlorecita said:Gardeccia stage 2011 Giro? Was also raced very aggressively.Hugo Koblet said:This is one of the hardest stages I can remember. Can anyone point to a harder stage in the last 10 years?
I think that Valverde will crack. Rodriguez to do well, Majka also. Aru and Pozzovivo will disappoint. Quintana and Froome? No idea.
Gardechia stage in a very different situation, Contador already had the GC all but locked up, so riders weren't afraid of ruining their chances for the win. And Contador I think started attacking on the Giau already I think, which may have been just for kicks.
Who in this field is gonna do that?
Actually it was Purito who started the hostilities. Can you imagine that?
Billie said:Hugo Koblet said:This is one of the hardest stages I can remember. Can anyone point to a harder stage in the last 10 years?
The Peyragudes stage in the 2013 Vuelta was harder than this one. 230 kms with about the same height meters.
DJ Sprtsch said:Weather
Rain in the afternoon, possible thunderstorms.
SafeBet said:Define further out.Arredondo said:If it rains, Purito will be good. I think he will finish in the top-5, perhaps top-3. And he will attack from further out.
Sasquatch said:Arredondo said:If it rains, Purito will be good. I think he will finish in the top-5, perhaps top-3. And he will attack from further out.
Bala to crack indeed, because of his not so impressive form + crash. I expect Majka to do really good, just as Quintana.
Don't know about Aru. He's good in a relatively flat stage with a MTF at the end. He's not that good in a stage with multiple hard climbs. Froome could do well. This stage is ideal for riding your own tempo. Chaves to lose time, just as Dumoulin (it has to be).
Torres will be the surprise of the day. He will just be caught on the last climb after a long break.
1. Quintana
2. Majka
3. Froome
4. Torres
5. Purito
DJ Sprtsch said:Racing wise it brings excitement of course, but it could be a bummer as well with the bad weather as it could mean no tv coverage
Arredondo said:SafeBet said:Define further out.Arredondo said:If it rains, Purito will be good. I think he will finish in the top-5, perhaps top-3. And he will attack from further out.
The rain part of the he will attack part?
About the rain: Purito is always sublime in rain. Most of his big wins were in tough, rainy conditions. And sometimes he suffers from the heat. Instead of someone like Valverde or Froome, he can handle quick temperature drops/weather changes very well. Quintana is also a rider who's good in this.
About the attack part: It's his home stage. He will be super motivated. Perhaps this is the stage/race he wants to win most deadly. I think he will put all his cards on the table, also because he needs to take a good chunck of time if he wants to win this Vuelta. Or be in the mix after the TT.
Gigs_98 said:I really hope for rain, that would cause even more carnage. However I'd rather take dry weather instead of bad weather and no TV coverage.
I think the two riders who suffer most from rain are Froome and Aru
Yeah when he wasn't able to drop Spilakrghysens said:Gigs_98 said:I really hope for rain, that would cause even more carnage. However I'd rather take dry weather instead of bad weather and no TV coverage.
I think the two riders who suffer most from rain are Froome and Aru
Did you watch the Tour de Romandie in 2013 and 2014?
His best chance to gain time imho is wait for the last climb, when the leading group might consist of 10 riders, and then do one proper attack. I don't think he can sustain an attack from La Gallina for instance. He's never been that kind of rider, not even in his prime.Arredondo said:About the attack part: It's his home stage. He will be super motivated. Perhaps this is the stage/race he wants to win most deadly. I think he will put all his cards on the table, also because he needs to take a good chunck of time if he wants to win this Vuelta. Or be in the mix after the TT.
Gigs_98 said:I really hope for rain, that would cause even more carnage. However I'd rather take dry weather instead of bad weather and no TV coverage.
I think the two riders who suffer most from rain are Froome and Aru
Well, I think it's time we realise that Martin is no GC rider.vedrafjord said:Wearing my green-tinted glasses for a minute, it's so annoying that Dan Martin can't ride a bike for 10 days without falling off, because I was looking forward to seeing how he'd handle this stage as a GC contender (vs say 2013 Tour stage 9 which was multi climb but not as tough and no MTF). If Roche starts grinding on the big ring he's toast.
I think so. Plus Froome seems to be good in the heat so it's logical to think he's not so good in the rain. We haven't seen much evidence that it's true though, except for that one stage in Tirreno (in 2013 wasn't it?) where he lost some of time to Nibali and Rodriguez.Ruby United said:Gigs_98 said:I really hope for rain, that would cause even more carnage. However I'd rather take dry weather instead of bad weather and no TV coverage.
I think the two riders who suffer most from rain are Froome and Aru
There is a sort of 'superstition' that Froome is bad in rain and I have no idea where it stems from; is it because of Wiggins?
Well there have been some other stages where he had big problems when the weather was bad, like the last dauphine stage 2014. However my point is that I never had this dominant froome feeling which I for example had in LPSM this year, when it was raining (I actually really didnt watch the tour de romandie 2013/14 but often riders aren't on absolute top level there, although I would maybe have another opinion if I had seen the crucial stages there). In this years tour there was only one very rainy stage (Plateau de Beille) and while he dropped everyone by at least one minute, two days earlier, suddenly lots of other riders could follow his attack. Maybe he isnt really bad in bad weather, but he is definitely not as good as in dry and hot conditionsHugo Koblet said:I think so. Plus Froome seems to be good in the heat so it's logical to think he's not so good in the rain. We haven't seen much evidence that it's true though, except for that one stage in Tirreno (in 2013 wasn't it?) where he lost some of time to Nibali and Rodriguez.Ruby United said:Gigs_98 said:I really hope for rain, that would cause even more carnage. However I'd rather take dry weather instead of bad weather and no TV coverage.
I think the two riders who suffer most from rain are Froome and Aru
There is a sort of 'superstition' that Froome is bad in rain and I have no idea where it stems from; is it because of Wiggins?
classicomano said:This stage has Dumoulin written all over it. Im quite sure he will win.
KyoGrey said:In Spain TVE will cover the entire stage, I imagine Eurosport will do the same.
JetSet said:KyoGrey said:In Spain TVE will cover the entire stage, I imagine Eurosport will do the same.
Eurosport 2 are on air from 12:15 BST in The U.K, so looks like we'll see the entire stage....and loads of adverts.
Pete