Race Design Challenge II

[Eshnar]

I'm sorry to mess up your calculations but wasn't there a rule only one player can get 5 points in one category from one judge? Because judge 4 cave rghysens and me 5 cultural points.
Not that I would complain about 5 points but I think rules are rules.

sh... it's true I'll have to ask to change it... sorry

 

[Eshnar]

I'm sorry to mess up your calculations but wasn't there a rule only one player can get 5 points in one category from one judge? Because judge 4 cave rghysens and me 5 cultural points.
Not that I would complain about 5 points but I think rules are rules.

sh... it's true I'll have to ask to change it... sorry

case solved, your vote was meant to be T: 5 C: 4, not the other way round

 

[Eshnar]

Now, before I post the first week marks, I'd like to know the participants' opinion on the scoring system.

In the OP I stated the bonus for the weekly marks would be 5x. However, this may be too much compared to last year's challenge, which only had 3x (and only technical eval).
Now to clarify, I haven't done the math yet, so I don't know how the classification would stand after a 5x bonus.
Would you guys rather have a lower bonus or shall we go for the 5x?

 

[mb2612]

Now, before I post the first week marks, I'd like to know the participants' opinion on the scoring system.

In the OP I stated the bonus for the weekly marks would be 5x. However, this may be too much compared to last year's challenge, which only had 3x (and only technical eval).
Now to clarify, I haven't done the math yet, so I don't know how the classification would stand after a 5x bonus.
Would you guys rather have a lower bonus or shall we go for the 5x?

I think I would prefer 3x. 5x feels like it would overwhelm the daily scoring, though I don't mind that much either way.

 

[barmaher]

For what it is worth, I think 3 would be a better factor.

 

[Eshnar]

EDIT: I messed up this post and I lost my votes. I can still show the others though... sorry guys

JUDGE 1:
Firstly I'd like to say that it's quite hard to give so many points at this point in the race because even compared to a normal GT route, the overall shape of the route is still quite difficult to ascertain at this stage as there's an entire GT's worth of time left, plus one participant just threw a huge curveball by putting an early rest day and huge transfer to a completely different part of the Empire that took me by surprise, and another has thrown one of their super-stage jokers out there while the other three still have all of theirs in reserve...

Gigs_98 T: 3 C: 3
You've paid attention to the little details, and I like that, from the little pictograms of sundials and sportsmen on the course, to the golden mile instead of golden km. Constantinople to Rome is an obvious but smart choice of routes. I'm also fond of the route winding through the Balkans, as much of the Roman history in this area has been rather forgotten about, however for the same reason that has sacrificed you some cultural points because the sites are quite obscure. Your explanation and justification for the Ultra Stage and how you've used it was very good as well, and I appreciate your rationale. It's a great stage, but you may actually profit from it more as we come to rate further weeks and the route as a whole at those points than you do now.

Brullnux T: 4 C: 3
Like Gigs, Constantinople more or less explains itself as a start town. Some nice stages individually but I do fear that the Greek history side of things is letting you down a bit culturally, because while these locations are hugely historic and storied, it's not the 'right' history for the purposes of the challenge. The Thessalonica stage using only Roman era roads was a home run for cultural points though, and with the Delphi stage you might have the best stage of all of the races thus far for technical points.

Rghysens T: 4 C: 3
I like the use of a specific theme (the Mediterranean) and that while three of the four routes began in modern-day Turkey your route is heading around a different direction to the other two. The Roman landmark sprints are a great cultural bonus, although I am a little concerned at a whole week that's been in one country given the enormous scope of the Roman Empire, and that we are in fact further away from Rome now than when we started! Digging out the Roman map to showcase the cultural value of stage 7 was a nice touch, and you've perhaps done best of everybody at picking out Roman locations to give a chance for hilltop and mountaintop finishes (although you passed up the chance to use the Selçuk climb of course).

mb2612 T: 2 C: 4
Definitely the most 'left-field' route, with a mostly flat first week travelling through a completely different part of the Empire than the other three races. I appreciate the detail from a cultural point of view with the Roman Roads, however overlooking the cobbles in northern France was a markdown in terms of attention to detail from a technical point of view. Technical-wise, this has been probably the weakest course which reflects in the marks, with only really the grinding slopes of PSB and the (admittedly excellent) Hadrian's Wall stage to create time gaps (unless the peloton really hammers the Lyon stage with two flat stages afterward) before the enormous transfer to Sicily, and several long flat sprinter's stages. However, culturally, the continued theme of those who stood up to Rome and the honouring of the likes of Hannibal and Boadicea has given us a good cohesive race from that point of view so the marks lost in the Technical side are balanced out by marks gained on the Cultural side.

JUDGE 2:

Gigs_98 T: 3 C: 2
I think your first week is very heavy on transitional stages. Some of them could still end up in a sprint, and I like that, but my issue with it is that all the climbs are shallow. So in the week where typically no big risks are taken, you have stages where a lot of risks need to be taken for anything to happen at all. Then you end it with an ultra stage, which is great, but I do think it neutralizes all GC action until then, so you have very little happening GC wise for a good 5 stages. Culturally, I like the start in Istanbul, but then you use a few rather obscure towns where the real name is unkown, and there's little grand backstory happening compared to the others

Brullnux T: 3 C: 4
A first week that goes a bit without high mountain stages. There's a few really good medium mountain stages, and the breakaways should provide us with plenty of action. Those stages do suffer a bit from the same thing as Gigs though, with rather shallow climbs and a lot of agression required for GC action to take place. Culturally, I once again like the start in Instanbul, and I've always been a sucker for Greek antiquity. Those were some significant places albeit centuries too early.

Rghysens T: 5 C: 4
Great first week. I like the prologue, I like that the first flat stage is short, you get out a few very good medium mountain stages, as well as a great hilly and windy stage. All this while visiting some very interesting places.


mb2612 T: 3 C: 3
A few really good stages, and I liked the few hilltop finishes you managed to get in. However, I do have to endure a flat opening stage, and flat stage that could've been cobbled. The stages in Britain could get some action, but I doubt it will be major. Otoh, I love the stage over the Etna. Culturally, I appreciated the opening stage over Roman roads, though it was technically boring. I also really like the homages to great conquerors of the past. I'd rate it a 4, but I can only give 2, and this one sadly loses out on a few points

JUDGE 3:

Gigs_98 T: 3 C: 2
The first week starts off a bit too easy, but it gets gradually harder and better. I agree about your ultra stage, it really caps it nicely. I liked your first stage location, but really there wasn’t a huge amount to get excited about culturally.

Brullnux T: 3 C: 2
You have a very nice mix of hilly stages in the first week. Some of them are for breaks, some of them will see GC action. Similar to Gigs, the locations don’t showcase the Roman heritage as much as they could, but I liked the start location.

Rghysens T: 4 C: 4
I like the idea of your sprints at Roman landmarks, Other than the lack of grandeur with your start location, you have hit some nice notes culturally. The course itself has been challenging, nicely mixed.

mb2612 T: 2 C: 4
This is the hardest to mark. I hated your first stage. Loved your second, and it continued from there. I hope you are not finished in France, as not only have you missed the cobbles, but also some interesting Roman sites there. Love the way you took in Britain, Sicily, Hannibal. Hilly stage in France is nice. Some of your days are guaranteed boring, which I dislike.

 

[rghysens]

Re:

For what it is worth, I think 3 would be a better factor.

Let's make a compromise: first week x5, other weeks x3

On a more serious note: everything depends on what you want to emphasize: do you want to reward a collection of individual good stages, which lack balance as a whole, or do you want a balanced entirety. If the former, the weekly scores should be multiplied by a quite low factor, if the latter, weekly scores should be multiplied by a rather high factor.
Will the route as a whole also be judged, and what factor will be used then?

 

[Eshnar]

Re: Re:

For what it is worth, I think 3 would be a better factor.

Let's make a compromise: first week x5, other weeks x3

On a more serious note: everything depends on what you want to emphasize: do you want to reward a collection of individual good stages, which lack balance as a whole, or do you want a balanced entirety. If the former, the weekly scores should be multiplied by a quite low factor, if the latter, weekly scores should be multiplied by a rather high factor.
Will the route as a whole also be judged, and what factor will be used then?

in theory, every week should evaluate also the weeks before.
I'm thinking of preserving the 5x only for the final week evaluation, that will basically evaluate the whole route.

By the way, stage day was yesterday But I can understand all this was confusing. So, it's today now.

 

[Brullnux]

Iter per Imperium Romanum Stage 8: Acharnae-Athenae 39km ITT

The stage is a flat ITT from one the suburbs of Athens to Athens itself. Simple as that. I don;'t have that much time, unfortunately, but I imagine all judges know the importance and heritage of Athens to both Greek and Roman culture, being one of the most important cities in the Roman Empire.

 

[Gigs_98]

CONSTANTINOPOLIS-ROMA stage 8: Augusta Raurica - Aquae (229 km)

After a week in Eastern Europe and a long transfer the race is in central Europe, to be more exact in the area which today is Switzerland. The start is close to todays town Basel, but a little bit eastern in Augusta Raurica. The place is mainly known for it's numerous archaeological excavations. The most famous one is probably the Roman theater:

The route goes northwards into which would today be Germany. The first half of the race is still relatively flat with only a few bumps and an intermediate sprint in Aquae Villae, most famous for it's Roman thermae.

And after the descent immediately the next really hard climb to Mehliskopf starts, which is also not extremely long but very steep.
These two climbs might cause problems for a rider who has a day off after the rest day and they will definitely lead to some attacks at least from riders who want the stage win. And again a factor which could lead to attacks is the golden mile on a short bump close to the finish which just isn't hard enough to get categorized but might still cause attacks if there is still a group together. And whoever gets over this bump alone will not only get bonifications and points from the golden mile but also the stage win since the finish is directly after the descent.
After the riders pass Freiburg, there is the first categorized climb of the day, to Bachere. However this is nothing compared to later. First of all there is the pretty steep 3rd category climb to Löcherbergwasen, and directly after the descent another 3rd category climb to Ruhestein. This ascent is however the complete opposite and is very long but flat. After another 4th category climb, the really hard part of the race starts, with the ascent to Unterstmatt. Because of a flat section close to the top the average gradient isn't that high but the ascent starts with some brutally steep stretches.

And directly after the descent there is the next difficult climb, to Mehliskopf, which also isn't that long but quite steep.

(only the last 6 kilometers)

If a gc contender has a day off after the rest day he will probably get problems here but even if not there should be attacks at least by riders who want the stage. And another factor which might make the riders attack is the golden mile on the last climb of the day, which just wasn't hard enough to get categorized but might still cause time gaps if there are still riders together in a group. Moreover if a rider gets a gap he won't only get the time bonuses and points for the golden mile but probably also the stage since the rest of the stage is almost only downhill.

The finish is in Aquae, or today known as Baden-Baden, and as people who speak german will know, translated Baden-Baden means "bathing-bathing". Therefore you could already think that this region is mostly known for hot springs and ofc. the Romans also already used this area and built thermaes here.

 

[mb2612]

Via Roma Stage 8 Phintias (Licata) --> Lilybaeum (Marsala) 227 km
"the longest and most severely contested war in history" - Polybius on the First Punic War

Following the hard stage yesterday, today's transition stage should give the breakaway the first chance of success, with a hard first potion of the stage, followed by an easier run-in. The stage starts in Phintias, which was the scene of a vital battle in the First Punic War, the Battle of Cape Ecnomus, which was the first time that the Roman Navy bested the Carthaginian navy. This was an absolutely vital development, and the ability to push on and invade Africa. The key advance the Roman's made was hinged bridges on their ships, to enable them to board the Punic vessels.

The stage heads North West initially, following a slightly inland road, meaning that the road is constantly rising and falling, giving strong riders the ability to breakaway. After 50km we reach the first sustained climb of the day, a Cat 3 4.7% 4.4km rise up to the town of Agrigentum (Agrigento). Agrigentum was the scene of the first pitched battle between Rome and Carthage. Initially a siege, eventually a Carthaginian army showed up to try and relieve the defenders. For two months the two armys watched each other, and tried to motivate themselves to attack, and eventually everyone's lack of food forced conflict, which the Roman's won decisively, subsequently selling the towns 25,000 inhabitants into slavery.

Immediately after descending out of Agrigentum the road climbs again, for another category 3 climb this time 7.4 km at 4.4%, although as this includes 2km at 10%, followed by a few more rolling hills over the next 50kms before we hit the days big obstacle, a first category climb to the town of Triokala (Caltabellotta). At16km at 4.2% or 10.2km at 5.1%, depending on whether or not you include the first step, this should split the breakaway, and hopefully lead to a couple of the stronger climbers trying to hold off a larger bunch over the flat run-in.

The days sprint point comes just off the descent of the climb in the town of Terme Selinuntine (Sciacca), a town famous for its baths. After 150km of racing up and down, the 80km of relative flat to the finish will be attractive to the riders hoping to relax, however the route follows the coastline, and is perpendicular to the prevailing Sirocco wind coming across from North Africa, giving echelon potential.

The finishing town of Lilybaeum is the scene of the opening battle in the second Punic War. Following a roman ultimatum about Hannibal taking a city in Iberia, Carthage were given a choice between backing down and declaring war chose the later option. Deciding to raid Sicily, they targeted Lilybaeum, which had been a Punic stronghold before the first Punic war. Unfortunately for them, the Roman's were forewarned and forearmed, and despite being outnumbered ship wise, their individual ships were better manned, which would prove decisive, as they managed to capture 20% of the Carthaginian fleet.

 

[rghysens]

Mare Nostrum stage 8: Antioch – Gabala: 246km; “high” mountains

This stage, and also the next one, will entirely take place in the Roman province of Syria. It was one of the most prosperous of the empire, due to the long-distance trade with the far east (the silk route), but also because it still had a very good agricultural output (the desertification of the area would only start from the 8th-9th century AD onward). The first 7 stages have seen a mixture of flat, hilly and medium mountain stages, and began with a short itt. So the top of the GC should be a good mix of decent climbing timetriallers, punchy climbers and climbers. The latter should take advantage of today’s course, as things might soon change.

We’ll start in the Roman province Syria’s capital Antioch and follow the ancient road that connected Antioch with its port of Seleucia ad Pieria. But the peloton won’t turn north when nearing the coast, it will cross the Orontes river and subsequently climb out of its narrow gorge

This initially steep climb (3.2km @ 9.2%) flattens out near the top and after a little bit of flat, the second climb of the day kicks in. This double ascent should be enough to split the peloton and establish a strong break. Things might ease up a bit in the next 85 rolling kilometres, the point where the peloton enters the Orontes valley again. Here it’s not a narrow gorge, but a wide plain, considered to be the bread basket of Syria, nowadays as well as in the Roman era. To the west of this plain lies the steep mountain range described as Bargylus Mons by Gaius Plinius Secundus in his Naturalis Historiae. And it is this mountain range the peloton has to cross today.
Several times.
Which many participants won’t like.

It all starts a bit after 125km, with the Sirmaniyeh climb, there won’t be an immediate descent, but after a last bump in the road (well, a 2km @ 9% bump, that is) the peloton descents back to the Orontes plain. There they have 12 flat kilometres to recover a bit, before they tackle this:

There even seems to be a little bit of space at the summit, so one could place here some infrastructure if you wanted to organise a mtf.

Since it’s not anywhere near a Roman structure, we can’t.
Keep in mind that this climb, and also the previous and next one are all on well paved roads. (This area is the heartland of the Al-Assad family, so they spent some efforts to develop the region). The end of the descent marks the beginning of the last climb, which starts out very steep, but eases after 5km, to ramp up again at the end with a final kilometre at 9.8%.
The first 5km after the summit is more or less parallel to the mountain ridge, mostly descending, but with an occasional rise. Then the course takes a turn and the descent starts in earnest, going to the Mediterranean.

The descent is a fairly straightforward one: not to steep nor technical, apart from a short stretch with a few hairpins with 25km to go. The finish is near the Roman theatre of Gabala, which could seat about 7000 spectators.

Gabala itself was a fairly important and prosperous town, being on the trade routes from east to west and on the coastal Roman road that went from Antioch to Judaea.

Climbs:
Çöğürlü climb: km22.5; 4.2km @ 8%; 2nd cat
Sebenoba climb: km33; 8.4km @ 4.2%; 3rd cat
Neegh Almur climb: km58.5; 4.2km @ 6.1%; 3rd cat
Zaahiah climb: km67; 2km @ 7.9%; 3rd cat
Sirmaniyah climb: km132; 7km @ 10%; 1st cat
Intermediate climb: km138; 2km @ 9%; 3rd cat
Shathah climb: km172; 9km @ 12%; HC
Qardahah climb: km207.5; 14.4km @ 7.6%; HC (first 5km @ 11.8%)



Total distance raced: 1584km

 

[Gigs_98]

Wow, those climbs are brutal. Didn't know there is stuff like that in Syria

 

[Red Rick]

Mare Nostrum stage 8: Antioch – Gabala: 246km; “high” mountains

This stage, and also the next one, will entirely take place in the Roman province of Syria. It was one of the most prosperous of the empire, due to the long-distance trade with the far east (the silk route), but also because it still had a very good agricultural output (the desertification of the area would only start from the 8th-9th century AD onward). The first 7 stages have seen a mixture of flat, hilly and medium mountain stages, and began with a short itt. So the top of the GC should be a good mix of decent climbing timetriallers, punchy climbers and climbers. The latter should take advantage of today’s course, as things might soon change.

We’ll start in the Roman province Syria’s capital Antioch and follow the ancient road that connected Antioch with its port of Seleucia ad Pieria. But the peloton won’t turn north when nearing the coast, it will cross the Orontes river and subsequently climb out of its narrow gorge

This initially steep climb (3.2km @ 9.2%) flattens out near the top and after a little bit of flat, the second climb of the day kicks in. This double ascent should be enough to split the peloton and establish a strong break. Things might ease up a bit in the next 85 rolling kilometres, the point where the peloton enters the Orontes valley again. Here it’s not a narrow gorge, but a wide plain, considered to be the bread basket of Syria, nowadays as well as in the Roman era. To the west of this plain lies the steep mountain range described as Bargylus Mons by Gaius Plinius Secundus in his Naturalis Historiae. And it is this mountain range the peloton has to cross today.
Several times.
Which many participants won’t like.

It all starts a bit after 125km, with the Sirmaniyeh climb, there won’t be an immediate descent, but after a last bump in the road (well, a 2km @ 9% bump, that is) the peloton descents back to the Orontes plain. There they have 12 flat kilometres to recover a bit, before they tackle this:

There even seems to be a little bit of space at the summit, so one could place here some infrastructure if you wanted to organise a mtf.

Since it’s not anywhere near a Roman structure, we can’t.
Keep in mind that this climb, and also the previous and next one are all on well paved roads. (This area is the heartland of the Al-Assad family, so they spent some efforts to develop the region). The end of the descent marks the beginning of the last climb, which starts out very steep, but eases after 5km, to ramp up again at the end with a final kilometre at 9.8%.
The first 5km after the summit is more or less parallel to the mountain ridge, mostly descending, but with an occasional rise. Then the course takes a turn and the descent starts in earnest, going to the Mediterranean.

The descent is a fairly straightforward one: not to steep nor technical, apart from a short stretch with a few hairpins with 25km to go. The finish is near the Roman theatre of Gabala, which could seat about 7000 spectators.

Gabala itself was a fairly important and prosperous town, being on the trade routes from east to west and on the coastal Roman road that went from Antioch to Judaea.

Climbs:
Çöğürlü climb: km22.5; 4.2km @ 8%; 2nd cat
Sebenoba climb: km33; 8.4km @ 4.2%; 3rd cat
Neegh Almur climb: km58.5; 4.2km @ 6.1%; 3rd cat
Zaahiah climb: km67; 2km @ 7.9%; 3rd cat
Sirmaniyah climb: km132; 7km @ 10%; 1st cat
Intermediate climb: km138; 2km @ 9%; 3rd cat
Shathah climb: km172; 9km @ 12%; HC
Qardahah climb: km207.5; 14.4km @ 7.6%; HC (first 5km @ 11.8%)



Total distance raced: 1584km

 

[Eshnar]

guess what, I will post the votes tomorrow... I am still waiting for judges It will probably be very late, since I like to sleep on Sunday

 

[Red Rick]

Re:

guess what, I will post the votes tomorrow... I am still waiting for judges It will probably be very late, since I like to sleep on Sunday

I just sent them in mate

 

[rghysens]

Eshnar, it seems that you posted the scores for stage 8 over the first week scores, which makes it a bit confusing (judges results before actual stages).
I guess we can post our stages 9 today?

 

[Eshnar]

Re:

Eshnar, it seems that you posted the scores for stage 8 over the first week scores, which makes it a bit confusing (judges results before actual stages).
I guess we can post our stages 9 today?

god I hate this forum. Yeah I usually start posting the votes by quoting a previous post, so that I use the same format. Probably I was too sleepy this morning and hit edit instead of quote
Problem is, now I lost the stage 7 votes I still have those of the other judges, but I did not save mine...

 

[Eshnar]

JUDGE 1:

Gigs_98 T: 5 C: 2
Not the finest Roman tradition, but the best stage here, the second half will be hard to control, and the late bonus seconds in the golden mile give an incentive to animate the race.

Brullnux T: 3 C: 3
A nice solid ITT, like any race needs. Location is of course important in the Roman era but still more famous for Greece...

Rghysens T: 4 C: 4
The first 'real' mountain stage that we've seen I think, with some proper monsters. This will cause some real selection to be made for sure.

mb2612 T: 2 C: 4
The storyline of your race continues to be strong, but this is another stage I anticipate being a sprint, albeit along the coast gives potential to be more interesting on that basis.

JUDGE 2:

Gigs_98 T: 4 C: 2
I like this stage a lot, but I fear the final climb might be just not hard enough for the terrain that follows it.

Brullnux T: 3 C: 5
TT's are definitely necessary, but I find them boring to watch. There's very few places to better hold one than Athens though.

Rghysens T: 5 C: 3
Zomegnan approves. Just brutal.


mb2612 T: 3 C: 3
The 1st half looks rather good, and in the 2nd half I'd find myself hoping for crosswinds.

JUDGE 3:

Gigs_98 T: 5 C: 4
Lovely stage. Really nice. Nice cultural heritage too.

Brullnux T: 3 C: 4
No issues here. Athens is a fitting place for what should be an important GC stage.

Rghysens T: 4 C: 3
Brute of a stage. I love it. Unlucky not to get top technical points.

mb2612 T: 2 C: 3
I don't really like the stage. Sicily s great.

JUDGE 4:

Gigs_98 T: 4 C: 3
Very nice second part... unfortunately there's another stage that steals the spotlight.

Brullnux T: 3 C: 4
In a giant tour as this one, I would expect longer TTs...

Rghysens T: 5 C: 3
Finally the first serious mountains of this challenge! I didn't expect anything easier.

mb2612 T: 3 C: 5
A bit too easy perhaps, even though the wind could be a factor. A finish at the Lilybaeum gets you the cultural cake.

CLASSIFICATION FOR STAGE 8

Rghysens: 31
Gigs_98: 29
Brullnux: 28
mb2612: 25


CLASSIFICATION AFTER STAGE 8:

rghysens: 322
mb2612: 290
Brullnux: 279
Gigs_98: 270

 

[Brullnux]

@Judge 4: there is a monster ITT coming, don't you worry

 

[rghysens]

Re:

@Judge 4: there is a monster ITT coming, don't you worry

More than one, I guess

 

[Brullnux]

Iter per Imperium Romanum Stage 9: Carthage-Constantine 470km Ultra Stage

After a rest day, there is the race's first Ultra day, after the riders have moved to Africa. Jere the riders start in Carthage, the most important African city in Roman times, and finish in Constantine, one of the best of the rest. I think all the roads are asphalted or at least usable, but the lack of street view and local knowledge means that I could be wrong.

The first 350km are fairly rolling, then the hills begin after that. A difficult 40km section precedes some flat then the final 40km long ascent before the descent to Constantine. These last 40km should decide the stage, and gaps, despite the climb being pretty easy, could be huge because of the length and the altitude change (57800m for the whole day). In the final (categorised ) stretch there is a 3km section at 8%, including steeper sections, then a descent, then another 4km section at 6.5%, with sections above 10%. It is a very irregular climb which adds to the challenge.

 

[rghysens]

Re: MN stage 9

Mare Nostrum stage 9: Tripolis – Heliopolis: 251.5km; high mountains

After a transfer of 120km the race caravan arrives in ancient Tripolis, current Tripoli. Tripoli was first inhabited in the 2nd millennium BC, before the Phoenicians established a bustling trade city. Later the Persians and Seleucids ruled the city before the Romans took over in 64BC. Tripolis (“three cities”) got its Greco-Roman name because of the existence of of three distinct and administratively independent quarters.
During the Roman era Tripolis witnessed the construction of important public buildings including a municipal stadium, but most of the Roman constructions have been destroyed and built over in later periods, only some foundations can be seen.

Today’s stage will be the second consecutive mountain stage. While it lacks the excessive gradients of the previous stage, it makes up with higher altitudes and generally longer climbs, combined with more Roman landmarks and from time to time spectacular landscapes.

To avoid the very busy coastal highway or its equally busy parallel road, we venture south from Tripolis and cross the foothills of the Libanus Mons. The first climb crests after 17km and leads to the village of Ayn Makriis, which has a small Roman temple ruin within its boundaries.

One can find dozens of similar remains in Lebanon, above all in the Beqaa valley, where this stage will head to. But even more of these small Roman temples have been replaced by churches that were often built on the ancient foundations, sometimes even with the original flooring still visible. These temples weren’t necessarily built in a city or village, but often just near a special landmark like sources, grottoes, waterfalls, special rock formations,…
For the next 30km the course snakes though the hills, more or less parallel to the Mediterranean and after 25km there’s already a second small temple that will offer some points and bonus seconds, this time at the village of Bziiza.

Some more climbs are on the riders’ way, but after the 4th climb of the day the peloton descends slowly back to the Mediterranean, which will be reached after 79km. One kilometre further, in ancient Byblos, the third Roman landmark sprint awaits the peloton.
By the time the hamlets on the hills of Rome were united to form one city, Byblos already existed longer than Rome does today. It is no wonder that this little town vies for the title of longest continuously inhabited city on earth, and the Romans were just one of the many civilisations who controlled the city. Nevertheless, they had quite some impact on its outlook. The temple of the local god Resheph was elaborately rebuilt, and a small theatre constructed, while it became a center for the cult of Adonis. But many of the Roman era buildings were used in later times as quarries by the various islamic dynasties and the crusaders. Visitors will f.e. notice Roman columns built into the walls ofthe crusader castle.

Leaving Byblos, the course heads for the mountains, with the first big climb of the day. A first stretch of 15km @ 7.4% is followed by some false flat and a small bump, before the roads gently descends to a plateau of a bit less than 20km long. A short descent leads to the second big climb of the day. This one is a bit shorter, but also slightly steeper. It's slightly shorter and less steep than the climb of Le Semnoz, as done in the 2013 Tour de France, so I’ll rate it a 1st category climb. Once again, there’s no immediate descent, which makes it more difficult to recover for the riders. A long descent leads to the Abu Ali river, and to the subsequent climb out of the valley, another sound 1st category climb.
The next 15km, until the town Bsharre, will be on the edge of Wadi Qadisha, a spectacular gorge carved deep in the Lebanon mountains.

When leaving Bsharre, the last climb of the day kicks in. The grind to the Col des Cèdres will lead the riders to an altitude of 2581m, with maybe some views of today’s destination from the summit.
The long descent and some flat leads to the last Roman landmark sprint of the day, so it may be wise to defend your lead and grab some extra bonification near the temple ruins of Qasr al-Banaat.

By now the finish is only 11km further, so if you’re in front, you might as well continue to glorious Heliopolis, after a final that shows some simlarities (although more stretched out) with the classic Télégraphe - Galibier - Briançon from the TdF. Since this stage is followed by a rest day, there's no reason for the riders to hold back.

The area of current Baalbek was already inhabited for some millennia, due to its beneficial location in a fertile valley and on the road between the trading cities Tyrus and Palmyra, and saw all the civilisations that dominated the region passing by. The first settlers of the Roman colony Colonia Julia Augusta Felix Heliopolitana were probably veterans of legions stationed nearby during the reign of Augustus. The extensive building program lasted for nearly three centuries and started with the temple of Jupiter, which was the biggest temple dedicated to Jupiter in the Roman empire, with 84 columns of 30m high and 2.5m diameter.

Six of them are still standing.

In front of it was a great court and a forecourt, all on a podium made up of monolithic blocks of up to 1000 tonnes.

The great court was surrounded by a colonnade with an intricately carved ceiling.

To the left of the temple of Jupiter stands a temple of Bacchus, still quite complete.

Apart from the main site, there’s also a temple to Venus, of which only the central part remains.

Climbs:
Ayn Makriis climb: km17; 2.8km @ 7.8%; 3rd cat
Bustaan el Aasi climb: km34; 4.8km @ 5.3%; 3rd cat
Aassiya climb: km40.5; 1.8km @ 9.5%; 3rd cat
Aalali climb: km46; 2km @ 7.4%; 3rd cat
Abdelali climb: km58; 3.4km @ 6.9%; 3rd cat
Aanaya climb: km100; 18.6km @ 6.6%; HC
Hourata climb: km136; 10.8km @ 8.1%; 1st cat
Ehden climb: km177; 11.2km @ 7.4%; 1st cat
Col des Cèdres: km210; 17.6km @ 6.5%; 2581m;HC

Roman Landmark sprints:
Ain Makriis: km19
Bziiza: km25.5
Byblos: km81
Qasr al Banaat: km240.5

Total distance raced: 1835,5km

 

[Gigs_98]

CONSTANTINOPOLIS-ROMA stage 9: Argentorate - Rubiacum (220 km)

After my medium mountain stage in the German Schwarzwald there is a very similar stage, just a bit more mountainous and in the French Vosges. The start of the stage is in Argentorate (Stradbourg) one of the most important Roman fortresses of the Region, which even became a bishop's see around 400 AD. Since the old Roman city lies under todays city Strasbourg there isn't that much left of it. However after parts of the city were destroyed in the 2nd world war it was possible to make excavations in the city.

The first kilometers go along the Roman Rhine Valley road, until the riders arrive in the Roman city Helvetum (Ehl). Here the first intermediate sprint will take place. I know it comes very early but therefore the pace at the beginning might be very high since some sprint teams maybe want to control the peloton until Helvetum so their rider can get points there. And a very fast beginning should make it harder alter on. The riders leave the Roman streets and ride westwards to Colmar, where the climbing starts with then 2nd category Collet du Linge. However this climb could definitely also be 1st category since the first half is way steeper than the 2nd one. Anyway the riders don't get any rest since after the descent there are 2 first category climbs directly after each other, the Petit Ballon and the Col du Platzerwasel

These two climbs are relatively known since they were already used in the tour de france. The "Tour de What?" some of you might think now. Let me explain, this is a short, only laughable 3 weeks long, cycling race which takes place in this area in an invented empire called "France". Anyway these climbs might already reduce the peloton and will make it harder to control the stage. However this isn't the place yet where attacks by gc contenders might come. These attacks will more likely come after a descent and some false flat descending on the Col du Grand Ballon.

To be honest this isn't exactly the same climb I'm using since the last 1.5 kilometers of this profile are missing but this still is really difficult. As you can see there are some very serious stretches of up to 14% which will probably encourage attacks especially since there is hardly any flat in the rest of the stage. There is some false flat before the descent starts but then there first is a high speed descent before the last climb of the stage, the Col de Bannstein. This little col basically has the same purpose as the little bump near the finish in stage 8. The golden mile takes place there to encourage attacks on the really difficult Grand Ballon. And since this last bump is so close to the finish, whoever gets over this climb first is very likely to win the stage which finishes in Rubiacum (Rouffach).

As you surely know the Roman Empire didn't always have an easy time in northern Europe and they often had to fight rebelling tribes. But while I could ofc make a stage about a big defeat of the Roman army this race should honor the Roman Empire therefore I chose to make a stage in the area of one of the most impressive triumphs of the Roman military. This stage should be a reference to the battle of Strasbourg 357 AD, in which the Roman Julian managed to defeat a Alamanni tribal confederation. The Romans were outnumbered but still managed to win in a battle in which 6000 Germans died while only 250 Romans didn't survive. This battle was the climax of Julian's campaigns in 355–57 to evict barbarian marauders from Gaul and to restore the Roman defensive line of fortifications along the Rhine, which had been largely destroyed during the Roman civil war of 350–53. In the coming decades the Roman empire started to shrink but this campaign was one of the last ones which showed the Roman military at its best.

 

[mb2612]

Sorry that this is a short write up.

Via Roma Stage 9 Hermaeum (Al Huwariyah) --> Aspis (Kelbia) 85 km (ITT)

The Carthaginians shall pay to the Romans in twenty years 2200 Euboic talents of silver - Lutatius

Stage 9 is the first ITT of the race, and with Lilybaeum just under 150km from the coast of North Africa, and we start the stage in the town of Hermaeum. The stage then loops around the Cap Bon penisular, before going through the finishtown of Aspis, and then following an out and back route to the town of Kerkouane. Despite having a small rise in the middle of the stage, this is all about the power time triallists, and over the 85 kilometres, they should be able to create gaps.

This stage starts and finishes in towns where major battles in the First Punic War took place, unfortunately, the stage goes the opposite way to history, so I'll talk about the finishing town first. After arriving in Carthage following their conquest of Sicily, the Roman's landed on Cap Bon and immediately moved to Aspis, to lay siege to the city. The Carthaginians were unprepared for a land battle, and as such, the city fell quickly, giving the Romans their first victory on African soil.

Following the first victory at Aspis, the Roman General won another great victory further inland, at Adis, but then suffered a severe defeat at Lake Tunis, with the Roman's forced to evacuate their army. Their NAvy was sent across from Sicily, numbering 350 ships, however they were intercepted by the Punic fleet, numbering 200 ships, just off the coast of Cape Hermaeum. Here however, as in the battle of Cape Econmus, the Roman's had the advantage, capturing over half the Carthaginian fleet, probably by forcing them to beach themselves. This victory gave Rome hope that they would be able to recover on Sicily and then press home their advantage in North Africa. Unfortunately a storm caught the Roman's on their way back to Sicily, sinking 3/4 of the fleet, killing perhaps 100,000 men, and forcing the First Punic War to a stalemate.

Kerkouane, the town we go through at 70kms, was abandoned during the First Punic War, and never rebuilt, it is also roughly the location the Roman army first landed in Cap Bon. It was one of the most important cities in the Punic empire, and is the only Phoenicio-Punic city to be discovered.