From @Devil's Elbow‘s write-up:
Stage 6: Torre del Lago Puccini (Viareggio) – Rapolano Terme, 180.0k
“Can we have a sterrato stage in the Giro this year?”
“We have a sterrato stage at home!”
The sterrato stage:
The route
Look, I know I have a reputation for complaining too much about routes, but I’m sure you’ll forgive me for saying this stage is ***. A sterrato stage should have more than 11.6k of sterrato – for comparison, Monte Sante Marie on its own is 11.5k. Speaking of Monte Sante Marie, they literally pass by the start of it at 11k to go. Just to give you an idea of what this stage
The start is just down the road from Lucca in Torre del Lago Puccini, a random seaside suburb of Viareggio, where Magnus Cort won a very cold and wet stage last year. The route just about avoids every town and city about which I’d have had something interesting in the way of culture or cycling to tell. Instead, it directly through the valleys to the start of the day’s first KOM, to Volterra, already a significant town in the Etruscan and Roman eras. Its 4.8% average does not impress, although it has some decent ramps.
After Volterra, the terrain is more rolling, but never hard. Then, we enter the Crete Senesi, of course famous for its white roads we are mostly avoiding today. That being said, the first two sectors – Vidritta and Bagnaia, together effectively 9.2k of sterrato interrupted by 700 metres of asphalt – could do some damage. These sectors are the first two on the route of the actual Strade Bianche, although they only use the first half of Vidritta in that race. Bagnaia is much the harder, and contains the second and final KOM, to Grotti. The first 3.3k of the profile below are the final 3.3k of the sector.
At the end of the sector, there are 40 kilometres left to race, and most of those are spent bypassing sectors used in Strade Bianche – it’s not just Monte Sante Marie, the Intergiro sprint in Monteroni d’Arbia is very close to the start of San Martino in Grania, which runs parallel to the actual route. The sole bit of sterrato we do get is the short Pievina. You can’t really tell from the profile, but the final 900 metres are uphill.
From there, it’s a rather direct route to the finish in Rapolano Terme, the sole detour having been added after the initial presentation to include the little wall at Serre di Rapolano. Hidden in its 1.1k at 8.4% is the final 200-metre, 19% wall. The summit comes at just 4.2k to go. The remainder is rolling, with a little dig of 350 metres at 6.3% up to the flamme rouge and a tiny ramp of 6%, reminiscent of the Wandelaar finishes in Koksijde, to the line.
Rapolano Terme would have been a rather nondescript town in most settings, but not here. It may not be one of the most historically beautiful Tuscan towns, but it makes up for it with the thermal springs that have been added to its name as well as its position at the entrance of the Crete Senesi.
What to expect?
Half the peloton to survive the sterrati, only the strongest to make it over the wall, but with small enough gaps that things could come together for a (significantly) reduced bunch sprint. The breakaway also has a good chance here.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram