Is Mortirolo, Giro stage 20, 2012, a completely new ascent?

[el_angliru]

The Mortirolo climb of the 2012 Giro d'Italia puzzles me. They usually (always?) climb the Western slope beginning in Mazzo di Valtellina. Approximately the route outlined here, I think:

This year, however, they seem to have chosen another ascent using smaller roads a bit furter south (but still on the western slope). I cant find any of these roads on traffic maps online but it's possible to see some roads on satellite maps. Salite.ch seems to have the graphic of this particular ascent, and they also have a description saying it's paved almost all the way to the top. I've tried to trace a route of this climb but it's quite difficult or even impossible without road maps. Does anyone know the route?

I'm pretty sure, however, that the summit of this year's Mortirolo climb at 1718 m is what we see on this photo (grabbed from Google street view):

The photo shows the view when ascending the regular Mortirolo climb from Mazzo di Valtellina. Hairpin 7 is right ahead, and the road to the right must be the new route they'll be coming from in this year's edition. The two roads joins here at c. 1718 m altitude which fits pretty well with the summit of this year's giro. From this point the riders will descend north towards Grosio.

The climb seems even more brutal than the regular Mortirolo climb even if the don't go all the way to the summit (which wouldn't be possible since they're desending down the same slope). Or am I completely wrong?

 

[theyoungest]

RAI preview the stage.

They indeed say this version of the Mortirolo is "inedito", there's even a section which still has to be paved.

 

[airstream]

RAI preview the stage.

They indeed say this version of the Mortirolo is "inedito", there's even a section which still has to be paved.

Wow, thanks for the video. Mortirolo beams mad energetics, though, Stelvio doesn't look so severly and majestically as from the Prato side, but hopefully that's just an optical illusion. Basso will slaughter everybody at Mortirolo unpaved sector. It will be epico.

 

[Parrulo]

RAI preview the stage.

They indeed say this version of the Mortirolo is "inedito", there's even a section which still has to be paved.

awesome video.

my Italian is far from perfect but from what i understood of what il falco said it's 1.2k long but it may be paved by now, i am not sure tho

 

[Ferminal]

I just hope they can descend it, so next time they can go Mortirolo > Trivigno.

 

[el_angliru]

Thanks for the video. Those roads are really narrow!

The video with Savoldelli convinced me that this year's Mortirolo climb begins here:

The yellow point is the exact spot where he's sitting on the bike talking about Mortirolo just before he drives into the woods and begins the ascent. But I can't see how the route goes on from there. The last part of the ascent must be this:

The yellow point is easily recognizable in the video (c. 1:54-2:05).

 

[Eshnar]

I just hope they can descend it, so next time they can go Mortirolo > Trivigno.

how could they. Narrow road constantly steeper than 10%

 

[airstream]

By the way I try to imagine how they'll descend from Mortirolo. Is it really a lot easier and safer than the Crostis descent? And that's a vexation again and again..

 

[Descender]

This is the profile of the new side (the flatish part is the bit that wasn't/isn't asphalted).

http://www.salite.ch/11000/11291.gif


The descent will be tackled from the usual side and then from the Grossio side. It is technical and twisty, but not as hard as the Crostis.

 

[will10]

Wow, stage 20 just got even better than when I thought it was "standard" Mortirolo!

 

[search]

Thanks for the video. Those roads are really narrow!

The video with Savoldelli convinced me that this year's Mortirolo climb begins here:

http://i.imgur.com/uOy0I.jpg

this is correct, there is a map in the roadbook

 

[search]

The climb seems even more brutal than the regular Mortirolo climb even if the don't go all the way to the summit (which wouldn't be possible since they're desending down the same slope). Or am I completely wrong?

I do rebuild some of the stages (for being able to zoom into the altitudes and things like that), I just did it for the final part of stage 20:

http://www.tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/94491

(you have to click on "Mapnik" to see a map)

I may not have been 100% accurate in rebuilding the "flat" part between the climbs but this definitely the way they do the climbs

 

[Ferminal]

You just need the cut the twisty bit out from ~36km, they go straight on.

 

[search]

You just need the cut the twisty bit out from ~36km, they go straight on.

okay, thanks

you can't just move points in the middle of the route so I will just keep it the way it is, it's too much work for something which doesn't really matter anyway

 

[Eshnar]

By the way I try to imagine how they'll descend from Mortirolo. Is it really a lot easier and safer than the Crostis descent? And that's a vexation again and again..

They'll descend the Grosio side which is a lot less steep than the usual one. I don't see any problem (btw, it's not like the usual descent of Mortirolo is nice and safe)

 

[el_angliru]

I do rebuild some of the stages (for being able to zoom into the altitudes and things like that), I just did it for the final part of stage 20:

http://www.tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/94491

Great stuff. I just looked at the course, and I think there are 40 hairpins or so on that Mortirolo climb! The descent isn't too bad though: the average gradient seems to be 8 % or so, and pretty constant. Thanks for your work.

 

[benpounder]

The official site gives this map and profile:

For what it is worth, here is the profile of the route used stage 19 in 2010:

 

[hfer07]

The official site gives this map and profile:

no doubt in my mind the Giro will be won "& lost" there....

 

[benpounder]

no doubt in my mind the Giro will be won "& lost" there....

While this years passage does not in fact go over the pass, that profile is the most daunting I have ever seen used in a GT.

eek is right...

 

[burning]

These two purple sections looks brutally crazy

 

[plooton]

wonder if Roman will be able to keep the pace with the likes of Basso, purito, scarponi etc, if hadn't, hope he take it back on the descent - think he could - if he really needs to.
BTW I still believe Roman in pink in Milano.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

What quality is the tarmac?

 

[benpounder]

What quality is the tarmac?

Check out the link the youngest provided.

RAI preview the stage.

They indeed say this version of the Mortirolo is "inedito", there's even a section which still has to be paved.

Even without understanding Italian, you can see it is indeed a daunting climb - it has 500m that average just under 20%.

 

[meandmygitane]

What a climb this new Mortirolo is, so steep.
And with so narrow roads it is every man for himself from "kilometer zero" (of the climb).

And look at the stage in general:
219km and at the very minimum (just counting the valleys and summits) they will climb 5843 hm. It's a hard, hard one.

 

[Pippo_San]

They're still working to get this new road up the Mortirolo usable...

This stage will be FREAKIN EPIC