Giro 2014 Route Rumours

[barmaher]

Boo, I made an awesome one too.

I've sort of come to the realisation that the conventional wisdom is misguided. Hilly stages are usually in the first half of a GT as a way to ease into the heavy stuff in the final week. Yet because riders aren't interested in taking risks early on there is no incentive to race. Luckily in the Giro there is a chance of horrific weather and bad descending to make something happen (Abruzzo this year, Montalcino 2010), although you have to be careful otherwise it might get Fabianised. Without these random occurrences you get terrible stages like Firenze this year or the Rubiano breakaway last year. I guess the key if you're going to have one early is to have an interesting descent (Vuelta 2011, Hesjedal this year in the Giro) which can at least make it interesting if not genuinely selective.

Bottom line, put a hard hilly stage after all the mountains/time trials and you might see some caution-to-the-wind racing. The Giro is the only GT which can really do this.

Great post. But I disagree with the last part.

There is nothing to stop Le Tour having a hilly circuit on the Saturday. It would be much more fun than the ITT.

 

[Ferminal]

Great post. But I disagree with the last part.

There is nothing to stop Le Tour having a hilly circuit on the Saturday. It would be much more fun than the ITT.

True, it's just harder logistically when there are only so many areas for good hills and you need to get close to Paris for the start of Sunday. The Giro has the luxury of a floating finish town and hills practically everywhere, so it's no challenge at all. Coming from the Alps you could do a Jura stage or something around Lyon. A bit harder from the Pyrenees as transfer options might be more limited, I would settle for a Mont Saint Clair circuit If you were really brave you might be able to transfer to Lille on the Thursday or Friday and do some cobbles.

I'm sure you could do it in Spain too (San Lorenzo de Escorial near Madrid would be great).

 

[roundabout]

TGV lines

http://www.tgv.co.uk/portals/6/Map/tgv_map.html

But I really doubt that there will be a hilly stage on the last day in the Giro or on Saturday in the Tour.

 

[jens_attacks]

without the great danilo, it makes no sense to go in abruzzo anyway...

 

[number0]

Boo, I made an awesome one too.

I've sort of come to the realisation that the conventional wisdom is misguided. Hilly stages are usually in the first half of a GT as a way to ease into the heavy stuff in the final week. Yet because riders aren't interested in taking risks early on there is no incentive to race. Luckily in the Giro there is a chance of horrific weather and bad descending to make something happen (Abruzzo this year, Montalcino 2010), although you have to be careful otherwise it might get Fabianised. Without these random occurrences you get terrible stages like Firenze this year or the Rubiano breakaway last year. I guess the key if you're going to have one early is to have an interesting descent (Vuelta 2011, Hesjedal this year in the Giro) which can at least make it interesting if not genuinely selective.

Bottom line, put a hard hilly stage after all the mountains/time trials and you might see some caution-to-the-wind racing. The Giro is the only GT which can really do this.

i was born and i live in Trieste
the last news about the giro 2014 last stage are that the race will pass for 8 times in front piazza Unita'.
but i think that will be a flat stage.
in the city there are many climbs with importants slopes.but Vegni wants e quite last stage..
about the zoncolan stage, I don't know the reason why vegni has abandoned the idea of double ascent .ma the thing is easy ...Priola, on toward the parking lots of the chairlift, down to ravascletto, sutrio, Ovaro, atop the Zoncolan

Sorry for my English

 

[The Hitch]

They should just do the 2013 route, as we didn't really see it this year.

 

[Eshnar]

New article claims that stage 18 will be MTF from Belluno to Rifugio Panarotta (a continuation of Vetriolo Terme, climbed in this year's Trentino). The whole climb, from Levico, is roughly 16 kms (a little more actually) at 8% average, to be climbed, according to the article, after San Pellegrino and Redebus. The same article states that stage 17 will start in Val Di Non and end in Vittorio Veneto (flat of slightly hilly). The very same article also mentions that the Alto Adige (SudTirol) region will host 2 stages, one of which will be a MTT. It fits with the Val Martello and Kronplatz rumours ofc.
Now, if stage 17 starts in Val Di Non, and if stage 18 is a MTF, I highly doubt stage 19 would be Kronplatz (that would mean a pretty silly MTF - MTT - ZoncMTF combo), so I'll take it Kronplatz will be stage 16. That implies Val Martello as stage 15, then rest day and Kronplatz. I think it makes sense. The only alternative would be Val Martello on stage 16 and Kronplatz on stage 19, but as I said it would be utter madness.

I'm updating the first post.

 

[Red Rick]

Great work Eshnar

 

[Eshnar]

Great work Eshnar

thank you

 

[apmfbs]

In relation of the stage Belluno-Panarotta

With the climbs of San Pellegrino ( too far from the finish summit) and Redebus ( it won´t be important in the stage) before finishing in Refuggio Panarotta.

It is very likely that the last four days of the Giro 2014 are going to be

Belluno-Panarotta
Individual TT to Corones
Finish summit at Zoncolan
Trieste

A dissapointing end of Giro in my opinion, and besides that I don´t see the hommage to Pantani in those days ( crucial ones).

 

[Eshnar]

In relation of the stage Belluno-Panarotta

With the climbs of San Pellegrino ( too far from the finish summit) and Redebus ( it won´t be important in the stage) before finishing in Refuggio Panarotta.

It is very likely that the last four days of the Giro 2014 are going to be

Belluno-Panarotta
Individual TT to Corones
Finish summit at Zoncolan
Trieste

A dissapointing end of Giro in my opinion, and besides that I don´t see the hommage to Pantani in those days ( crucial ones).

see my previous posts (also the first one). It's highly unlikely, imho, that stage 19 will be Kronplatz. About that matter, it looks like stage 20 (the Zonc one) will start from the Veneto region, and if that's true it's plain impossible they'll do a transfer like that.

 

[barmaher]

Although not many of us like back-loaded GT's, it is worse when the last week contains very few difficulties. Vuelta 2011 was a bit like that, I remember. I think Angliru was on the middle Sunday, and then the last week had just Pena Cabrega with a chance to make a difference.

The last 4 days couldn't be as bad as those last 6 stages.

 

[Eshnar]

Although not many of us like back-loaded GT's, it is worse when the last week contains very few difficulties. Vuelta 2011 was a bit like that, I remember. I think Angliru was on the middle Sunday, and then the last week had just Pena Cabrega with a chance to make a difference.

The last 4 days couldn't be as bad as those last 6 stages.

yes, but I agree with apmfbs when he says that MTF/MTT/MTF would be disappointing. The Giro is always the most backloaded of the three GTs, but that would be too much

 

[barmaher]

I like the idea of MTF, ITT, really tough hilly stage (needs to be a killer) and sprint.

 

[Eshnar]

I like the idea of MTF, ITT, really tough hilly stage (needs to be a killer) and sprint.

the MTF before the ITT would be depreciated though. Everyone afraid to waste energy before the ITT.

 

[barmaher]

Not necessarily. It would be the last opportunity for mountain climbers to make significant inroads on GC. Thanks for all of your updates, by the way.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

I like the idea of MTF, ITT, really tough hilly stage (needs to be a killer) and sprint.

Finishing in Trieste they really could just do MTF, ITT, really tough hilly stage and leave it at that. Final day sprints are a waste of time anyway. I guess in a GT there's tradition to uphold (but only sort of in the Giro, unlike the Tour and Vuelta - though of course the Vuelta used to end in San Sebastián, hard to end in flat parades there - which means less justification for it) and three weeks of hard racing maybe does justify a self-congratulatory pseudo-rest day. But the epilogue TT is way better, and as long as they're finishing in cities like Bergamo and Trieste where there are great possibilities for a hilly stage, having a totally meaningless, pointless and characterless flat stage just seems like a waste.

 

[Matt92]

According to Il Messaggero Veneto, sponsors are pushing for a double climb on the Zoncolan, and it looks like Vegni has reconsidered his decision. It's still uncertain, but the ending of the penultimate stage could feature the first climb from Ovaro to the Zoncolan, then downhill towards Sutrio (the road they climbed in 2003), and a second climb from Priola.

 

[Eshnar]

According to Il Messaggero Veneto, sponsors are pushing for a double climb on the Zoncolan, and it looks like Vegni has reconsidered his decision. It's still uncertain, but the ending of the penultimate stage could feature the first climb from Ovaro to the Zoncolan, then downhill towards Sutrio (the road they climbed in 2003), and a second climb from Priola.

yes... read it a few minutes ago
http://messaggeroveneto.gelocal.it/sport/2013/09/10/news/doppio-zoncolan-a-furor-di-sponsor-1.7720267

 

[Eshnar]

Stage 6 should be Frosinone - Foligno
The following stage will start from Foligno and head to the Marche region.


On Friday there will be the press conference about the Zoncolan stage. Can't wait

 

[Eshnar]

according to this, the stage to Vittorio Veneto (starting from Sarnonico) will be a mountain stage. That definitely rules out (imho) Kronplatz on stage 19. If there is (and I believe so), it'll be on stage 16.
This is interesting because it'll be most likely the only not-MTF mountain stage of the Giro. There are plenty of alternatives. No big HCs near Vittorio Veneto but there are a lot of good climbs nevertheless.

 

[Lupetto]

Vittorio Veneto is a national symbol to Italy, just as Monte Grappa. So maybe they link these two somehow, in order to remember WWI.

 

[Eshnar]

Vittorio Veneto is a national symbol to Italy, just as Monte Grappa. So maybe they link these two somehow, in order to remember WWI.

True, but coming from Sarnonico the length of the stage might be too much with Grappa included. Not to mention it would be a ASO approved stage.

 

[Ferminal]

So we will get the Zoncolan profile tomorrow? Think we got Galibier around this time.

 

[Eshnar]

So we will get the Zoncolan profile tomorrow? Think we got Galibier around this time.

yes, tomorrow we'll get both the Zonc and the final stage.

Last year Galibier was unveiled in Las Vegas, and this year there RCS will unveil the Barbaresco - Barolo ITT. On 19th September I think.