Le Tour '19 Stage 20: Albertville > Val Thorens 59km

[Valanga]

As Simurgh mentioned he is having connection issues and wanted someone else to make the stage topic, here goes...

So after todays shortened stage because of landslides, stage 20 has to be shortened as well for the same reasons and bad weather predictions. They're going straight from Albertville to Val Thorens, skipping the Roselend and the Longefoy. They start at 14.30 and it will take them approximately 2 hours to reach the finish.


Picture at the Cormet de Roseland by @robbertderijk:

The new route:

This route on Strava gives me a total elevation gain of ~2500 meters.

Only 1 HC climb, to Val Thorens! 33.4 km with an average of 5.5%.

The climb was only raced once before in the tour, in 1994 with the Colombian Nelson Rodriguez as the stage winner.

They're predicting lots of rain:
Albertville:

Val Thorens:

A very short stage, only 59 km, does this bring Alaphillipe back in the game or do the Colombians keep monopolizing wins in Val Thorens? ;-)

 

[luckyboy]

Here's a projection of the new profile if you want to use it.

 

[Amazinmets87]

This would have been an ITT in the early 90s

 

[Red Rick]

Best profile of all time.

That moment when the final 2Tour de France mountain stages together make a Tour de l'Avenir stage.

Anyway. The time cut should be an absolute *** up

 

[Cance > TheRest]

Is the road that passes Col de la Madeleine also blocked by mudslides? Or why exactly has it been decided to not include other cols before Val Thorens?

 

[Cookster15]

I'm tipping Bernal to seal the deal. Average is 5.5% but all the ramps are over 7%. Finish at 7,750'. Has his name written all over it based upon what we see this week.

 

[MatParker117]

Re:

Is the road that passes Col de la Madeleine also blocked by mudslides? Or why exactly has it been decided to not include other cols before Val Thorens?

Logistically impossible I imagine.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Wait, what?!

This Tour just went from great to *** in a matter of a few hours. Isn't it at all possible to do something else than this?!?!

Im just lost for words. Depressed. God damn man, why do this Mother Nature

 

[staubsauger]

Why no mtt?

 

[leftover pie]

After weeks of tension and suspense the weather has delivered such an anticlimactic finish to a great tour.

 

[Ripper]

Re:

Wait, what?!

This Tour just went from great to **** in a matter of a few hours. Isn't it at all possible to do something else than this?!?!

Im just lost for words. Depressed. God damn man, why do this Mother Nature

Yup.

 

[Sciatic]

First it was Pinot . . .then Alaphillippe cracks . . . then mountains of hail and mudslides. It's nothing less than the French apocalypse Tomorrow we can expect to see a swarm of locusts block the road to Val Thorens!

 

[HelloDolly]

Re:

Wait, what?!

This Tour just went from great to **** in a matter of a few hours. Isn't it at all possible to do something else than this?!?!

Im just lost for words. Depressed. God damn man, why do this Mother Nature

I think you'll find man and his greed did this...global warming

 

[sir fly]

Well, it's been a question mark all the way from the beginning...
I agree the shortened parcourse would make a killer tt. After all, it is going to be an all-out effort and there's plenty to ride for.

Tour-like Giro without Gavia, Giro-like Tour with this tempest... Weird.

 

[Amazinmets87]

Re:

Well, it's been a question mark all the way from the beginning...
I agree the shortened parcourse would make a killer tt. After all, it is going to be an all-out effort and there's plenty to ride for.

Tour-like Giro without Gavia, Giro-like Tour with this tempest... Weird.

I would love an ITT. No Ineos Train. GT, Bernal and Alla mano-o-mano. A road race plays to the yellow jerseys strength while an ITT plays to his pursuers, hence the latter is far more appealing

 

[Northerner]

First it was Pinot . . .then Alaphillippe cracks . . . then mountains of hail and mudslides. It's nothing less than the French apocalypse Tomorrow we can expect to see a swarm of locusts block the road to Val Thorens!

Worse for the French... Bardet will lose the KOM if Bernal wins the stage, and Barguil has closed to 30 seconds from the top 10 with one (now -halved) hard stage remaining...

 

[jmdirt]

As much as I like it when breaks succeed, I hope that the GC teams set up a showdown on the Val T! EF, Movistar and Trek need to drill it from K-1! Jumbo-Visma needs to create as well.

 

[movingtarget]

What a shame the race has to finish like this. A few of the top 10 riders will be rolling their eyes but it's been that type of race, You just knew there would be more twists but maybe not this type.

Maybe the craziness isn't done yet ?

 

[craptastic]

Re:

Wait, what?!

This Tour just went from great to **** in a matter of a few hours. Isn't it at all possible to do something else than this?!?!

Im just lost for words. Depressed. God damn man, why do this Mother Nature

This year’s tour is the sporting equivalent to the Game of Thrones wrap up

 

[movingtarget]

Re: Re:

Wait, what?!

This Tour just went from great to **** in a matter of a few hours. Isn't it at all possible to do something else than this?!?!

Im just lost for words. Depressed. God damn man, why do this Mother Nature

This year’s tour is the sporting equivalent to the Game of Thrones wrap up

Please it's not that bad............

 

[craptastic]

Re: Re:

Wait, what?!

This Tour just went from great to **** in a matter of a few hours. Isn't it at all possible to do something else than this?!?!

Im just lost for words. Depressed. God damn man, why do this Mother Nature

This year’s tour is the sporting equivalent to the Game of Thrones wrap up

Please it's not that bad............

Sorry but it is. Finally a year with a possible French winner and end to sky/Ineos. Only to have Pinot climb off w an injury and JA lose the jersey to sky due to stage nullification to weather is the most uninspiring end to this tour. Yah JA was going to lose it at some point but with a decent and final climb eliminated no one knows what could have happened - Bernal mechanicals or crashes, aj closes on the decent and holds on final climb, others waiting and go into the red on the final climb to make the podium selection tighter for saturday. And all other variations. Yah right decision for safety. But most disappointing end to the most intriguing tour in ages.

 

[IndianCyclist]

Re: Re:

Wait, what?!

This Tour just went from great to **** in a matter of a few hours. Isn't it at all possible to do something else than this?!?!

Im just lost for words. Depressed. God damn man, why do this Mother Nature

This year’s tour is the sporting equivalent to the Game of Thrones wrap up

I like ur analogy

 

[Juan Pelota]

Back in 94, Rodriguez sat on Ugrumov's wheel the entire day and only went around him in the sprint.

Pantani had a blistering attack to finish third. It will be interesting to compare Pantani's time to Bernal and co' tomorrow

 

[Jungle Cycle]

Lutsenko ftw..
and neither Bardet, Wellens, Caruso, Yates or Bernal among top 8.. then he could battle for kom sunday on those 2 cat-4.. and that still wouldn't be the weirdest thing on this edition..

 

[This Charming Man]

Re: Re:

Well, it's been a question mark all the way from the beginning...
I agree the shortened parcourse would make a killer tt. After all, it is going to be an all-out effort and there's plenty to ride for.

Tour-like Giro without Gavia, Giro-like Tour with this tempest... Weird.

I would love an ITT. No Ineos Train. GT, Bernal and Alla mano-o-mano. A road race plays to the yellow jerseys strength while an ITT plays to his pursuers, hence the latter is far more appealing

No teams here....all out chaos, and attacking....lke Pantani, VanderBrouke or Selle/Ricco. you gonna see some slugging.