Race Design Thread

[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 3

Shanghang - Jinkou (171km)

Well, we do need a 300km transfer (China is too big), but we made it into the hills, where one of those typical first-week hilly stages can be held. Starting in the county of Shanghang we make our way through an early cat. 2 in Yuanxiaoping (5km@10,5%), a sprint in Longyang center at roughly the halfway point, and a cat. 3 in Shangnanqian(2,5km@12%), so there's plenty on offer for the break, which will include the new KoM. It will probably be caught, but the sprinters could be blocked by a 1km long sharp descent just 1km from the finish. An attacking rider with great descending skills could give it a go here to win the stage, but there probably won't be any time gaps so the yellow should be safe.


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[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 4

Hangzhou - Shanghai (207km)

Wait, did I say 300km were a long transfer? Scratch that. This transfer to a city that has something to do with the aforementioned cause for this tour is a long one. But anyway, with only early one cat. 4 climb to Hua'tangan(1km@18,5km) and two intermediate sprints in Jiaxing and Songjiang there won't be too much happening on the road,with the other kilometers being pan-flat, so let's focus on the run-in in Shanghai, where the sprintes will once again compete, but this time the finish is more technical with a few 90-degree bends. They will be especially keen if they missed out the day before, so the break is unlikely to succeed.

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[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 5

Langfang - Beijing ITT (58km)

A long transfer to a World Tour race town? We get another one right away and the specialists are gonna love this. This time trial from the outskirts of Beijing all the way to the center is only just under the maximum lenght and there are very few major turns. There's no ascents or descents either. So start your motor and roll through the city of Beijing. After this stage we will most certainly have good time gaps for the TTers, but this was their last real chance so the climbers will know exactly what they'll have to make up. At the early first time check at Fenghe River Jincun there'll be some points available again so expect any Red Jersey contenders to start out full throttle, then we won't know their time until the second normal time check in Jinghaizhen.

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[Libertine Seguros]

The guys in charge of logistics HATE you as much as the ITT specialists love you right now.

I thought my Vuelta a Argentina was tough on the riders with the transfers, they'll be racking up some frequent flyer miles with this race for sure!

 

[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 6

Metougou - Qingshan (179km)

The puncheurs get their first real day in the limelight after the half-opportunity that was stage 3 as we travel through Beijing's Western Hills (The logistics team gets a rest). Two ascents of the third category in Taoyuancun(2km@14%) and Xiaolongmen(5,5km@5,5%) and a sprint in Zaitangzhen in between serve to tire the legs before the category 4 finish (2km@5%). We should see some time gaps on this one, however it won't be enough to take the yellow from the specialists. The KoM classification, however, could be shaken up and there's a decent chance for a break, now that those ITTs caused some time gaps.

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[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 7

Tonghuan - Jianyancun TTT (27km)

Well there's mixed opinions about this discipline but, love it or hate it, I did say the first week was the time for the rides against the clock. The course the teams will have to pass is not that easy, considering the mix of flat roads, ascents and descents that will be ridden as the riders pass through the time checks in Jiangjiagou and Guyuancun. Some of the climbs would be classified, were this a normal road race, especially that early hill of about 150m. So the teams face a choice: Drop good TTers that could help later on here or slow down. The contenders of those teams that manage this course best will gain critical time on their opponents and after this everyone will know what they will have to make up in the hills and mountains yet to come.

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[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 8

Nenjiang - Mantoushan (191km)

Through the liberal use of transfers we have now already reached the easternmost point of this tour, so the riders will be sent off into the rest day with a rather easy stage, they better prepare, however, because after that ridiculous rest day transfer, the mountains will be on the horizon. Two sprints will be judged toward the beginning of the stage so the sprinter's teams might try to keep it together for some time to shore up their leads as there are only 3 flat stages left. The only classified climb of the day in Xiangyancun (cat. 4 3km@5%) will not cause any real selection, however, some sprinters will not like the fact that the final 2-3km are right on the cusp between an ascent and a false flat.

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[Libertine Seguros]

just so you know... that means your rest day is on a Sunday.

 

[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 9

Yinchuan - Qingtongxia(167km)

Well, the riders probably didn't have too much time to prepare on that rest day, seeing that we travelled about 2000km on it. But on the upside we are in foothills of the Qin Mountains this race's pyrenees. For this stage, however we will consistently avoid them to ease the riders into racing again. Apart from the two intermediate sprints in Yongning and Yinchuan, the only difficulty will be the number of turns in the middle part of the stage, which hopefully will not lead to crashes. Those would be particularly harsh on the day before one of the hardest stages of the tour, where the GC riders will need all that energy they saved in these three days.

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[Progsprach]

just so you know... that means your rest day is on a Sunday.

Oh, I didn't notice that, but I can't really do a 2000km transfer without a rest day, can I? I'd rather just move the race start by one day or something, seeing how I don't really have a calendar place for it anyway.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Don't worry, you aren't the first nor will you be the last to make that error. Some people have been able to just move the rest day because the transfer isn't too big, but with a 2000km transfer, to move the rest day into the week would require a wholesale shakeup of the parcours, I guess.

 

[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 10

Ningshan - Beilangying(167km)

We're going all out on our first mountains day, so we immediately start climbing the long,but inconsistent slope up to Beilangying (HC, 25km@5%). After descending into the valley we'll do a shorter, but somewhat steeper 1st category climb to Gushandeng(16km@6,5%), from which then descend only to immediately climb up a third smaller climb to Zhoujiawan (2nd, 9km@5,5%). The last descent of the day takes us back to our starting point, where a sprint will be judged. None of these descents are particularly fast since they are interrupted by short climbs. The stage is finished up by repeating the first climb of the day as a HC MTF. After this stage only the overall contenders should be left in the upper placings and the old KoM classification will be obliterated after this stage. The sprinters and flat domestiques will really have to work for the time limit as there are no flat kms and the descents are not technical enough to make up a lot of time.

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[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 11

Hezheng - Geolanshangziang (177km)

After that extremely tough mountain stage we'll take it a little bit easier, but not too much. After a cat.3 climb in Yuhaocun (4,5km@7%) and a cat.4 one in Dalenggan (2,5km@6%) the road will get easier for a long time including at the sprint in Peijia. The finish, however, will be rather difficult : First a cat. 2 ascent to Ping Zhuangzhiang(13,5km@4%) then another one to the finish(12,5km@5%). Also, the riders will be over 2000m height for most of the stage(but those are altitudes the riders will wish for on the days to come). This is a stage for hill climbers with a punch. The GC riders will probably not try any long-range attacks because the next stage is a mountain stage again, but on the last ascent there should be some gaps.

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[SetonHallPirate]

Tour of the United States Prologue, Stratosphere to Mandalay Bay, on the Las Vegas Strip ITT:

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1434395

Tour of the United States Stage 1, Las Vegas, NV to Death Valley, CA

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1434433

Cat 1 at Mountain Springs, 32.6 km
Cat 2 at Jubilee Pass, 148 km

Tour of the United States Stage 2, Death Valley to Whitney Portal, CA (MTF)

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1434452

HC at Pinto Pass, 94.5 km
Cat 1 at Death Valley National Park Western Entrance. 137.1 km
HC at Whitney Portal, Finish

Tour of the United States Stage 3, Inyokern to Victorville, CA

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1434745

Cat 2 at 35.8 km
Cat 3 at 50.7 km

Tour of the United States Stage 4, Lucerne Valley to La Canada Flintridge-Los Angeles, CA (if the Tour can do that, I can too)

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1442644

Cat 1 at Pacific Crest Trail, 10.7 km
Cat 1 at Wrightwood, 127.9 km
Cat 2 at 140.5 km
Cat 2 at 154.1 km
Cat 1 at Lukens Pass, 221.8 km

Tour of the United States Stage 5, Aspen to Hagerman Pass-Leadville, CO (MTF)

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1434794

Cat 1 at Independence Pass, 31.8 km
Cat 1 at Hagerman Pass, Finish

Tour of the United States Stage 6, Idaho Springs to Mount Evans, CO ITT (MTF)

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1434800

HC at Mount Evans, Finish

Tour of the United States Stage 7, Idaho Springs to Trail Ridge-Estes Park, CO (MTF)

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1434812

Cat 1 at Colorado Mines, 33.7 km
Cat 1 at Trail Ridge, Finish

Tour of the United States Stage 8, Estes Park to Denver International Airport, CO

Cat 2 at 12.5 km
Cat 2 at 48.6 km
Cat 3 at 79.7 km

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1434826

Tour of the United States Stage 9, Washington, DC to Front Royal, VA

Nothing categorized

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436350

Tour of the United States Stage 10, Front Royal to Waynesboro, VA

Cat 2 at 10.1 km
Cat 3 at 17.2 km
Cat 3 at 25.4 km
Cat 3 at 33.9 km
Cat 2 at 57.5 km

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436363

Tour of the United States Stage 11, Waynesboro to Roanoke, VA

Cat 3 at 13.59 km
Cat 1 at 122.5 km

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436371

Tour of the United States Stage 12, McGrady to Mount Mitchell, NC (MTF)

Cat 3 at 76.2 km
Cat 2 at 122 km
Cat 3 at 153.6 km
Cat 3 at 175.9 km
Cat 2 at 200.6 km
Cat 1 at Mount Mitchell, Finish

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436379

Tour of the United States Stage 13, Asheville to Clingman's Dome, NC (MTF)

Cat 3 at 22.1 km
Cat 1 at Pisgah, 40.1 km
Cat 2 at 60.3 km
Cat 1 at Waterrock Knob, 109.6 km
Cat 3 at 122.2 km
HC at Clingmans Dome, Finish

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436389

Tour of the United States Stage 14, Knoxville to Lookout Mountain-Chattanooga, TN (MTF)

Cat 2 at Finish

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436622

Tour of the United States Stage 15, Chattanooga, TN to Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, GA

Cat 2, 7.5 km

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436641

Tour of the United States Stage 16, Boston, MA to Concord, NH

Nothing categorized

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436661

Tour of the United States Stage 17, Manchester to Mount Washington, NH (MTF)

Cat 3 at 210.2 km
HC at Mount Washington, Finish

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436670

Tour of the United States Stage 18, Burlington, VT to Lake Placid, NY

Nothing categorized

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436684

Tour of the United States Stage 19, Poughkeepsie, NY to Weehawken, NJ-New York City

Cat 3 at 39 km

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436692

Tour of the United States Stage 20, New York City, NY ITT

Nothing categorized

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1436756

 

[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 12

Xining - Dongqi (211km)

We're still in the Qin Mountains and this is the first stage that is going to show one critical aspect of this race: ability to handle high altitude. Whereas in Europe roads go to 3000m maximum, that isn't the case over in China. Case in point: We start this stage at over 2000m in Xining and climb up an HC mountain (31,5km@4%) up to Sancha at 3700m of altitude after the descent and a short valley including Zhe Manangcun, where the intermediate sprint is judged is back up to Gongka with cat.1 climb(29,5km@3,5%). Only a fraction of that altitude will be descended, and then we move back up towards the finish in Dongqi (cat 2, 17,5km@3,5%). However, before the finish is judged the riders will descend for about 10km from the high point of today's stage at about 3800m. So, today the descenders will have to throw their cards on the table since this the only mountain stage finishing on a descent.
(BTW The speed calculator of Google Earth completely breaks on one section and guesses a speed of 1139 km/h)

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[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 13

Gobi - Hotan (219km)

Well, you can see the distance between this stage's start and last day's finish so if you're guessing rest day you're right (especially since there aren't any airports around). That means ,by the way, that from Stage 14 to 20 the riders will ride 7 consecutive non-flat stages (not quite challenging that mountains only Giro d'Italia in sadism yet, but getting there). Well, about today's stage there is not much to be said except for the intermediate sprints at Kashinu and Duo Langmaili and the fact that we're riding 200km through Gobi Desert. The riders will breathe a sigh of relief when they finally see civilization at the second intermediate (except for that single building at the first). Well, any sprinters that survived the mountains and can cope with Gobi's extreme climate will threaten for the win in this stage.

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[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 14

Ma'eryangxiang ITT(19km)

When I said the first week was the week for riding against the clock I was leaving out this special occasion, the kind of time trial the climbers love and the specialists abhor, the mountain time trial. The climb that is to be ascended is 19km long and has an average gradient of 6%, however, it is very inconsistent,even having descents in some parts, gradients of 20% and more at other points. Therefore, even at the first time check in Zenhong, until which it is somewhat less steep, those that like to time trial up their mountains will find that very difficult in this MTT, so this is really something for the pure climbers and it should cause some nice time gaps. The mountain would normally not be classified HC, but it's inconsistence and the absence of team support help it over that bar(as well as the finishing altitude of 4300m).

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[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 15

Wangwuer'zi - Khunjerab (233km)

The second stage in the Karakoram range is probably the easiest mountain stage of this tour(if you discount lenght and altitude). We start in Wangwuer'zi at about 2100m altitude and begin in hilly terrain mixed in with a slow uphill drag(1-2%). The most notable of those Hills is the one in Retie Keleke: it's only 2km, but about 28% steep (cat.2). After that the hills go on until about 80km, getting smaller and smaller. At the intermediate, which is held in Tashkurgan, a former Silk Road stop, the hills are gone, but the false flats remain. Only in the last 42 kilometers we can call the ascent to Khunjerab Pass a climb with a gradient of 3% on average, but getting somewhat steep as the riders near the top at 4600m on altitude, the highest mountain pass in the world, still only category 1 though (the side from Pak istan is steeper, but Google Earth doesn't have it ).
PS: Why does pak istan get censored to ****stan

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[SetonHallPirate]

OK...the Tour of the United States route is done!

 

[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 16

Karakarshi - Mangzhan (230km)

This is the stage that I had the most doubts about, whether it isn't too ridiculous, even though its just a hilly transitional stage. The reason is twofold: We reach the highest point of the race at 5300m of altitude and since we are higher than the world's highest paved road, we're on gravel/dirt, more specifically on the legendary National Highway 219(report of someone cycling it here).
Otherwise there are only two harder difficulties toward the beginning: both are cat. 2, one up parts of the Sirenshou(20,5km@3%) and one to Oierlizuoke Feng(7,5km@5,5%). About at the halfway there's a sprint Akesa Yihu and towards the finish there are two easier hills: an offshot of Sirengou (cat.3 8km@3%) and the final climb to Longmucuo (cat.4 3,5km@4%) only about 10km out from the finish. This is a reminiscent of the early cycling days, where just finishing the race was an accomplishment. The potential for the shattering of some GC hopes surely is there, be it through a Les Deux Alpes-style collapse because of the altitudes or punctures because of bad road. Every rider will be glad to just be back in more normal mountains for the next stage.

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[Libertine Seguros]

Tour of the United States

I really like the racing TO airports, solving the transfer problem (though maybe filming near the finish could be problematic? Always going to be some logistical problems covering an area as big as the US in three weeks), but I can't help but think 9 MTFs is too many? Admittedly, if there are a lack of good passes, creating an up-and-down stage without an MTF is going to be difficult - that was the problem karlboss found with his Grand Tour Down Under, and I had a similar problem with my Vuelta a la Argentina, which ended up having 4 or 5 MTFs over two weeks. The Mount Evans ITT is a nice touch though - I like that.

PS: Why does pak istan get censored to ****stan

Because the first four letters are used as a racial epithet for all Indian Subcontinent Asians in Britain and some other areas. I agree it's a bit stupid that we can't write the name of the country unless we put in some tags, as after all Pakistan is just another country that we may need to refer to in discussions of sport, politics or whatever, but it's for the same reason as we can't write ****head or ***hole - you can either block the specific word on its own, or all compound words with it in.

This is the stage that I had the most doubts about, whether it isn't too ridiculous, even though its just a hilly transitional stage. The reason is twofold: We reach the highest point of the race at 5300m of altitude and since we are higher than the world's highest paved road, we're on gravel/dirt, more specifically on the legendary National Highway 219(report of someone cycling it here).
Otherwise there are only two harder difficulties toward the beginning: both are cat. 2, one up parts of the Sirenshou(20,5km@3%) and one to Oierlizuoke Feng(7,5km@5,5%). About at the halfway there's a sprint Akesa Yihu and towards the finish there are two easier hills: an offshot of Sirengou (cat.3 8km@3%) and the final climb to Longmucuo (cat.4 3,5km@4%) only about 10km out from the finish. This is a reminiscent of the early cycling days, where just finishing the race was an accomplishment. The potential for the shattering of some GC hopes surely is there, be it through a Les Deux Alpes-style collapse because of the altitudes or punctures because of bad road. Every rider will be glad to just be back in more normal mountains for the next stage.

I'm afraid that I could well see some rider protests about this one. The altitude is tough enough for cyclotourists, but being asked to race at it could be a major problem even for the Colombians!

 

[SetonHallPirate]

I really like the racing TO airports, solving the transfer problem (though maybe filming near the finish could be problematic? Always going to be some logistical problems covering an area as big as the US in three weeks), but I can't help but think 9 MTFs is too many? Admittedly, if there are a lack of good passes, creating an up-and-down stage without an MTF is going to be difficult - that was the problem karlboss found with his Grand Tour Down Under, and I had a similar problem with my Vuelta a la Argentina, which ended up having 4 or 5 MTFs over two weeks. The Mount Evans ITT is a nice touch though - I like that.

Tour of the United States Stage 2, Death Valley to Whitney Portal, CA (MTF): Road dead-ends at the MTF

Tour of the United States Stage 4, Lucerne Valley to La Canada Flintridge-Los Angeles, CA (if the Tour can do that, I can too): Mountain Stage through the Angeles National Forest.

Tour of the United States Stage 5, Aspen to Ivanhoe Lake-Leadville, CO (MTF): Extending that to a populated downhill finish would kill the stage.

Tour of the United States Stage 6, Idaho Springs to Mount Evans, CO ITT (MTF): Road dead-ends at the MTF

Tour of the United States Stage 7, Idaho Springs to Trail Ridge-Estes Park, CO (MTF): This one could be extended into Estes Park proper.

Tour of the United States Stage 12, McGrady to Mount Mitchell, NC (MTF): Road dead-ends at the MTF.

Tour of the United States Stage 13, Asheville to Clingman's Dome, NC (MTF): Road dead-ends at the MTF.

Tour of the United States Stage 14, Knoxville to Lookout Mountain-Chattanooga, TN (MTF): Something of a weak MTF, to be honest...nobody is going to really complain about this one. Further, the climb is inside the major city in the area...not really much of a place to descend to.

Tour of the United States Stage 17, Manchester to Mount Washington, NH (MTF): Road dead-ends at the MTF.

Tour of the United States Stage 18, Burlington, VT to Lake Placid, NY (MTF): Another weak MTF. Also, due to the history behind Lake Placid, an appropriate place to end the stage.

 

[Progsprach]

I'm afraid that I could well see some rider protests about this one. The altitude is tough enough for cyclotourists, but being asked to race at it could be a major problem even for the Colombians!

Yes, I quite agree. But we've been at 4000m the last two stages, so I figured they'd be used to it by now. I was more concerned about the 230km on gravel.

 

[Progsprach]

Tour of China Stage 17

Kilba - Reo Purgyil (178km)

And with that bit of craziness and the next of uncountably many transfers, we're in the Himalaya for another mountain stage, but don't worry we're below 4000m and back on ridable roads for this one. That doesn't make it easy though especially not for the logistics guys who will have to divide the already narrow road from Kilba to Chitkul into two lanes with barriers, because after going up that 1st category climb on the one lane(28,5km@4,5%), they will turn around and descend it on the other lane(they'd have to be pretty solid to hold off a crashing rider from going on the other lane). When they make it back to the start, the intermediate sprint is held and its more conventional racing from here on out. After a long uphill drag, the riders will tackle the road up to Namgia for another 1st category climb(17,5km@6,5%) and there is only a very short descent, before the riders go for the finishing second category climb(8,5km@7,5%) only a about 1000ms below the summit of the Reo Purgyil.
Yes I realize the great logistical obstacles, but all the great passes in this region are dead-ends.

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[SetonHallPirate]

Kilba - Reo Purgyil (178km)

And with that bit of craziness and the next of uncountably many transfers, we're in the Himalaya for another mountain stage, but don't worry we're below 4000m and back on ridable roads for this one. That doesn't make it easy though especially not for the logistics guys who will have to divide the already narrow road from Kilba to Chitkul into two lanes with barriers, because after going up that 1st category climb on the one lane(28,5km@4,5%), they will turn around and descend it on the other lane(they'd have to be pretty solid to hold off a crashing rider from going on the other lane). When they make it back to the start, the intermediate sprint is held and its more conventional racing from here on out. After a long uphill drag, the riders will tackle the road up to Namgia for another 1st category climb(17,5km@6,5%) and there is only a very short descent, before the riders go for the finishing second category climb(8,5km@7,5%) only a about 1000ms below the summit of the Reo Purgyil.
Yes I realize the great logistical obstacles, but all the great passes in this region are dead-ends.

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Are you really trying to kill the riders? I mean, that stage seems like manslaughter, not a bike race...could you imagine if they divided Alpe d'Huez like that?