New Amstel Gold Route

[Bardamu]

After the Keutenberg (or last time Cauberg) they should go to Maastricht and finish there.

 

[OlavEH]

Re:

After the Keutenberg (or last time Cauberg) they should go to Maastricht and finish there.

You mean Valkenburg? Maastricht would mean almost 20 flat kms. Straight from Keutenberg to Valkenburg woud mean 8-9 flat km to the finish.

 

[Echoes]

The only way to get an attacking and entertaining race was with Keutenberg and Cauberg at 30km from finish.

Very good decision. They finally understood. To Hell with these awful uphill sprint. Looking forward to it and to Greg winning it.

 

[Max Rockatansky]

Re:

The new loop they have added the last years is a freakin disaster. If they don't want to finish at Cauberg, they could move the finish a few km from the top of Cauberg, but the loop with Geulhemmerberg and Bemelerberg should be dropped.

Wasn't the loop put in just to entertain the sponsors? So they can see the race more often in their VIP tents?

 

[yaco]

42 summed it up best - Could bring more sprinters in play, so expect teams may start riders who wouldn't normally start in the race.

 

[OlavEH]

The only way to get an attacking and entertaining race was with Keutenberg and Cauberg at 30km from finish.

Very good decision. They finally understood. To Hell with these awful uphill sprint. Looking forward to it and to Greg winning it.

There is no way the last 30 km is tough enough for attackers to keep clear of a chasing peloton. Eyserbosweg and Keutenberg aren't that difficult climbs. It's not possible to gain huge time gaps by attacking here. The awful last loop will make it pretty sure that it ends in a mass sprint.

 

[Bardamu]

The only way to get an attacking and entertaining race was with Keutenberg and Cauberg at 30km from finish.

Very good decision. They finally understood. To Hell with these awful uphill sprint. Looking forward to it and to Greg winning it.

There is no way the last 30 km is tough enough for attackers to keep clear of a chasing peloton. Eyserbosweg and Keutenberg aren't that difficult climbs. It's not possible to gain huge time gaps by attacking here. The awful last loop will make it pretty sure that it ends in a mass sprint.

The combination of the climbs is difficult enough to create a gap. It has happened many times in the Boogerd era, but because of the Cauberg nobody of the Valverde category dared to attack before Valkenburg.

 

[OlavEH]

The combination of the climbs is difficult enough to create a gap. It has happened many times in the Boogerd era, but because of the Cauberg nobody of the Valverde category dared to attack before Valkenburg.

In the Boogerd era, they didn't do the 20 km last loop around Valkenburg like they have done in the last few years. Then Keutenberg was only 12 km from the stage finish in Valkenburg.

 

[Max Rockatansky]

The only Amstel that was won by Boogerd ended in Maastricht and he sucked Lance's wheel in the last 20 kilometers as hard as he could. But his first attack came 85 kilometers before the finish line and led to a very good finale. Finale means last 85 kilometers and not last 2 kms.

There was a circuit around Maastricht after Valkenburg of around 45 kilometers. That circuit went over the border into Belgium and featured the steep climb of Hallembaye. And Sint-Pietersberg in Maastricht around 4 kilometers before the finish.

They did this course from 1993 to 2002 and it produced quite good racing, but also sprints like in 2000, when Zabel was Uber-Ete winning Sanremo, Amstel and getting 3rd in Roubaix and 4th in Flanders. From 2003 until today we have that Cauberg-Valkenburg centered race. So maybe it is time for another change. But until nobody is willing to pull off an Oudenaarde-like move and take the race with money, then nothing will happen.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Every time a race removes an uphill finish, it will likely be a victory for serious cycling.

 

[Mr.White]

Could be much more interesting with this new finish. If the puncheurs want a win here, they need to make hell already at the Kruisberg

 

[roundabout]

Re:

The only Amstel that was won by Boogerd ended in Maastricht and he sucked Lance's wheel in the last 20 kilometers as hard as he could. But his first attack came 85 kilometers before the finish line and led to a very good finale. Finale means last 85 kilometers and not last 2 kms.

There was a circuit around Maastricht after Valkenburg of around 45 kilometers. That circuit went over the border into Belgium and featured the steep climb of Hallembaye. And Sint-Pietersberg in Maastricht around 4 kilometers before the finish.

They did this course from 1993 to 2002 and it produced quite good racing, but also sprints like in 2000, when Zabel was Uber-Ete winning Sanremo, Amstel and getting 3rd in Roubaix and 4th in Flanders. From 2003 until today we have that Cauberg-Valkenburg centered race. So maybe it is time for another change. But until nobody is willing to pull off an Oudenaarde-like move and take the race with money, then nothing will happen.

I think the 2000 edition was just about the only sprint finish in Maastricht. But maybe I am forgetting things.

Ok, wiki says 1992 was also a sprint, but that was a bit before my time.

And the early Cauberg finish editions were ok as there was an actual selection before. Except for that weird race in the fog in 2005 (I think).

But then again, unlike what one of the posts in this thread says, even Fleche Wallonne used to be about always won from a break pre-2004, while now the only chance of this happening is a repeat of 1999 weather.

Personally I think the current last loop is a bit too much of easier terrain. But maybe a Kreuziger style miracle will happen again.

 

[sQiD]

Interesting point made by Spencer Powlison of Velonews : Negative racing tactics are the worst. When the peloton is riding with fear, when it’s anticipating a decisive climb at the very end of a long, hard day in the saddle, it leads to half-hearted attacks and furious chases to shut down escapes. With this new route, the last Cauberg is about 19km from the line, a perfect jump-off point for a bold late attack and a solo attempt to win.

What de you think ?

 

[MatParker117]

Re:

Interesting point made by Spencer Powlison of Velonews : Negative racing tactics are the worst. When the peloton is riding with fear, when it’s anticipating a decisive climb at the very end of a long, hard day in the saddle, it leads to half-hearted attacks and furious chases to shut down escapes. With this new route, the last Cauberg is about 19km from the line, a perfect jump-off point for a bold late attack and a solo attempt to win.

What de you think ?

That Sunweb and Trek will try and keep it together for Matthews and Degenkolb.

 

[sQiD]

If they want to really mix things up, they could always take Tom Dumoulin’s last year advice: “Get somebody completely unrelated to cycling to outline the course,” that way we won’t understand it, team managers won’t understand it, and you’ll get an interesting race …”

 

[Max Rockatansky]

Re:

If they want to really mix things up, they could always take Tom Dumoulin’s last year advice: “Get somebody completely unrelated to cycling to outline the course,” that way we won’t understand it, team managers won’t understand it, and you’ll get an interesting race …”

For a first design probably a really interesting approach.

The thing about that Valkenburg-Cauberg centered course, that is raced since 2003, is just that everybody knows every part and every corner of the course. Riders and their people in the cars have done it five, six, maybe ten times or more. And if a young guy asks about tactics, they will tell him what to do.

https://ibb.co/j9WU6F

I like that idea for example.

 

[SHAD0W93]

Was the route Kreuziger won the same from 11,12, and 14?

 

[Red Rick]

Re:

Was the route Kreuziger won the same from 11,12, and 14?

No. It was the same as 2014-2016.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Why don't they try something completely new, like the steep short climbs first, and then the longer 3/4/5km loop around Vijlen, Drielandenpunt etc later. With the finish near Camerig or something.

 

[Max Rockatansky]

Re:

Why don't they try something completely new, like the steep short climbs first, and then the longer 3/4/5km loop around Vijlen, Drielandenpunt etc later. With the finish near Camerig or something.

They did that extra loop just because the VIPs in their VIP tents could watch the riders more often. It's the same with the Ronde. Races depend on that money, so they design those races as the sponsors wish. The one who pays, gets want he wants.

 

[Forever The Best]

I think this is much better than the 2013-2016 route because everyone was waiting for the last Cauberg. Now, if the puncheurs want to win they need to go on the Gulpenerberg-Keutenberg part and it can be extremely entertaining like last years Lombardia. However it can be an extreme borefest with a versatile sprinter winning it. But this is a good step.

 

[portugal11]

I think orica/matthews will ruin this race

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Re:

I think orica/matthews will ruin this race

The last few editions proved the race was already ruined.

 

[Kwibus]

Re:

I think orica/matthews will ruin this race

Matthews is racing for Sunweg these days.

 

[Eyeballs Out]

The change probably goes against Matthews. Brings too many sprinters into the equation whereas on the current course he'd probably be the outright favourite