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2020 Giro Route Rumors

Page 17 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
For me it's close to an 8 out of 10, not perfect, but enough good stuff to give us an interesting race.
It's gonna be interesting, sure. But I also think the backload is once again very real, and many of the good looking intermediate stages are kind of all or nothing, and the craziness of the last week makes me think they'll largely amount to nothing.

I think it's also quite horribly balanced, with way too little TTing for how hard the mountains are.
 
1.) I like opening TT's, Budapest is beautiful and I like the little climb at the end. Budapest is also conveniently close to Vienna so maybe I'll be there. In any case I like this as stage 1

2.) Okay, I guess. I strongly dislike stages like these but there gotta be some.

3.) Not two in a row though.

4.) That climb at the end is super weak, but I still kinda like this as a little warm up for the first proper test on the following day.

5.) In general 18 km at 6.8% is anything but easy, I'm just unsure whether anyone will light the race up this early. I expect some moves on the final 3 kilometers which are pretty steep but probably something like a 20 men group going into those final 3 k's. Maybe the fact that there is quite a lot of TT'ing and not that many mountain stages will help.

6.) I expect this to end in a full on bunch sprint despite the climb in the middle. Still I have hopes that it will motivate a few more guys to go into the break and make this interesting. Also maybe Bora will try to drop some sprinters.

7.) Feels a lot like the Etna stage. The climb isn't really steep enough to surely create gaps but if someone wants it enough you can also create carnage. Again, this stage could benefit from not too many mountain stages in general.

8.) Ugh

9.) I love that the giro gives this stage 3 stars to hide how ugly their 2nd weekend is. I mean why can't they at least finish the first time they pass Vieste. I'm gonna root for the break but I don't have that much hope.

10.) This one is brilliant. I actually have some hope for a battle between the favorites and in any case the battle for the stage should be great.

11.) Just overall I feel like there are a bit too many flat stages in this part of the race.

12.) The mother of all breakaway stages. Boy would I love to see this stage if it finished after 160 kilometers.

13.) This is the kind of relatively flat stage I'm okay with. As the final climb doesn't look all that hard and as it's still a bit away from the finish I'd still put my money one someone like Sagan for this one, but it should be fun to watch.

14.) Some might have preferred an even longer ITT but I'm 100% fine with this. Looking at some of the final climbs from the mountain stages a 2015 like TT at this spot would have been too much I think.

15.) This one is way better than expected. Nobody is gonna attack before Piancavallo (which is a really good climb for a mtf btw) but those three climbs beforehand will make this properly hard.

16.) Brilliant stage...if it didn't come before two super important days. Don't expect much gc action here. Maybe something like the Landa/MAL attack on the Pinerolo stage this year, but this will mostly be about the break.

17.) I have no idea what to think about this stage. It's really hard, but I just can't see anyone attack before the final climb. Then that final climb is so easy that I don't even know if anyone will attack there. Then at the same time I'm seeing an over 200km long monster stage with 5000m of climbing and I just can't imagine everyone will get through that unharmed.

18.) Now this one I love. Especially with everyone having the two previous days in their legs the Stelvio could be carnage as we haven't seen it in a long time. Also considering the next stage is flat and it's the penultimate chance for climbers someone almost has to go for it on the Stelvio.
Btw, also don't underestimate the two first climbs of the stage. Madonna isn't all that hard, but as it's right at the beginning it might be ridden at a super high pace, while the Hofmahdjoch is actually pretty difficult. It ends with something like 9 km at 9%.

19.) Yeah, I guess they had to made a stage like this. I'm okay with it. Also I feel sorry for the workhorses in the sprint teams who have to control this after the previous three days.

20.) Kinda reminds me on this years stage 20, in a very positive way. You aren't gonna gain 2 minutes by waiting for the final climb, but you can still do something there. Meanwhile if you want to go big you better do it early and which better climbs to use for that than Agnello-Izoard. Meanwhile other than this year we don't have the long flat stretches which made it almost impossible to make a long range attack stick. This might come down to the last climb, but the race might also be blown apart with over 50 kilometers to go.

21.) Not too long to scare people so I like it. Adds to an already very decent amount of time trialing.

All in all, I probably like it more at 2nd sight than at first but there still are some big problems. If you swap at least one of stage 8 or 9 with a proper medium mountain stage it would immediately be so much better as it would make the race a little less of a sprinter fest and because the prospect of using two of my weekend days this May to watch sprint trains makes me sick. Then there is the problem of stages 17 and especially 16, which both look decent in a vacuum, being kinda wasted due to positioning, and the fact that this route all of a sudden becomes utter garbage if they can't pass Stelvio and Agnello/Izoard. Then again if they are passable we get what looks like one of the most promising finales to a grand tour I can remember.
So all in all, I like it, but I don't love it.
 
just came back home and looked at the profiles (still need to go into detail though)

The is some hit and miss, especially the totally unnecessary lap around Vieste, that stage now could really go to a mass sprint, but probably it will still be a breakaway.
In general not many surprises, good to see Piancavallo from Aviano and the Montescuro stage being much harder than anticipated.
I'll create a poll thread

Are there chances of echelons on Stage 8 when they ride along the coast or is it too far from the finish?
it's possible, but not super likely.
 
Well, I guess there's no other way in Giro but backloading.
The Sicilian and Calabrian stages will help form tuning and early sorting, though.
Expected more from the medium mountain stages but the sprints prevailed. And that should make the battle for jersey interesting considering the mountains.
And the high mountains are the most attractive side of this edition. At first glance, it looks like an attritional route.
The time trialist among GC contenders will certainly ride it more conservatively if they don't find themselves well behind for some reason.
 
Very bad. 3 or 4/10. Backloaded
TT is OK but I don't watch the GT's only to see the time trials.
I guess I was upset that it was backloaded. It is bewteen 7 to 8.
Hard stages are nice in the last week. Hoping for good weather. Sometimes we salivate and dream about these Giro stages to later find out that we have bad weather. Especially during that time of the year. It is a major let down when that happens.
I want to see these epic stages so much. Stelvio and Agnello are such a nice climbs. The last time that they put Agnello at the Tour it produced an epic stage.
 
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Right.

Stage 1. Very nice prologue. Really like it a bit more rolling, and I prefer this more than the gimmick of this year.

Stage 2-3. Just say no to flat stage 2 and 3 kids.

Stage 4. It's nothing special, but it's okay. I would want something harder if the first mountain stage was stage 8 or something, but with Etna the next day, it's okay. It's also the only real uphill sprint, and there's murito's later in the race. Stage being otherwise so easy and flat is a bit meeh though.

Stage 5. Etna is decent. Don't love how often it's being used, but using different roads every time makes it less annoying.
Zve7wjDDJwwLgl147Arq_231019-012732-518x542.jpg


The profile makes me think it's definitely all about the last 3km. Bad you won't get more action. Good you don't get a completely wind neutralised race like in 2017. Getting Tourmalet 2019 vibes a little bit, although Etna is little easier overall and very early in the race.

Stage 6. I agree with Gigs. Portella Madrazzi isn't very hard. It reminds me of the 2nd stage of the 2017 Giro on Sardinia, where a similar climb closer to the finish could not prevent a bunch sprint. Perhaps Bora will drill it for Sagan, but I expect a lot of teams to bring decent sprinter help for this route
MandrazziS.gif


Stage 7. I really like this one. This is the kind of stage that really needs to be long, and with the next day being flat I don't see this one being completely wasted. Still it's a fairly flat climb so I don't expect major gaps

Stage 8. Worthless flat stage. Could maybe hope for wind?

Stage 9. The middle of the stage looks cool but sorry I still think bunch sprint. Maybe some wind could make this really tricky?

Stage 10. One of my favorite stages this Giro. Absolutely love it.

Stage 11. This is reeaaally getting too much at this point, and I'd expect this to be bunch sprint #6.

Stage 12. Could be madness, could be nothing, with pretty little inbetween. A stage like this is never bad, but I think the final 50km are too easy for it to be really good. I think I would love this as a final mountain stage. If anything I hope for 2nd rate GC rider breakaways.

Stage 13. Hills are too close to the finish for a huge bunch sprint, but surely too far to make it really interesting. Sagan City. Probably the 7th more or less (reduced) bunch sprint.

Stage 14. Cheeky murito near the start. Looks like 1.2km at 12%. No joke (the real joke of the route comes later). Overall, it's really a bit too short for my liking, and the fact that it's now happening in every single GT it makes it ever so much more annoying.

Stage 15. Very good climb. Not too much before it. Not too little. Just solid overall.

Stage 16. Now this one having a flat final 10km is really disappointing to me cause it pretty much make sure GC action is very unlikely. We had a much better climb the day before the Muchachos with like 2km of flat to the finish and that didn't get action either.

Stage 17. Unlike @Gigs_98 I really know what to think here. Lower tier GC breakaway city. Could be kinda lame with a few of them simply being allowed to take major time or it could cause havoc. A LOT depends on the different team strenghts here. If it is together on the final climb, I still expect some fireworks, considering easier climbs can create chaos if the day is hard enough.

Stage 18. Nothing but love. I'll be making naked sun dances the week before to make sure Stelvio won't get canceled like the Gavia.

Stage 19. We all hate the 3rd week flat stage trend. But it being 251 is the best goddamn joke I've heard this week.

Stage 20. Love it. Reminds me of the 2011 Schleck raid more than Kruijswijk snatching defeat from the jaws of victory in 2016. I even think attacking on the Agnello is possible, but route balance ensures that won't be necessary. Interestingly enough, I think attacks can be made on all of the 4 climbs. Probably my favorite stage in the Giro, though I would've preferred if it weren't the last one I think.

Stage 21. I just don't get the point of this. It reminds me of the 2014 Vuelta epilogue which everyone considered pointless. Final stage ITT shouldn't scare anyone no matter the length cause if it were longer the climbers needed to attack more anyway.


Overall, I think the route has a lot of bad basics but very nice details. I think the route is very climber friendly, and like the Tour, you only need to be great in like 3 stages. They might deal with 20s here and there in the first 12 days, but minutes will only be dealt in the last week. I really dislike that. A lot of the stages with potential in the first two weeks could be hampered by that. For this reason I think the route would've been a lot better if the middle ITT was closer to 50km and the final was closer to 25km.
 
Right.

Stage 1. Very nice prologue. Really like it a bit more rolling, and I prefer this more than the gimmick of this year.

Stage 2-3. Just say no to flat stage 2 and 3 kids.

Stage 4. It's nothing special, but it's okay. I would want something harder if the first mountain stage was stage 8 or something, but with Etna the next day, it's okay. It's also the only real uphill sprint, and there's murito's later in the race. Stage being otherwise so easy and flat is a bit meeh though.

Stage 5. Etna is decent. Don't love how often it's being used, but using different roads every time makes it less annoying.
Zve7wjDDJwwLgl147Arq_231019-012732-518x542.jpg


The profile makes me think it's definitely all about the last 3km. Bad you won't get more action. Good you don't get a completely wind neutralised race like in 2017. Getting Tourmalet 2019 vibes a little bit, although Etna is little easier overall and very early in the race.

Stage 6. I agree with Gigs. Portella Madrazzi isn't very hard. It reminds me of the 2nd stage of the 2017 Giro on Sardinia, where a similar climb closer to the finish could not prevent a bunch sprint. Perhaps Bora will drill it for Sagan, but I expect a lot of teams to bring decent sprinter help for this route
MandrazziS.gif


Stage 7. I really like this one. This is the kind of stage that really needs to be long, and with the next day being flat I don't see this one being completely wasted. Still it's a fairly flat climb so I don't expect major gaps

Stage 8. Worthless flat stage. Could maybe hope for wind?

Stage 9. The middle of the stage looks cool but sorry I still think bunch sprint. Maybe some wind could make this really tricky?

Stage 10. One of my favorite stages this Giro. Absolutely love it.

Stage 11. This is reeaaally getting too much at this point, and I'd expect this to be bunch sprint #6.

Stage 12. Could be madness, could be nothing, with pretty little inbetween. A stage like this is never bad, but I think the final 50km are too easy for it to be really good. I think I would love this as a final mountain stage. If anything I hope for 2nd rate GC rider breakaways.

Stage 13. Hills are too close to the finish for a huge bunch sprint, but surely too far to make it really interesting. Sagan City. Probably the 7th more or less (reduced) bunch sprint.

Stage 14. Cheeky murito near the start. Looks like 1.2km at 12%. No joke (the real joke of the route comes later). Overall, it's really a bit too short for my liking, and the fact that it's now happening in every single GT it makes it ever so much more annoying.

Stage 15. Very good climb. Not too much before it. Not too little. Just solid overall.

Stage 16. Now this one having a flat final 10km is really disappointing to me cause it pretty much make sure GC action is very unlikely. We had a much better climb the day before the Muchachos with like 2km of flat to the finish and that didn't get action either.

Stage 17. Unlike @Gigs_98 I really know what to think here. Lower tier GC breakaway city. Could be kinda lame with a few of them simply being allowed to take major time or it could cause havoc. A LOT depends on the different team strenghts here. If it is together on the final climb, I still expect some fireworks, considering easier climbs can create chaos if the day is hard enough.

Stage 18. Nothing but love. I'll be making naked sun dances the week before to make sure Stelvio won't get canceled like the Gavia.

Stage 19. We all hate the 3rd week flat stage trend. But it being 251 is the best goddamn joke I've heard this week.

Stage 20. Love it. Reminds me of the 2011 Schleck raid more than Kruijswijk snatching defeat from the jaws of victory in 2016. I even think attacking on the Agnello is possible, but route balance ensures that won't be necessary. Interestingly enough, I think attacks can be made on all of the 4 climbs. Probably my favorite stage in the Giro, though I would've preferred if it weren't the last one I think.

Stage 21. I just don't get the point of this. It reminds me of the 2014 Vuelta epilogue which everyone considered pointless. Final stage ITT shouldn't scare anyone no matter the length cause if it were longer the climbers needed to attack more anyway.


Overall, I think the route has a lot of bad basics but very nice details. I think the route is very climber friendly, and like the Tour, you only need to be great in like 3 stages. They might deal with 20s here and there in the first 12 days, but minutes will only be dealt in the last week. I really dislike that. A lot of the stages with potential in the first two weeks could be hampered by that. For this reason I think the route would've been a lot better if the middle ITT was closer to 50km and the final was closer to 25km.
The final climb on stage 13 has ramps up to 20% according to the official stage description, it's a proper murito.
 
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Oh yeah I read that first then I forgot that later when I wrote the post. Bit strange they don't give profiles of some of the murito's
They'll probably publish all the details only in the roadbook.
I've never climbed that muro, but the Colli Euganei are a nice place to ride your bike.
My big complains are the final lap on stage 9 and the Madonna MTF, just finish in the town before the final climb. The ITT in the 2nd week should also be at least 10km longer.
 
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I would rate the route a 6 or 7. The biggest plus is the Stelvio stage. That has the potential to be a real carnage. The Sestriere stage is also good. The placing as the last mountain stage makes it much more likely that we'll see a big selection already on Agnello and Izoard, leaving only a small group on the last two climbs. With several really tough mountain stages in the week before and two BIG climbs earlier on the stage, it's a fair chance that we'll see much bigger gaps than we usually will when the last part of a mountain stage has that profile.

The Etna stage is also okay, and works well as an early test. And we have a couple of interesting hilly stages on stage 10 and 16. The Piancavallo stage is also better than feared. The profile on that climb gives a fair chance for an early attack since the toughest part is the first part of the climb.

The biggest negative is a the poor design on the Madonna stage. Why they use Durone instead of Daone is difficult to understand (unless the condition of Daone makes it not too dangerous.). I would actaully prefered an more moderate difficult medium mountain stage on that day, and instead placed a really tough (and long) mountain/medium mountain stage in the Apennines somewhere around stage 10-13. An Marche mountain stage would have fit perfectly here.

And the second negative is the possibility of snow and cancellation of Stelvio and/or Agnello. On Stelvio it's possible to do a fairly good alternative route, while it's much more difficult to replace Agnello. But the Stelvio-Torre di Fraele combo is by far the best potential stage in next year's route, so it would be a massive disappointment if that was cancelled.
 
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Overall a decent but slightly disappointing route.

Positive points
  • Stages 18 and 20 are two of the hardest stages in the last few years. Its also quite rare to have a GT with two climbs above 2700 meters of altitude. Just hope they aren't cancelled.
  • Stage 10 looks really good too especially considering that it will be held after a rest day.
  • Atleast there is a proper mountaintop finish in the first week unlike this year, although it isn't the hardest.
  • Although there isn't that much time trial its better than the ridiculous Tour.
Negative points
  • Hungary will be a borefest apart from the TT
  • The second weekend will also be a borefest unless there is wind.
  • I don't like the time trials. Having 3 TT's with a totalof less than 60km is wasting racing days. They could keep the prologue and then a proper 50km time trial and gain another day to put mountains in it maybe even a MTT. Or they could do a radical experiment putting a cross-country/biathlon style pursuit in the last day in Milan.
  • Week 2 should have a proper high mountain stage, even if Piancavallo is a nice climb.
I give it a 7/10.
 
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The absence of GC -relevant downhill finish is a shortcoming of the route, imo.
Hopefully, some of the medium mountain stages will make up that imperfection.

The less backloaded route would require a significant cutoff in the Dolomites and Alps. That would change the identity of the race.
And, in the current GC field, more tt kilometers would mean less pure climbers in the race.
So, backloading keeps the field open, besides being the trademark.
The medium mountains are the area where RCS can experiment more. High mountains and time trials are well balanced (considering the current field), as the trend's showing.
 
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The absence of GC -relevant downhill finish is a shortcoming of the route, imo.
Hopefully, some of the medium mountain stages will make up that imperfection.

The less backloaded route would require a significant cutoff in the Dolomites and Alps. That would change the identity of the race.
And, in the current GC field, more tt kilometers would mean less pure climbers in the race.
So, backloading keeps the field open, besides being the trademark.
The medium mountains are the area where RCS can experiment more. High mountains and time trials are well balanced (considering the current field), as the trend's showing.
Yes actually.

I actually totally missed that a descent finish was lacking.

Overall this route doesn't have too many solid but not crazy mountain stages lol.
 
Oct 24, 2019
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Good luck driving the buses and trucks all that way in 15 hours.

Yes I'd like to know how this is going to work. There would have be a convoy of vehicles travelling after stage 2 ? Or the key stock (i.e. bikes for stage) would have to be air freighted down after stage 3? There's just no way buses and trucks are making that drive in 15 hours.
 

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