2016 Vuelta a España, stage 10: Lugones > Lagos de Covadonga

[lenric]

Re: 2016 Vuelta a España, stage 10: Lugones > Lagos de Covad

Valv.Piti ftw. Either Quintana or Valverde to smack the rest of the GC contenders. It will de pend on whch one of the two makes the decisive move. The other will stick to Dawg's back wheel.

Exactly my thoughts. One of the Movistar's should gain time tomorrow. And I have a feeling Contador will lose time, I noticed today that Valverde quite easily opened up a gap on him and Froome had to help to close it

I believe it to be quite common, since Contador had never had a good sprint, even in hisprime.

 

[Escarabajo]

Re:

Only one man has dared to go early in this climb: Marino Lejarreta, who attacked from the bottom and put more than one minute on Hinault and all other GC contenders. All other 'early' attacks have always been in the ramps after Mirador de la Reina with 5kms to the finish.

Herrera did it early as well.

Note: Libertine beat me to it.

 

[TMP402]

Re:

I will boycott the rest of the race if the break gets to fight it out again.
(Not really, but this is an annoying trend that needs to get addressed some way or another).

How? I know there have been many circumstances in TdF and this Vuelta which have played in the breaks favour, but its sorta depressing seeing this over and over again. If only it was 50/50.

Is it too harsh to say GT stage wins are being devalued?

 

[PremierAndrew]

Re: Re:

I will boycott the rest of the race if the break gets to fight it out again.
(Not really, but this is an annoying trend that needs to get addressed some way or another).

How? I know there have been many circumstances in TdF and this Vuelta which have played in the breaks favour, but its sorta depressing seeing this over and over again. If only it was 50/50.

Is it too harsh to say GT stage wins are being devalued?

Well GT stage wins used to be awarded to the strongest rider that day, with breakaway opportunists having to choose their day very very wisely.
The Tour and Vuelta this year have been a complete joke otoh, so not too harsh at all imo

 

[hfer07]

Re: 2016 Vuelta a España, stage 10: Lugones > Lagos de Covad

Contador to make an statement

 

[Sykes]

I'm curious about Konig performance tomorrow. He's currently 6th in the GC and he's riding really fine, maybe at the level of his 7th place in the 2014 Tour. Will he burry himself for Froome or will he just try to stay with the best? He can definitely be a card to play if he goes by himself

 

[Jungle Cycle]

i just watched 2012 and 2014 again.. is just a lot a fun what Contador can do over and over and over and the others just trying to hang on.... hoping to see one more time...

 

[StryderHells]

Why do people complain when the GC guys aren't winning stages? The racing was entertaining enough yesterday with the break so what's the problem?

 

[thehog]

Re: Re:

Actually, Lagos as a climb suits Valverde even more then climbs like La Camperona and Mirador. It sounds strange, but it really does. Less really steep gradients, but more diversity and therefore suitable for explosive climbers.

So he should be one of the best GC guys tomorrow. I expect him to lose proper time on the Aubisque, Camins and Aitana.

You expect Valverde to lose time everywhere.

I agree with your assessment of Valverde and Lagos, even if he gets dropped (which he most likely will), he will be able to come back. This climb has been ridden super tactically due to the last 5 kms.

Not, not everywhere. On Pena Cabarga, i only expect him to lose time on 1 GC guy who has a significant better day then his rivals. Like Horner in 2013. But Pena Cabarga is also a climb where he can pace himself really well, like he did in the Vuelta of 2013.

I still think he will finish outside the podium, but the more i starting to believe he will finish in the top-5. It depends how good Chaves will be in the third week, and how much the 'i'm fresher' argument will start to play into the favour of guys like Talansky (really dangerous) and Samuel Sanchez.

But a Valverde in this shape should have no problem at all to finish in the top-8. Therefore too many GC guys are already out (Lopez, Kruijswijk, Barguil, Anton)

Pena is a straight climb, no switchbacks or bends.

 

[klintE]

Re:

Why do people complain when the GC guys aren't winning stages? The racing was entertaining enough yesterday with the break so what's the problem?

We got transitional stage with strong breakaway, multiple attacks in final climb, beautiful win from De La Cruz with red Jersey steal from favorite team, and someone call it boooring. Yes, i cannot understand it too.

 

[hrotha]

Re:

Why do people complain when the GC guys aren't winning stages? The racing was entertaining enough yesterday with the break so what's the problem?

The problem is not that the GC guys aren't winning, but that they aren't trying to win. Surely you can see why that devalues the whole thing?

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Re: Re:

Pena is a straight climb, no switchbacks or bends.

You're thinking of Cumbres Verdes (where Valverde won in 2014) where the whole 5km or so are almost straight up. Peña Cabarga has multiple corners. At the end there's a bit of a straight (where Purito went in 2010), then a sharp right with a natural panorama (the best place to view the race from) into an 18% ramp (not an especially acute corner, but quite tight), then a very long double-apex left before a much tighter left to the very summit. In 2011, Cobo caught back up to Froome on the way up that last ramp, then misjudged the length from that left to the line and Froome got back around him.

The overall stats of the climbs are fairly similar (Peña Cabarga 5,6km @ 9,4%, Cumbres Verdes 5,0km @ 9,0%), similar to another few classic Spanish climbs (Cordal 5,5km @ 8,9%, Urkiola 5,7km @ 9,1%)

Peña Cabarga:

Cumbres Verdes:

 

[staubsauger]

Would be cool if Robert Gesink could do something hete. But I expect him to still miss some shape after his crash.

Dombrowski maybe? Although he looks worrying weak until now. Nothing compared to the Giro where he became stronger and stronger as the race went on.

 

[klintE]

Peloton riding nervously, 2 crashes already

 

[Samamba]

Again a massive crash?

 

[klintE]

B.Huzarski taken to the hospital (broken collarbone suspected)
Also Kevin Reza and Markel Irizar out of the race

 

[Frosty]

45km gone and no lasting break yet. Brambilla is in a group 50 seconds off the back after a crash, losing time too.

 

[Arredondo]

Re:

It really looks like a nasty crash.

Let's hope Reza is OK.

 

[Samamba]

Hope Reza is oké, doesn't look good at all.

Break is finally formed: Bakelants, Hermans, Campenaerts, Vervaeke, Gesink, Groezdev, Ludvigsson, Silin, Moser, Laengen, Mate, Felline, Dombrowski, Rolland, Fraile en Gonçalves.

Again 4 Belgians, they're doing ridiculously good this Vuelta.
Also 3 Cannondale guys

 

[RedheadDane]

***!

Thought it was Huzarski who'd been hurt the worst. Read about one rider going to the hospital, and that he was that rider.

 

[RattaKuningas]

Not a big gap at the moment so hopefully we will finally see real GC action.

 

[Zaka_fan]

Awful pictures, Hope Reza is ok.

Hermans vs Rolland for the win if break stays clear

 

[Samamba]

The break isn't gonna stay clear. Hermans is to close in the GC.

 

[liamito]

Re:

The break isn't gonna stay clear. Hermans is to close in the GC.

Too early to tell.

 

[Lexman]

Re:

Hope Reza is oké, doesn't look good at all.

Break is finally formed: Bakelants, Hermans, Campenaerts, Vervaeke, Gesink, Groezdev, Ludvigsson, Silin, Moser, Laengen, Mate, Felline, Dombrowski, Rolland, Fraile en Gonçalves.

Again 4 Belgians, they're doing ridiculously good this Vuelta.
Also 3 Cannondale guys

Campenaerts riding for Gesink so that leaves 3 who might try to go for the stagewin