Vuelta 2012, Stage 14: Palas de Rei > Puerto de Ancares (149,2 kms)

[skidmark]

"I guess we have very different definitions of "epic"."

What was wrong with this stage then?
When does any real excitement happen before a final MTF nowadays?

Well, it may be semantics, but exciting and epic are pretty different. This was an exciting stage for the last several km, not 'epic'. I think an 'epic' stage would be something like the strade bianche stage from the 2010 Giro (rain, mud, crashes, time gaps for last 40km), or the Aquila stage from that Giro (260km, contenders messing up, letting the break go, and chasing on the front themselves for the last 100km in the rain), Gardeccia stage from Giro 2011, even the shorter Alpe D'Huez stage from Tour last year, action from the start, big stakes, looked like there could be big differences all along. This, there was exciting racing, but only in the last 3km, and the time gaps weren't big, it wasn't decisive, and nothing monumental happened.

Either way, fun to watch!

 

[The Hitch]

sssshhhhh don't say it, haven't you read The Hitch? It was epic!

5k yes, but there was so much action into that 5k.

Any tme a rider has a certain victory,and the headline writers are writing the headlines, and not just any rider, the greatest rider looking for his comeback win, and gets caught at the end like that, that is epic.

 

[Jelantik]

Rodriguez is playing to his strenghts, but his advantage is so small that he only needs one difficult moment and Contador can pass him. If Contador is serious about winning this race he should attack sooner when possible, Rodriguez biggest weakness are long efforts, you should break him before the final kilometer. But I'm not sure Contador is good enough for that now.

I agree. It plays to Purito's strength when it's 2 km to the finish. It's obviously shown today. But at the same time I don't think Alberto has the fitness he needs to sustain a long attack though. It's going to be a little tricky tactic for Alberto for the next two days.

I thought for second, Froome got something going.. DANG!..But then Purito.. just …BAM!.. lay down the hammer back!! AWESOME RIDE by Purito.

 

[Eshnar]

This is actually wrong, what he really needs is an easy pace and a large peloton then attack from 7 or 8 km. The Giro was all ridiculously hard stages where no one could make a difference except JRod with his sprint. Can J Rod match Contador over 6 or 7 kms that is what is left unanswered

Time to stop pansying around when clear and ride an 8 km mtt

yeeeeeeaaaaa you're right bro' leave every single Purito's teammate fresh, so he will never reach Contador in 6 kms. Genius.

 

[vcampbell]

You should tell Unipublic that they can avoid putting 15 uphill sprints in the race then.

Today it wasn't an uphill sprint like finish, but everything playes into Puritos hands. Froomes attack was also a bad move from Contadors view. They went much faster, and it was an ideal leadout to the last km for Rodriguez.

 

[Miburo]

Contador still has a week to try and get that superform. On the bola del mondo he can still do it but like people said he must be ****ed off.

Already 3 times 2nd and it's always in the end that purito catches him, must be real ****ing annoying.

 

[uphillstruggle]

Purito again with his pathetic wheelsucking until the last km, then sprinting. I just want it so bad that once he will be alone when Alberto attacks.

Yeah, those bloody riders, riding to their strengths. He closed the gap himslef by the way.

 

[Descender]

"I guess we have very different definitions of "epic"."

What was wrong with this stage then?

It was too short and, once again, the hardest climb was the MTF. It was yet another instalment of Unipublic's "no action before 5PM please kthxbai" masterplan.

When does any real excitement happen before a final MTF nowadays?

Alps TdF 2011, De Gendt at this year's Giro, etc. etc.

I'll tell you when we don't get real excitement before a final MTF though: when the organisers purposely design the stages so that no real movements can take place before the last couple of kms.

 

[JimPanzen]

Today it wasn't an uphill sprint like finish, but everything playes into Puritos hands. Froomes attack was also a bad move from Contadors view. They went much faster, and it was an ideal leadout to the last km for Rodriguez.

That's exactly what I was thinking when Froome attacked.

 

[Publicus]

Ride of the day: Majka. No doubt.
Froome was hilarious.

Contador is obviously not at his best, and he's not going to beat Purito with this kind of 3 km efforts. He's going to have to make the race much harder and attack from the base of a big climb.

Agree with this. He was a monster today.

 

[SafeBet]

I think that's fairly obvious. He can't even attack from 2 km out, if he attacks from further out he'll lose minutes.

Tho whom?
If he attacks earlier, other riders will be forced to sustain their effort longer. I don't see them being better than Contador at that. In fact, history tells us Purito and Valverde are actually beatable in that situation.
Hell, even in this stage, all of the riders but Purito lost time on Berto after his attack. So I don't get this: he can't sustain it.

Seems to me that Berto lost a lot of his initial confidence when Purito and Valverde came back and outsprinted him in Andorra.

"I guess we have very different definitions of "epic"."

What was wrong with this stage then?
When does any real excitement happen before a final MTF nowadays?

Why did everybody labeled Giro as amazingly boring then? I don't get the big difference. Just there was no Contador to spice it up 2 (sic) kms from the finish.

 

[the asian]

I agree. It plays to Purito's strength when it's 2 km to the finish. It's obviously shown today. But at the same time I don't think Alberto has the fitness he needs to sustain a long attack though. It's going to be a little tricky tactic for Alberto for the next two days.

I thought for second, Froome got something going.. DANG!..But then Purito.. just …BAM!.. lay down the hammer back!! AWESOME RIDE by Purito.

The problem is, bertie seems to lack the stamina yet to sustain long range attacks.

 

[Eshnar]

Today it wasn't an uphill sprint like finish, but everything playes into Puritos hands. Froomes attack was also a bad move from Contadors view. They went much faster, and it was an ideal leadout to the last km for Rodriguez.

It was. 150 kms, no serious climbs before the last one, that had the final 3 kms steeper than the previous. It was an uphill sprint and ended up like that.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Ride of the day: Majka. No doubt.
Froome was hilarious.

Contador is obviously not at his best, and he's not going to beat Purito with this kind of 3 km efforts. He's going to have to make the race much harder and attack from the base of a big climb.

And lose a spot on the podium?

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Purito again with his pathetic wheelsucking until the last km, then sprinting. I just want it so bad that once he will be alone when Alberto attacks.

Stupid comment, the guy is the leader, why would he undermine his own tactics and create a self disadvantage ? To please some forum hero? get a grip pal.

Good stage I thought. Purito is looking good for the win, a brilliant tactical ride no doubt.

Gesink so meh. Bad day, or more likely he just doesn't have it .
Loving LTD fight tho

 

[Parrot23]

Ha can't attack from 3-4-5 km from the finish, he can't go with a serious attack, he can only hold someones wheel, then sprinting in the last km. I don't like it.

In the Giro on the Stelvio stage (the one that de Gendt took), I think, on the penultimate climb he just sort of rolled off the front. Not a serious attack. It was kinda bizarre. Director was obviously telling him to attack.

He lacks the confidence and/or legs to make a long bomb attack. But then again, he's going with his strengths. Not trying to be what he can't, I guess.

(He was sorta treated like Manuel, the house butler in Fawlty Towers, at Caisse. Always the domestique to the great Valvi, not given his chances, so that may still shape his approach to racing.)

 

[Fidolix]

Well that's not gonna happen

What kind of fangirl are you?
Just because he didn´t win the stage you think he can´t win the Vuelta?
It was the first real mountain stage, have some faith.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

And lose a spot on the podium?

For a champion like contador,a podium-backup mentality is unacceptable.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Contador is just slightly better than Giro 08. Good, but not super.

He still has a week left though!

 

[Fidolix]

Pretty good by Gesink to hang in there after his horrible start to the climb.

Oh boy

 

[Lexman]

Contador still has a week to try and get that superform. On the bola del mondo he can still do it but like people said he must be ****ed off.

Already 3 times 2nd and it's always in the end that purito catches him, must be real ****ing annoying.

the images at the finish showed he was p$ssed, pushed the camera away with quite a bang, should keep the bangs for on his bike

what are you doin' Alberto? even Andy might beat you next year, don't do that to me ...

 

[gilbertador]

And lose a spot on the podium?

Given that he has already won a vuelta I dont think the difference between 4th and 2nd is that big for him

 

[LaFlorecita]

Tho whom?
If he attacks earlier, other riders will be forced to sustain their effort longer. I don't see them being better than Contador at that. In fact, history tells us Purito and Valverde are actually beatable in that situation.
Hell, even in this stage, all of the riders but Purito lost time on Berto after his attack. So I don't get this: he can't sustain it.
Seems to me that Berto lost a lot of his initial confidence when Purito and Valverde came back and outsprinted him in Andorra.

Normally people can't come back when he attacks.

 

[hrotha]

And lose a spot on the podium?

He's Contador. What does a mere podium spot at the Vuelta add to his palmares at this point?

 

[luckyboy]

It was too short and, once again, the hardest climb was the MTF. It was yet another instalment of Unipublic's "no action before 5PM please kthxbai" masterplan.



Alps TdF 2011, De Gendt at this year's Giro, etc. etc.

I'll tell you when we don't get real excitement before a final MTF though: when the organisers purposely design the stages so that no real movements can take place before the last couple of kms.

De Gendt and 2011 Alps are anomalies. When organisers design mountain stages to have as much action as possible nothing happens before the final climb anyway.