Vuelta a España 2018 Rumours

[ice&fire]

I read somewhere Picos Buitre would be in. Could it be one of the MTF's?

Pico del Buitre is 6hrs driving from both the Basque Country and Andorra. There's just no way they fit that and Andorra without facing a protest from the teams because of ridiculous transfers the very same day the route is presented.

 

[Kyllingen86]

Okay thanks!


I read it on cyclingstage but apparently, unless there is a mountain with the same name, something is way wrong in that article. It says Pico del Buitre is in Aragon.

 

[ice&fire]

Okay thanks!


I read it on cyclingstage but apparently, unless there is a mountain with the same name, something is way wrong in that article. It says Pico del Buitre is in Aragon.

Pico del Buitre is indeed in Aragón; but it's in the South of Aragón, near Valencia and far from the way between the Basque Country and Andorra. It's not the first time that Unipublic leaks a fake rumour.

 

[ice&fire]

AS has been running a series of articles in recent days about the Vuelta.

This one on the three new MTFs (Alfaguara, Les Praeres and Oiz)
https://as.com/ciclismo/2017/12/22/vuelta_espana/1513914528_477281.html

This one confirms the Andorra stages on last week's Friday and Saturday
https://as.com/ciclismo/2017/12/22/vuelta_espana/1513913233_213956.html

This one just gives some statistics: 9 MTFs and 49 KOMs
https://as.com/ciclismo/2017/12/22/vuelta_espana/1513912322_895282.html

And the final one, which regarding the course it states that Les Praeres will be the stage on Asturias Regional Day (Sat 8th of September).
https://as.com/opinion/2017/12/23/blogs/1514037601_519122.html

This means that the order of MTFs before the second rest day will be La Camperona, Les Praeres and Covadonga.

 

[ice&fire]

The finish at Pozo Alcón (stage 7) is expected to include a loop with two linked climbs: Vadillo Castril and Tiscar. My guess is that both are no more than cat2 climbs, followed by a final 6-7 km going up at 3-4%. Anyway it looks like an interesting finish.
Stage 8 will finish at Almadén (flat).
Stage 9 will depart from Talavera de la Reina and will be 226 km long, but there's no mention of any climb before La Covatilla. We'll have to wait for additional details.
http://www.diariojaen.es/deportes/la-etapa-de-pozo-alcon-constara-de-tres-puertos-y-185-kilometros-CM3538545

ITT will be in Cantabria, probably in Torrelavega. There are no details on route and distance, but according to ciclo2.com it should be between 30 and 40 km.
http://www.eldiariomontanes.es/deportes/ciclismo/cantabria-nuevo-escenario-20171227220848-ntvo.html

Stage 1: Malaga ITT
Stage 2: Marbella - Caminito del Rey (MTF)
Stage 3: Mijas - Alhaurín de la Torre
Stage 4: Velez Málaga - La Alfaguara (MTF)
Stage 5: Granada - Province of Almería???
Stage 6: Huercal Overa - Province of Murcia???
Stage 7: Puerto Lumbreras - Pozo Alcón
Stage 8: Linares - Almadén
Stage 9: Talavera de la Reina - La Covatilla (MTF)
Rest day (Monday)
Stage 10: Salamanca - Fermoselle?
Stage 11: Province of Zamora??? - Luintra
Stage 12: ??? - Estaca de Bares
Stage 13: Candás - La Camperona (MTF)
Stage 14: Cistierna - Les Praeres (MTF)
Stage 15: ??? - Lagos de Covadonga (MTF)
Rest day (Monday)
Stage 16: Torrelavega? (ITT)
Stage 17: Getxo - Monte Oiz (MTF)
Stage 18: ???
Stage 19: Province of Huesca? - Andorra
Stage 20: Andorra 'spectacular' mountain stage (MTF?)
Stage 21: Madrid

 

[mikii4567]

Re:

Stage 9 will depart from Talavera de la Reina and will be 226 km long.

for Vuelta standards... sadly it's due to be Unipuerto

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Not possible to be Unipuerto from Talavera de la Reina as they've got to get from the southern to the northern Meseta plateaus, the latter of which is higher. (Piornal)-Honduras-(La Garganta or El Cerro)-La Covatilla or (Piornal)-Tornavacas-(Tremedal)-La Covatilla would seem most likely.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Damn, a hard Covatilla stage, me gusta! Def one of my favourite climbs, at least in Spain.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Hey, just because it's impossible to be Unipuerto doesn't mean they won't make it the only relevant climb. They could also go over Pico then go all rolling in the northern Meseta through Ávila province, or just sidestep Piornal and just put Tornavacas first. It'll be a tougher stage than 2011 regardless coming from Talavera, but that doesn't automatically mean it's going to be a good design.

 

[mikii4567]

Re:

Not possible to be Unipuerto from Talavera de la Reina as they've got to get from the southern to the northern Meseta plateaus, the latter of which is higher. (Piornal)-Honduras-(La Garganta or El Cerro)-La Covatilla or (Piornal)-Tornavacas-(Tremedal)-La Covatilla would seem most likely.

I see, thanks

 

[ice&fire]

Re:

Hey, just because it's impossible to be Unipuerto doesn't mean they won't make it the only relevant climb. They could also go over Pico then go all rolling in the northern Meseta through Ávila province, or just sidestep Piornal and just put Tornavacas first. It'll be a tougher stage than 2011 regardless coming from Talavera, but that doesn't automatically mean it's going to be a good design.

They can always go from Plasencia to Bejar through the N-630 and this would be the only 'climb' before La Covatilla.

 

[Tim Booth]

By popular demand the Technical Direction of @lavuelta decided that #LaVuelta18 will have 23 stages.
https://twitter.com/lavuelta

 

[Red Rick]

By popular demand the Technical Direction of @lavuelta decided that #LaVuelta18 will have 23 stages.
https://twitter.com/lavuelta

I have no idea what that is supposed to mean

 

[Tim Booth]

By popular demand the Technical Direction of @lavuelta decided that #LaVuelta18 will have 23 stages.
https://twitter.com/lavuelta

I have no idea what that is supposed to mean

Día de los Santos Inocentes

 

[yaco]

Does it mean days with 2 stages ? Riders will be unhappy if this is the case.

 

[Netserk]

By popular demand the Technical Direction of @lavuelta decided that #LaVuelta18 will have 23 stages.
https://twitter.com/lavuelta

I have no idea what that is supposed to mean

Party like in 1998 (that was the last time a GT was without any restdays, right?)

 

[Valv.Piti]

23 stages > 21 stages. Me gusta.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

As Tim Booth says above, this is Día de los Santos Inocentes, the Spanish equivalent of April Fools' Day.

 

[Robert5091]

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/vue...al-week-to-start-with-torrelavega-time-trial/

The third and most decisive week of the 2018 Vuelta a España is set to repeat 2017's tried-and-tested formula and open with a medium-length individual time trial. After that, it's back to the mountains.

The individual time trial is set to take place in Torrelavega in the northern region of Cantabria, the hometown of Vicente Trueba, the Tour de France's first ever King of the Mountains winner, back in 1933, and also of three-time world champion Oscar Freire.

 

[Red Rick]

Well that's good news. A prologue and a mid-length ITT is more than we've had in years. Still think most of the mountain stages will be too much down to one climb, but the rumours about Andorra seem good at least.

 

[Robert5091]

If TommyD is not doing the Worlds, this could be his.

 

[ice&fire]

According to Ciclo 21 the stage after Monte Oiz might finish at Lleida. I don't know how reliable this rumour is, given that the shortest distance between those two points is above 450 km, which means long transfer + long stage over highways. Going out of highways would only make the transfer and the stage even longer.
Unlike AS, Ciclo21 keeps the Covadonga stage on Saturday.
http://www.ciclo21.com/vuelta-espana-2018/

 

[OlavEH]

When is the presentation of the route?

 

[Robert5091]

According to https://www.cyclingstage.com/vuelta-2018-route/

The route of the 2018 Vuelta a España will be announced on the 13th of January in Estepona.

Keep an eye on the official Twitter feed at https://twitter.com/lavuelta/

 

[ice&fire]

Stage 5 shall connect the towns of Lanjarón and Roquetas de Mar.
http://cadenaser.com/emisora/2018/01/06/ser_almeria/1515246400_933741.html

The text says they go through the Alpujarras region and climb the mounts of Enix before a descent to Roquetas. This is the same finish as the Clásica de Almería. Enix North side is not too hard and there are more than 10km from the end of the descent to the finish.