Rate the 2014 Giro d'Italia!

[Eshnar]

The route:
http://www.gazzetta.it/Giroditalia/2014/it/percorso-tappe/index.shtml

10: Awesome
1: Crap

Last year I gave it a 6 and I'll do that this year too. Don't think it's any worse nor any better than that.

Plus side:
- Very good 2nd weekend (the first in Italy).
- Good ITT.
- Killer MTT (if you gonna have one, at least do it properly).
- Montecopiolo, Oropa and Savona well designed.
- 7 stages >= 200 km

Minus side:
- 8 flat stages? Seriously?
- Only one medium mountain stage not ending uphill.
- No high mountain descent finishes.
- Are we sure there are no hills available in Ireland?
- Backloaded^2

 

[Netserk]

If you're going to have a MTF fest at least do it well like in '11.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

I'm going to switch on the TV on May 13 and give the route a 7.

 

[Gloin22]

6-7. Preety disappoiting, but few stages look nice.

However it's the riders that make the racing great so hopefully we;ll have a great watch.

 

[roundabout]

If you're going to have a MTF fest at least do it well like in '11.

You mean with the pointless Montevergine and Macugnaga and 1-climb stages to Grossglockner and Zoncolan.

 

[Flamin]

Ireland -1
No proper hilly stages (except maybe Savona, which is decent) -1
No descent finishes -1
Five mountain stages + a MTT between stage 14 and 20 is just too much -1

That makes it a 6.

 

[Waterloo Sunrise]

Great race for sprinters to do for 2 weeks then ****** off. It's like Mario never retired.

 

[Arredondo]

7, fairly happy.

Nice to see some climbs which they don't use often (Montecopiolo, Oropa, Viggiano, Montecassino, Panarotta), you don't have to put the likes of Zoncolan, Mortirolo every year in it.

A couple of hilly stages, although i agree that we miss a stage like Strade Bianchi. Some stages do have that character, but then the last climb is to far from the finish. The last weak is nice, but perhaps a little bit to harsh. Nice to see a flat TT, Mountain TT and a TTT in it.

I think the first two weeks are nicely balanced.

 

[Peter von]

I like, could have used some more hilly stages and maybe they should have made another medium-easy stage in te final week for my taste, but still, the rest is up to the riders.

 

[hfer07]

5 to me...


Zomegnan- where are you bro? we need U badly

 

[veji11]

3. Very very disappointing, a Vueltaesque turn for the giro. Just 2 moutain stages with more than 2 rela climbs (Val Martello and Zoncolan) and only one really high altitude one... The rest are a Vuelta like fest of MTFs...

And where are the downhill finishes for god's sake ? When will we get again a finish in Bormio after 20ks of downhill from the Gavia or the Stelvio...

This is a snooze fest binge of MTFs, makes the 2013 Tour de France look like a dream of a route... Honestly they should gotten the MTFs down to 7 max, add 3 downhill finishes, maybe one "ASO style" stage where there is lots of climbs but 30 Ks flat at the end...

You know a bit of variety !

 

[Parrulo]

Gave it a five, way too backloaded and too many bland flat stages.

I don't mind good flat stages, like that one that is up and down all day on small hills which should make it very interesting, but 100% flat stages with no threats of wind are simply awful imo.

A few stages are well designed so i give it a five.

 

[barmaher]

There is a chance of wind in the Irish stages. Just not a very big one!

 

[trevim]

5 to me.
I think Acquarone is succeding if he wants to make the race more straightforward like the Tour/Vuelta where you know what will happen in every stage. The most defining point of the Giro regarding the Tour are the long (240km+), unpredictable, medium mountain stages, Montalcine and L'Aquila style. I don't see any of those this year. Some other negative aspects: the amount of sprint stages and the stage to Montecampione (what is that, Lagos Covadonga?!). Anyway a decent MTT after those stupid stages to Nevegal and Polsa.

 

[Geraint Too Fast]

TTT, Flat Stage, Flat Stage, Rest Day, Flat Stage... I'll be asleep by the time the proper racing starts. But hopefully the many unpredictable hilly stages & exiting downhill finishes will wake me up.

 

[Descender]

Extremely (ri-di-cu-lous-ly) backloaded, complete lack of descent finishes, completely irrelevant MTT, MTFs, MTFs, MTFs...

Very disappointing.

3/10

 

[SafeBet]

Think I gave it a 7 last year, first week was perfectly designed and the mountain stages had potential.

I need to think a bit more about this year route but I'm inclined to give it a 5. Its way too backloaded and I agree with who says the Giro is losing his peculiarities. I guess this is what Acqua wants, it was pretty clear from the start.

 

[Netserk]

Is this route better than any of the nine previous routes (as they were planned )?

Could be an argument to give it a 1.

 

[jsem94]

5. Kind of meh.

 

[jens_attacks]

sometimes i do wonder what rating the cyclingnews forum would give to the 1993 giro d'italia route

i'm just praying ivan basso will bring the big guns facing such an opponent as richie porte. the tasmanian will give all on the road

 

[fraserhughes]

I went for a 4 for the reasons everyone has already mention. Particularly don't like the dull flat stages in first week* and the lack of descent finishes.

*imho flat stages should have some difficult small hills/narrow road/cross-wind potential to give a break some sort of chance.

In fact we should start a pole on which stages won't be taken by a Sprinter or GC contender!

I don't see many:

Stage 11 - Late break should win

Stage 16 and 18 - Possibly but I think the break will get pulled back on the flat before the final climb

Stage 17 - All day break should win

 

[Le Baroudeur]

Sprinters in Pink for more than a day gets a 4 from me.

 

[SKSemtex]

If Corsika was wasted, what is Ireland ? I am sure the British fans will love it. .
I hope that at least Vuelta is not for sale.

 

[Afrank]

I'll give it a 5, it's okay in places. But overall not that good. A couple observations I had while looking at it.

-A little too sprinter stage heavy for the Giro.
-stage 7 would be cool if done the opposite way.
-stage 8 looks good.
-Time trial could be either a little shorter or a little hillier.
-Seems like there's a lot of space between penultimate and final climb on stage 14 (not sure if there's anything that could be done to avoid that though).
-MTT looks good, nice and hard.
-Like zoncolan, well placed as the final GC stage. Hopefully gaps are small like at the Vuelta this year.
-Needs more descent finishes.
-needs more hilly/classics-like stages.
-A good number of stages around 200km's.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Epic mediocrity.