Race Design Thread

[Libertine Seguros]

Stage 15: Monforte de Lemos - Estación de Esquí El Morredero, 159km

Climbs:
Fonte da Cova (cat.ESP) 23,1km @ 6,4%
Puerto de los Portillinos (cat.ESP) 18,6km @ 6,1%

The penultimate weekend continues with ANOTHER short stage (sub-160km is the Unipublic way, of course), however this one is not the one-climb Unipublic special by a long shot. This stage sees just two climbs and no MTF, but it's a very important day in the mountains ahead of the second rest day (which will hopefully entice riders to produce some action a bit earlier on bearing in mind that they have a day off tomorrow), however the two climbs are two that fans have been desperately hoping for the Vuelta to include for many years, and that link to each other perfectly; consequently, this looks a lot like a lot of fantasy Vuelta stages. In fact, I'm certain we have a variation of this double act and finish somewhere else in this thread.

After a short transfer to Monforte de Lemos, this stage heads out of Galicia and into León by one of the toughest routes. The first 70km are about as flat as a stage in Galicia can be, but that's just to lull the riders into a false sense of security, for then they have this to deal with - a 20+ kilometre death march to match the greats of the Tour. There are few real steep sections, but the length of the climb as it slowly meanders skyward over cruel, exposed roads, will likely be enough for many.

The descent consists of 10 fairly steep kilometres followed by 15km of downhill false flat, which ought to enable the riders to regroup somewhat; this will sadly dissuade heroic attacks on Fonte da Cova/Collado Trevinca with more than 50km remaining, however the group should still be comparatively small when they start to make their way up the second climb of the day, the grinding tarmac that goes up to nearly 2000m on the two-stepped climb that goes by a couple of names... most commonly known as Llano de las Ovejas, but also the name which I am using, because I think it's the most likely one for the Vuelta to use given their propensity for only using "Alto" and "Puerto" names - the Puerto de los Portinillos. It's a barren world up here, and in winter it gets Giro-tastic. After all, we are racing to a ski station.

The climb itself is two-stepped, beginning with about 6km at 7% up to Peña Aguda. Attacks are possible here, but likely only from peripheral contenders. After all, the next few kilometres are false flat. However, the last 6km of climbing are averaging around 9%, and that is no laughing matter on top of all the climbing the riders have already done. The summit is pretty dramatic too. Estación de Esquí El Morredero is not unfamiliar to the Vuelta - the 2006 race had a mountaintop finish here - and is also well known to fans of the Vuelta a Castilla y León, most recently used in 2010 when Igor Antón won after a stellar battle with Ezequiel Mosquera, Alberto Contador and Juan Mauricio Soler - but it's never featured as a "descent finish" before. But really, of the 10km to the finish from the summit, little of it would really count as descent, as you can see from this profile the section from the ski station to Llano de las Ovejas is not exactly the Mortirolo. However, 10km of downhill false flat is not enough to bring everything back together unless the riders were cowards on the climb.

And if they were, that's not my problem.

Monforte de Lemos:

Estación de Esquí El Morredero:

 

[Lupetto]

Seems like Libertine finally picked up my idea for worlds circuit in Porto finishing on the Aliados

Actually there is a race finishing there on Sunday.

 

[Parrulo]

Actually there is a race finishing there on Sunday.

Yup i know. I was supposed to go watch it but something more important came up so i won't be in Porto this weekend

 

[SetonHallPirate]

Libertine, I'd actually like to see a Tour de Suisse from you. This year's route makes Christian Prudhomme look like a master-routemaker, frankly, and to paraphrase a very wise person, if you gave a monkey a plate of spaghetti and a map of Switzerland, they could make a better tour than their Tour Director did this year.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Stage 16: Ponferrada - Cangas del Narcea, 222km

Climbs:
Puerto del Cerredo (cat.3) 5,2km @ 6,0%
Puerto del Connio (cat.1) 14,0km @ 5,4%
Alto del Valvaler (cat.1) 12,0km @ 6,6%
Alto de Adralés (cat.2) 5,5km @ 7,8%
Santuário del Acebo (cat.1) 9,5km @ 7,9%

(First 22km not shown, but flat)

After the second rest day, spent in Ponferrada and allowing the riders to check out the Worlds course, we re-enter the racing with the race's longest stage, a multiple-climb beast taking us into the heart of Asturias. With 5 categorised climbs, three of which are category 1, this is the first of our twin queen stages, and will be a tough day in the saddle for sure, so it's a good job the riders got all that extra blood yesterday.

The first 60km are pretty straightforward flat travel along the plains, but soon it turns into saw-toothed pain. Initially this is fairly easy going as we travel up the comfortable eastern side of the Puerto de Cerredo, a wide and accessible route that shouldn't hurt too many legs. Then it's a 30km gradual downhill as we head into Asturias (ignore the spike on the profile, that's a tunnel) for the main body of our stage - and we're taking our inspiration from a regular old Vuelta a Asturias queen stage, and with that race in financial straits and unable to put the show on, well, why not get the Vuelta to?

This show starts with the harder side of the Puerto del Connio. The average gradient is still pretty meagre, but as we climb through the forest and then take on the steeper final kilometres before the summit it makes its presence felt. The descent starts off very mild and gradually gets steeper as we head for the picturesque valley town of San Antolín de Ibias. Then it's time for the other major pass around these parts, the pretty summit and worn roads of the Alto de Valvaler, which at 1116m is the summit just above the Pozo de las Mujeres Muertas (at 1098m), although the climb has traditionally been known by the latter name. We get some dramatic roads here, and the climb can variously be seen as 18km @ 4,9% or 12km @ 6,6% depending on where you place the "Comienza Puerto" sign.

The first few kilometres of descent are steep and will be testing in the event of bad weather, but it soon evens out into downhill false flat. 20km of this will take us to the outskirts of our finishing city, but instead of going direct we will first tackle a smaller climb to the mountain village of Villar de Adralés, a 2nd category climb, before our final intermediate sprint at the first passing of the finish line with 28km remaining. The first few of these are flat before we take on the climb to the Santuário del Acebo. Of course you will all be familiar with the classic side of the Alto del Acebo, and will know there is NO flat from Cangas del Narcea. It's been the trademark climb of the Vuelta a Asturias for years, and has seen some great performances such as the battle between Zaballa, the Portuguese intruders and with Javi Moreno coming up from behind and passing them all in 2011, or Fabio Duarte and Alex Caño making them all look like amateurs the year before. But we're not doing it this way today. Instead we're doing the climb by a new, harder side via Las Cuadriellas. This isn't the hardest side of Acebo - that would be the brutal Limés side - but this is more ridable than that side for a major race and will still be plenty hard enough bearing in mind the descent of the normal side of the climb takes us straight to the finishing line. The first kilometre of climbing averages 12,5%, while a kilometre in the middle averages a jawdropping 14,1%... so it's only a pity that the false flat final kilometre lowers the gradient somewhat, but that might belie the difficulty and make the climb underestimated. The climb swings dramatically up the mountainside, with tortuous gradients in the village before the Santuário marks the end of the climbing, and it's just a frantic descent into Cangas del Narcea to finish. Javier doesn't like descent finishes, but he had to include one as a trade-off with me.

Ponferrada:

Cangas del Narcea:

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Stage 17: Oviedo - Alto del Angliru, 183km

Climbs:
Collado Arnicio (cat.2) 9,4km @ 6,3%
Alto de la Casilla (cat.2) 4,4km @ 8,2%
Alto de la Mozqueta (cat.1) 10,0km @ 6,1%
Cuchu Puercu/Collado Puerco (cat.1) 7,8km @ 9,6%
Alto del Angliru (cat.ESP) 12,6km @ 9,9%

"Libertine," said Javier, "what is your obsession with new climbs? I'm looking through your Vueltas and I keep seeing this pushing of the new climb button. Haza del Lino, San Miguel de Áralar, Fuente del Chivo, Picón Blanco, Font de Partagas, El Peñón de Gibraltar, Els Cortals, Haza Llana all the way to the top, Torre, Fonte da Cova, Llano de las Ovejas, Acebo from a different side... why can't you throw a bone to the traditionalists?" "Actually I was planning a classic Asturian mountain stage with San Lorenzo, Cobertoria et al in it." "Awesome! Please make it an Angliru summit finish, unless - even better - you can have 80km of flat between them and the base of Lagos de Covadonga!" "I was hoping for a summit finish at the Puerto de la Cubilla actually, Javier..." "Libertine, nobody's heard of that. We need Angliru. In fact, screw Cobertoria and San Lorenzo. We just need Angliru. That's all we need." "All right, but here's the deal. I abandon the epic Catalan stage with Fumanya-Pradell and the Coll de Pal summit finish, and include Angliru. But your stages to Angliru lately have been lacking. The 2011 and 2013 stages are both identical and absolutely anæmic compared to the possibilities. 2008's stage was better, but the one from 1999 was best. I always gave you a free pass on Cordal as it seemed the hardest route to Angliru but now I know differently; however the refusal to precede it with Cobertoria and give us a true mountain classic stage rankles, and so I insist that I can include Angliru for you, but only if you let me design the stage without your interference, and let me have a descent finish somewhere else in a high mountain stage."

Javier reluctantly agreed, and this was the result.

It's still an Angliru stage, so it will still be all about the last climb, but I can at least make the riders approach the Asturian monolith with a bit more in their legs and thus produce larger gaps. Starting in the Asturian capital and hometown of Samuel Sánchez, there are four climbs preceding Angliru today, two each in categories 1 and 2. The riders are eased into the stage with a flat opening, before the first climb of the day, the Collado Arnicio. This scenic ascent to the east of Asturias is categorised 2nd category, though could arguably be 1st category. It heralds in a period of false flats on the way to Pola de Laviana before the second category 2 ascent, the fairly short but regular, 8%+ Alto de la Casilla. This climb, which also goes by the less catchy name of Alto de la Falla de los Lobos, is more or less consistent on wide, accessible roads.

The next obstacle is La Mozqueta. This is a parallel summit to La Colladiella, its more famous sibling, but this one is plenty hard enough and links to Falla de los Lobos better. It starts off benign, then the last 6km are at 8,5%, so it's a worthwhile category 1 climb. Then, the descent and a short flat stretch takes us to the intermediate sprint in Pola de Lena, sat at the base of many a climb and also the home of Amets Txurruka's first career win. This is the base of the Alto del Cordal, the traditional lead-in climb to Angliru, and at 5,6km @ 8,9% it's a tough one. But I've got something tougher.

It has long been a bone of contention that the Vuelta doesn't tend to use the harder, eastern side of Cobertoria. Cuchu Puercu (the Asturian name, to give it its Castilian name it would be Collado Puerco) is a pass on a road that links Cobertoria with Cordal, as you can see from this alternative route to Cobertoria. The 'classic' side of Cuchu Puercu (i.e. the most commonly-found profile, as it isn't raced often) is the one that comes from Lena to Cordal then adds the extras. In Asturias this year they raced the easiest side, with Cordal from the North (as we descend in today's stage). But the toughest way is from Lena from the south, starting on the Cobertoria road that is sometimes descended in the Vuelta but seldom ascended, then turning off onto a narrow hell-trail and snaking along the mountainside. This averages nearly 10% on its agonizing 8km death march. Here's an aerial view of the last part. The long sections averaging 10 and 11% are tougher than Cordal can offer, and offer a real warning shot of what's about to come, as after 15km of constant descent (and it is all descent, no false flat here), we're at the base of what is now the Vuelta's most notorious mountain, the savage landscape and brutal gradients of L'Angliru.

Angliru needs no introduction, so I'll leave you to imagine it - and once more approached after a proper mountain stage, like so rarely in recent history.

Oviedo:

Angliru:

 

[roundabout]

Libertine, I'd actually like to see a Tour de Suisse from you. This year's route makes Christian Prudhomme look like a master-routemaker, frankly, and to paraphrase a very wise person, if you gave a monkey a plate of spaghetti and a map of Switzerland, they could make a better tour than their Tour Director did this year.

I am not Libertine, but here you go

1. Chiasso-Chiasso: 7,7 km

http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/120236

Start in Ticino in the spirit of Lugano prologues

2. Mendrisio-Ascona: 192km

http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/120157

A complete stage in Ticino finishing on the shores of Lago Maggiore. 2 small climbs in the last 20km make it an ideal Sagan stage

3. Locarno - Chur : 164km

http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/120158

Lukmanier and then nothing for the most sprinter-friendly stage

4. Chur-St Gallen : 193 km

http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/120159

Multiple small climbs for the first GC battle

5. Rorschach-Bischofzell : 36 km

http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/120237

a relatively straightforward route for the bigger guys to gain time.

6. Konstanz - Einsiedeln : 176km

http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/120169

After a boring start, the backloaded last part begins

Etzelpass with 10km to go will detonate the race

http://cyclingcols.com/profiles/EtzelN.gif

7. Einsideln - Altdorf : 144 km

http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/120155

The queen stage. Ibergeregg, the terrible Pragelpass with it's slopes up to 18 percent and then the 2 part Klausenpass

8. Schwyz - Lauterbrunnen : 169 km

http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/120156

A stage with it's focal points on the shore of Thunersee. The monster climb of the Schwendi, with a 2 km section at 17% and maximum at 25%. And a much easier climb to Beatenberg which maxes out at a more humane 16%. It's 30km from the end of the climb to the finish, so it's up to the riders to treat as a rest day or use it for an ambush attack. But with a rather peculiar last stage, a chance should not be wasted

9. Spiez - Les Diablerets : 162 km

http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/120166

A Preudhomme special. Les Agites with 12km and 1110 meters of climbing offer the last chance to make up for lost time. The relatively tiny climb to La Forclaz should hopefully filter out the remaining group.

It's a very unusual route. Boring first 5 days, a very long TT, no MTFs and only 2 high mountain stages

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Stage 18: Carrión de los Condes - Palencia, 42,0km (Contrarreloj Individual)

After two days of successive mountain torture, it's time for the rouleurs to get their own back, with an absolutely pan-flat (actually mildly downhill) point-to-point time trial, the kind the Vuelta hasn't seen since 2010 when Peter Velits managed to win and secure a podium in the GC despite a camera not even bothering to follow him, so that we didn't get any information on him until he arrived in the home straight. It's a similar kind of stage today - straight as an arrow until the last couple of kilometres and the specialists will be able to get some speed up for certain. No respite for the weaker time triallists here and no technical challenges either... just slog.

It's only once we're actually in Palencia that there are any twists and turns, as we wind our way through the city streets to finish at the Catédral de San Antolín. The length isn't extreme, but the day after Angliru the gaps should be fairly sizable anyway.

Carrión de los Condes:

Palencia:

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Stage 19: Valladolid - Segovia, 163km

In 2008, the last road stage before the Madrid parade finished in Segovia. It was a stage tailor-made for the break, or so it seemed, heading over Navacerrada and Navafría before a loop around Segovia to finish. Sort of - the finish wasn't quite in Segovia. Instead, it was on a slightly uphill route just beneath the city to the south, at the end of the Calle Cuesta de los Hoyos. This rather scenic and partially cobbled road beneath the cathedral was the site of a triumph for Caisse d'Epargne's David Arroyo, in a stage that rather angered fans, as Arroyo had been sent up the road to sabotage the break as Caisse were working for Valverde behind, and so he did his job to perfection, except that eventually Vasil Kiryienka got fed up and attacked solo, Arroyo went with him and sucked his wheel for the whole of the final 8km where it was assumed that the péloton would catch them; however Kiryienka kicked again and again without shaking his Spanish tail, and eventually Arroyo attacked the spent Belarusian with 150m to go, to the horror of the watching commentators, taking the win. The difficulty of the stage saw the peloton shrunk to just 45 riders at the end, of which a number fell away at the very end as well. Don't feel too bad for Vasya though - this ride is what got him the Caisse d'Epargne contract, almost single-handedly. The same finish was used in the 2012 Vuelta a Castilla y León, however this came on the end of a multiple-mountain stage (mostly in Comunidad de Madrid, weirdly) with Navafría, Morcuera and Navacerrada - also from this side Navacerrada was much closer to the finish than the 2008 stage so the field was broken up more. Yelko Gómez of Caja Rural won.

The stage before the Segovia circuit in my Vuelta, however, is flat, so it will be a full péloton that arrives at the first circuit. The circuit lasts around 10km and circumnavigates the city, enabling us to see the famous aqueduct on our voyage. Here's a profile of the final circuit. As you can see, it's rolling and so sprinters' teams will need to work to control attacks, especially bearing in mind that there's around 750m at 7-8% near the end, however the final 600m are flat so as long as they can get over that sprinters should be fine. However, with two laps of this circuit options for late attackers should be many, and also with the style of the stage, this may entice some Worlds tuneup riders to stick around until the bitter end. Sprinters haven't had many opportunities in my Vuelta, with only the Lleida stage being a pure sprinter's stage; they have had to get over some climbs to make it to the flat finish in Haro, while rolling final stages and slight uphill drags - but not enough for puncheurs - are the order of the day elsewhere such as Badajoz, Córdoba and Barcelona; this is one that balances out the sprinters and the puncheurs.

Valladolid:

Segovia:

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Stage 20: Segovia - Puerto de la Morcuera, 179km

Climbs:
Puerto de Guadarrama (cat.3) 5,0km @ 5,2%
Puerto de la Navacerrada (cat.1) 13,0km @ 5,7%
Puerto de Navafría (cat.1) 10,9km @ 5,3%
Puerto de la Canencia (cat.2) 14,0km @ 3,2%
Puerto de la Morcuera (cat.1) 10,9km @ 6,5%

Yes, I know it's a bit of a tame ending, but realistically, the only major mountaintop we can do overlooking Madrid to fit such a route is Bola del Mundo and I don't want that to get overused and saturated. Another option would be an Ardennes-style San Lorenzo de El Escorial stage, but I thought I'd go for a less dramatic mountain stage, and explain my decision thus:

- there are 70+ kilometres of ITT in this Vuelta, much more than the recent norm. While the Acebo and Angliru stages are really hard, not having another monolithic mountain to come means riders will have to make their time up earlier, which will mean a more attacking race elsewhere. And as gaps on Morcuera aren't likely to be huge, riders may have to gamble in this stage to make big gains too, however it's their last chance so it could be interesting as riders may not be able to leave it to the last climb.

The stage itself is a collection of well-known climbs in the Madrid region. You'll all be familiar with most, while the Vuelta a Madrid has become a one-day race that finishes at the Puerto de la Morcuera. I think it more sensible to have it race from Miraflores de la Sierra (which pays for that finish) to San Lorenzo and have la Morcuera in the Vuelta. Here's the profile of the final climb, for the record. We're actually climbing a slightly longer climb thanks to a small loop around Miraflores, but that's the main body of the climb. Its precursor, Canencia, is fairly tame, but with no flat between it and Miraflores a speculative attack near the top may not be as silly as it sounds. The twisting roads of Navafría are perhaps the best suited to a speculative attack on the stage but are some way from the finish, albeit little of it being flat.

This is the last chance for the climbers, so we'll see if modern cycling has beaten all the interest out of them.

Puerto de la Morcuera:

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Stage 21: Colmenar Viejo - Madrid, 100km

The traditional sprint closer, finishing on the Paseo del Prado. This year's suburb start is Colmenar Viejo, because it's close to Miraflores de la Sierra (fairly). Not much else to say.

Roundup:
1-TTT
2-sprint, but some climbs early on so sprinters will have to earn it
3-cat 2 finish, but very gradual so probably reduced sprint of the elites
4-sprint
5-cat 1 MTF (multi-climb stage)
6-sprint, but slightly uphill
7-cat 3 finish, for the puncheurs
8-mid length ITT, with a climb
9-high mountain stage with a short uphill rise after a long descent
10-sprint from a reduced bunch
11-sprint, but slightly technical
12-cat 1 MTF (only major climb, gradual but long)
13-hilly final circuit with cobbles
14-cat 2 HTF (ridiculously steep puncheur finish)
15-high mountain stage with 10km downhill false flat to finish
16-high mountain stage with descent finish
17-cat ESP MTF
18-long flat ITT
19-flat with rolling final circuit
20-cat 1 MTF
21-sprint

Hopefully Javier will be ok with this, but I suspect he hoped for a few MTFs, maybe finishing stage 9 in Pradollano, stage 16 at Acebo and stage 6 on a steeper version of Montjuïc...

Colmenar Viejo:

Madrid (Paseo del Prado):

 

[togo95]

Great prototype of a Grand Tour, which is not backloaded Libertine (at least compared to contemporary tours).
What's more, it probably wouldn't even be decided too early.

 

[SetonHallPirate]

http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/142223

A possible Giro stage from Bruneck to Crostis...up the unpaved side.

 

[rghysens]

Stage 6: Toul - Obernai, 175km, medium mountains.

Todays stage starts in the city of Toul, in the département of the Meurthe-et-Moselle, two rivers that wil define the course of the first 45km of this stage. After the start in the city centre, famous for its cathedral and fortifications, the peloton more or less follows the Moselle river, going south of Nancy, a city to big just to pass through. At this point the watershed between the Meurthe and Moselle is crossed, but this isn't a noticeable climb for a well trained professional cyclist.
The peloton continues further east, going through Lunéville where the intermediate sprint will be contested in front of the local palace, optimistically nicknamed the Versailles of Lorraine. Lunéville is at the confluence of two rivers, and this stage will follow the course of the Vezouze upstream, heading for the town with the German sounding name Badonviller. This is no surprise, because it has been on the frontier of the French and German speaking world since the treaty of Verdun in 843, when the Empire of Charlemagne was divided between his grandchildren. This place also marks the halfwaypoint of todays stage.
So far we had only a few small rises on our way, but soon we'll climb the very first col in France of this tour. It is also one of those places on the front of the first world war that this tour will visit. Sure, the col de la Chapelotte is
nothing spectacular, at all, but is officially a col. It is so easy though, that only ill or injured riders will have to let there colleagues go. But on the horizon, and ever nearing, the Vosges are looming in the distance.
This medium mountain range is often neglected in the Tour, and almost never used to its full potential. Also this year that will be the case, but instead of going for the famous climbs of the southern Vosges, like Ballon d'Alsace or Grand Ballon, I'll concentrate on the northernmost part of it. But first the peloton has to handle the shallow descent of the first climb of the day and a 10km long false flat uphill section that leads us to the foot of the second climb of the day: the Col du Donon. This climb will allow us to continue the theme that run through the first stages in France, because there's a (small) war cemetary at the summit.
The last time this climb was included in the Tour was in 2001, and back then it was in combination with the col de la Chapelotte too, and it broke the peloton but it was followed by almost 60km to Strasbourg, which resulted in a mass sprint. Today the final will be totally different.
The descent of the Col du Donon is followed by 8km false flat uphill, which leads us to the most difficult climb of the day, and also the first climb of 1st category of this Tour: Le Champ du Feu. This climb tops out at 1100m above sea level with 35km to go and is an ideal place for the favourites' and climbers' teams to shatter the peloton. After the summit the riders stay on a slowly descending plateau for some kilometers before starting the not too technical descent on wide roads with 30km to go. This roads leads us directly to todays finish location, but with 19km to go, we will make a small detour to the Mont Saint-Odile. This place is famous for its monastery and beautiful views over the region. Its main importance here will be that it's the final climb of the day (on the profile from where the blue part starts), only to be followed by a descent that starts quite technical but eases out towards todays finish town, Obernai.

Climbs:
Col de la Chapelotte: km94, 3.5km @ 3.4%, 4th cat
Col du Donon: km112.5, 3.9km @ 7.7%, 2nd cat
Champ du Feu: km141, 10.7km @ 6.5%, 1st cat
Mont Saint-Odile: km163, 6.2km @ 6.4%, 2nd cat

Intermediate sprint:
Lunéville, km56

 

[rghysens]

Stage 7: Colmar - Pontarlier, 196km, flat

I know it would be a crowd pleaser to go full *** and create a preferably 250km long stage that twists and turns through the Vosges mountains and ends with a MTF. But I won't. I think that would make the previous stage completely obsolete as the peloton will softpedal through it, and that would do no justice to this underused region.
Instead I'll go for something more benign: a flat stage, very similar to the 8th stage of the 2001 tour de France, which ran between the same two towns as todays stage.
That day, under pouring rain, a breakaway group of 14 raced the rest of the peloton outside the time limit. The race jury was mercyful though, and they were allowed to start again the next day.
The same scenario could unfurl today, but I think it's more likely that we'll head for a mass sprint. After all, this wil be one of the few chances that the sprinters will get (at least, there will be less than in the 2013 tour). This is easy to describe: We start in the plain of the river Rhine and stay there for about 60km. This is followed by 35km on rolling roads, without a proper climb, to reach the river Doubs. The peloton will follow the course of this river until they reach the town Saint-Hippolyte, where the only climb of the day starts.
After finishing this climb, there's no real descent, but the race will continue on a plateau to the finishline. Almost all day, there will be raced on wide, well maintained roads, so that should calm down the nerves of those who inexpectedly lost time the day before.

Climbs:
Côte de Saint-Hippolyte: km132, 8km @ 5%, 3rd cat (with the current standards, this could be a 2nd cat too).

Intermediate sprint:
Audincourt: km97

 

[rghysens]

Stage 8: Lons-le-Saunier - Annemasse, 173km, medium mountains

In 2004 there was a stage Annemasse - Lons-le-Saunier in the Tour de France, but I didn't get my inspiration on that stage. It was a typical end-tour stage where an early break filled screen for the whole day.
A much more interesting stage was the stage to Annemasse in the Dauphiné Libéré of 2008, with the Mont Salève at the end.

It's saturday on the first intermediate weekend and there's no more time to play for the overall contenders. This stage isn't long or incredibly difficult, but its final will assure fireworks.
The peloton won't even be allowed a lazy warmup today, because right after the start, there's a very steep 3rd category climb that certainly will be used to try to launch a succesful breakaway. Lucky for the weak climbers and those with hurting legs, it's the only climb in 50km to come. So the peloton can regroup, if necessary, while it cruises on the plateau of the Jura. But all this comes to an end when it descends to the Ain river and enters the departement with the same name.
The gently rolling roads make way for more demanding excercises, as in the 15km from the Ain river to Oyonnax a 4th and 3rd category climb have to be tackled, before contesting the intermediate sprint in the city center.
If the break doesn't have a reassuring lead by now, it could well be reeled in very quick. After leaving Oyonnax the peloton immediately starts to climb to Apremont, a little village hemmed in between two hill ridges.
The descent isn't the most tricky, but does lead over narrow roads, so caution is advised. The end of the descent doesn't mean it's time to relax, because it's immediately followed by the next climb: the Col de Berentin, on equally narrow roads. This climb is followed by 8km of flat, before plummeting towards Bellegarde-sur-Valserine. This marks the end of a difficult interlude halfway this stage.
The next 35km calm and order can return to the peloton, as it rides over wide, rolling roads without any difficulty. But these 35km are also an opportunity for the GC favourites and skinny climbers to regroup their teammates to chase the brake or to set a steady pace.
In Archamps, after 148km the wide road is once again swapped for a more narrow one. This roads tilts ever steeper, reducing the peloton to only a handful of guys, until it reaches the hamlet La Croisette at 1175m above sea level. This part of the climb, 4.5km from Le Coin to le Col de la Croisette has an average gradient of 11%, which makes it comparable to xorret de cati.
At this point, those with anything left can change to a higher gear and get rid of their opponents in dire need. The few remaining km to the summit of Mont Salève are flattening out towards a viewpoint with a nice panorama over Lake Geneva and Mont Blanc. At this point there are only 15 descending km left to the finishline. This descent is an almost exact copy of the ascent: it starts out straightforward and not to steep, before becoming twisty and narrow, with some steep sections, only to flatten out again when nearing the Arve river. At the end of the descent, there's only one gently ascending km left to contest.


Climbs:
Côte de Montaigu: km4, 1.7km @ 10%, 3rd cat
Côte de Matafelon: km56, 2.8km @ 5.5%, 4th cat
Côte de Veyziat: km63, 4km @ 5.8%, 3rd cat
Col d'Apremont: km78, 7.9km @ 5.5%, 2nd cat
Col de Berentin: km94.5, 9.5km @5.8%, 2nd cat
Mont Salève: km158, 9.5km @ 8.4%, 1st cat

Intermediate sprint:
Oyonnax, km68

 

[rghysens]

Stage 9: Bonneville - Bourg-Saint-Maurice, 185km, high mountains

While the 6th and 8th stage already gave the favourites to test their climbing skills, it were no real mountain stages. But that will change today. The peloton won't climb the most renowned climbs, nor will it climb to breathtaking altitudes, but there certainly will be an opportunity to create enormous gaps.
It will start quite calm and scenic, though, riding through the Gorges des Eveaux right after the start. The course passes through town like Saint-Jean-de-Sixt and Thônes before climbing the small and shallow Col du Marais. An easy descent leads to the road to Ugine, where the first big climb of the day awaits the peloton.
The Col de l'Arpettaz has never been climbed by the Tour the France, probably because the quality of the tarmac has long been sub par. The worst patches have been repaired, though, and the descent is of a better quality then the ascent, so it's certainly possible to include it in a stage. From the summit, one can see the Mont Blanc on a clear day. Immediately after the end of the descent, the road tilts up again,
to reach the short but quite steep Col de la Forclaz de Queige. The descent of this climb is followed by a false flat section of about 5km and then by the most difficult climb of the day: the Montée de Bisanne, another climb that never featured in the tour. This climb starts out gently, with sections of around 5-6%, but the last 9km are almost 9% on average.
The race won't feature the last two, very steep, kilometres of this climb but head for the road to les Saisies which will be descended to Beaufort. This town features on the course of the Tour from time to time, when the Cormet de Roselend is included in the race. This time, the riders won't head directly for this climb, but make a detour to the Col du Pré, another first appearance in the race, and one that will leave an impact too, as the average gradient of the last part nears 9%, with sections over 11%. A short descent is followed by an even shorter climb and some flat along the Barrage de Roselend. The last easy climb of the day will be the remaining part of the Cormet de Roselend, before a 20km descent, with some technical sections, brings the shattered peloton home.

Climbs:
Col du Marais: km35, 4.7km @ 3.7%, 4th cat
Col de l'Arpettaz: km67.5, 16.3km @ 7.1%, 1st cat
Col de la Forclaz de Queige: km97.5, 5.3km @ 8.1%, 2nd cat
Montée de Bisanne (without the red part): km121, 13.1km @ 8%, hors cat
Col du Pré: km152, 12.2km @7.9%, hors cat
Cormet de Roselend (from Col de Méraillet): km165, 5.5km @ 6.6%, 2nd cat

Intermediate sprint:
Thônes, km29

 

[rghysens]

Stage 10: Aime - L'Alpe d'Huez, 179km, high mountains

This is probably the most traditional stage in this tour, but I tried to change the finale somehow to create more dynamic racing.
The course follows the valley of the Isère river untill it reaches the start of the north side of the Col de la Madeleine, which it will climb. The descent of the steeper south side is followed by a 15m long false flat section to Saint-Michel-de-Maurienne. This town marks the beginning of the climb of the Col du Télégraphe, and subsequently the Col du Galibier. The long descent of the Galibier won't to to Bourg d'Oisans, but stops at the Barrage de Chambon, where the peloton will turn right and climb the Col de Sarenne. When cresting the highest point of the road, there's only a very short descent, followed by 6km on rolling roads before crossing the finishline.

Climbs:
Col de la Madeleine: km47.5, 24.5km @ 6.3%, hors category
Col du Galibier: km124, 34.9km @ 5.5%, hors category (just like in the old days, not counting the télégraphe as a seperate climb)
Col de Sarenne: km170, 12.7km @ 7.5%, 1st cat

 

[Another_Dutch_Guy]

Giro d'italia

Was a bit busy the last days, so forgot about my giro! Time to pick things up again.

Stage 6: Salerno - Fornia (192 KM)

Just to remember, my goal for this Giro was just to make a course I really like. So, it might be a bit strange that I come up with a total flat stage now. However, if you want good racing, you sometimes need to offer the riders some rest. Especially, after the really hard 5th stage with 4 walls in the final 40 Kilometres.

Today's stage starts in the beautiful city of Salerno. After a detour around the Sorrento peninsula the route goes straight to the north, passing close to the Vesuvio and Napoli. A bunch sprint in Fornia is very likely.

 

[Another_Dutch_Guy]

Giro d'Italia

Stage 7: Terracina - Roma (180 KM)

I really liked this year's Roma Maxima. So it may be no surprise that this stage is inspired by this revived classic race. After a flat run in, the first climb is the Rocca Massima (10 KM, 6%). Exactly, this is also the first climb of the Roma Maxima!

After the Rocca Massima, the route goes a bit more inland to the Rocca di Cave (6 KM, 7,8%). This is a new climb, I need to stay at least a bit original! The third climb of the day (the Rocca Priora) is again known from the Roma Maxima. However, it will be climbed from the north side. This side is significantly harder as the normal one, and averages 6% over nearly 7 KM. The last climb of the day is again a new one; the Pratone averages 5% over 3 KM. So not really hard. From the top the peloton goes in one straight line to the finish at the Colloseum. It's still 24 Kilometres; is that enough for the sprinters to come back to the front?

 

[Another_Dutch_Guy]

Giro d'Italia

Stage 8: Braccione - Assisi (213 KM)

It's Saturday, so time to spice things up a little! Today's stage is the only one exceeding 200 kilometres. I've two reasons for that. The first one is that tracks4bikers doesn't allow me to make longer tracks. And since I'm to lazy to create two tracks for one stage, I've decided to stick on that limit. Next to this, I also believe that there is no place for ultra long stages in a grand tour. I want to keep the race human. No extremely long days at the saddle, so that there is plenty of time to recover for the next day. I know a lot of purists will disagree on this, but the truth is that longer stages almost never lead to better racing.

Ok, let's go to today's course, because I'm sure you will like it. While not that hard as the 5th stage, this could be the second Sky Killer. In the last 100 Kilometres, no meter will be flat. The first climb of the day is the Pettino (12 KM, 6,8%). From there on, the road goes constantly gradually up and down until the Cupacci appears. This climb averages 8% around 5 Kilometres. After a short decend, it's almost immediately time for the next climb (The San Vitale). The top of this 7,3 KM at 8,1% climb is situated only 12 kilometres before the finish, thus making it the ideal opportunity for some attacks by the favourites. After a tricky decend, it's time for the final climb of the day; the ramp to the city centre of Assisi. You will propably remember it from the 2012 Giro, when Murito grabbed the win over here.

(Note: the first 17 KM are missing from this profile)

 

[Another_Dutch_Guy]

Giro d'Italia

Stage 9: Perugia - Monte Amiata (152 KM)

It's time for the first MTF of this Giro! Today's stage starts in the medieval city Perugia. In first instance the route leads to the north; to the Lago Trasimeno. After a nice ride along the boarders of this lake, the route heads to the west. The terrain becomes more hilly, but it's still nothing to worry about. But in the far distance, the riders can already see what awaits them: the Monte Amiata.

After 107 Kilometres the peloton will start tackling the eastern slopes of this beast. After 15 Kilometres climbing at 6% the riders have nearly reached the top. But then...They have to start descending back to the feet of the climb, to tackle it again from the west side! This side is considerably steeper as the east side, averaging 7,5% over 13 Kilometres. But those number's don't tell the right story about this climb. Halfway there is a section of three kilometres averaging 10%, and peeking to 15%. Definetely, the contenders will use this part to test their legs!

 

[SetonHallPirate]

Stage 10: Aime - L'Alpe d'Huez, 179km, high mountains

This is probably the most traditional stage in this tour, but I tried to change the finale somehow to create more dynamic racing.
The course follows the valley of the Isère river untill it reaches the start of the north side of the Col de la Madeleine, which it will climb. The descent of the steeper south side is followed by a 15m long false flat section to Saint-Michel-de-Maurienne. This town marks the beginning of the climb of the Col du Télégraphe, and subsequently the Col du Galibier. The long descent of the Galibier won't to to Bourg d'Oisans, but stops at the Barrage de Chambon, where the peloton will turn right and climb the Col de Sarenne. When cresting the highest point of the road, there's only a very short descent, followed by 6km on rolling roads before crossing the finishline.

Climbs:
Col de la Madeleine: km47.5, 24.5km @ 6.3%, hors category
Col du Galibier: km124, 34.9km @ 5.5%, hors category (just like in the old days, not counting the télégraphe as a seperate climb)
Col de Sarenne: km170, 12.7km @ 7.5%, 1st cat

Personally, I'd like to see them pave the north face of Alpe d'Huez, from Station de L'Olmet, and use that one.

(of course, my Designed Tour sends them down the usual ascent route of L'Alpe D'Huez)

 

[rghysens]

Stage 11: Briançon - Saint-Étienne-de-Tinée: 122km

This is the second consective high altitude climbing stage after monday's restday. It's very short, but it packs quite a punch with two long climbs on the course. The start in the center of the famous mountain city of Briançon is followed by 30km of gentle downhill towards Guillestre, circling west of the famous Col d'Izoard. Expect this part of the stage to be raced a full speed, as many riders want to be part of the break of the day.
The few km uphill false flat towards Guillestre will hurt many legs and the peloton will absolutely fall apart on the two-stepped Col de Vars. Its summit is crested with still 70km to go and is followed by a descent that begins steep and sinuous, but eases out after Saint-Paul-sur-Ubaye, the halfway point of the race. There's an intermediate sprint at Jausiers, just before the start of the highest paved road in France. After 24km at a not too high gradient there's only a long descent to the finishline that awaits the contenders.

Climbs:
Col de Vars: km52, 19.4km @ 5.7%, 1st cat
Col de la Bonette: km96, 24km @ 6.6%, HC

Intermediate sprint:
Jausiers, km74

 

[rghysens]

Stage 12: Saint-Étienne-de-Tinée - Digne-les-Bains, 193km, medium mountains

We're leaving the high Alps behind us, but todays stage is by no means flat. It will start once again at high speeds, because the first 50km are a false flat downhill. It won't surprise anyone if these are overed in less than an hour, while half the peloton will try to be in the break of the day.
At the confluence of the rivers Var and Tinée the course takes a sudden turn right and the downhill false flat will be changed for its uphill counterpart. Only a few km later many legs will already start to hurt after the climbing action of the previous days and the speed of the first hour. This false flat section lasts for about 30km, until the town of Entrevaux. This will mark the beginning of the first real climb of the day, and although being only a 2nd category climb, many riders will be very happy if the autobus starts to form itself at this point.
A short but not too technical downhill on narrow roads is followed by the most difficult climb of the day: the short but steep Col du Buis. Its descent is almost as steep as its ascent but shorter, and on narrow, but straight roads.
We're past the halfway point of the stage, and now there's a 15km long section of more rolling roads, before the third climb of the day. The climb itself is on a wider road, but the long, gradual descent is again on a more narrow, sinuous road, until the 60km to go sign is reached. At this point the peloton (or what's left of it) is nearing the intermediate sprint in Castellane, and the start of the 4th climb of the day.
The course now follows the famous and quite scenic Route Napoléon, which Napoleon took to the north after his return from exile in Elba.
With 24km to go the peloton leaves this main road and turns right, following the narrow road towards the Col de Corobin, the final climb of the day.
The final 16km, an irregular descent into the centre of Digne-les-Bains will decide about this stage's winner, while the favourites can test eachother, if the time differences are still small.

Climbs:
Col de Félines: km94.5, 7km @ 5.9%, 2nd cat
Col du Buis: km101.5, 4km @ 10.1%, 2nd cat
Col de Saint-Barnabé: km123, 3.6km @ 6.3%, 3rd cat
Col des Lèques: km147.5, 7.2km @ 5.4%, 2nd cat
Col de Corobin: km177, 7.8km @ 6.6%, 2nd cat

Intermediate:
Saint-Auban: km112