What is your favorite cycling stage/race this year?

[Jumbo Visma Fan :)]

This one is self explanatory, pick your favorite cycling race/stage of the year. I am very intrigued, as there was a lot of good stages and races for this selection and I wouldn’t be surprised if Other/Vino gets a lot of votes

 

[Gigs_98]

I voted Granon for the sheer scale of that stage. The invincible looking rider finally cracked on the hardest stage of the biggest race. That was just something special. I do have to admit though, that I missed most of the smaller races this season meaning there very well might have been better races I just didn't watch.

Also, shout out to a really good edition of Paris Roubaix and stage 18 of the Tour which I also found pretty great. Pogacar's full on attack on the penultimate climb followed by one of the most memorable displays of climbing dominance I can remember.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

I voted Granon for the sheer scale of that stage. The invincible looking rider finally cracked on the hardest stage of the biggest race. That was just something special. I do have to admit though, that I missed most of the smaller races this season meaning there very well might have been better races I just didn't watch.

Also, shout out to a really good edition of Paris Roubaix and stage 18 of the Tour which I also found pretty great. Pogacar's full on attack on the penultimate climb followed by one of the most memorable displays of climbing dominance I can remember.

As scripture demands

 

[RedheadDane]

I voted Granon for the sheer scale of that stage. The invincible looking rider finally cracked on the hardest stage of the biggest race. That was just something special. I do have to admit though, that I missed most of the smaller races this season meaning there very well might have been better races I just didn't watch.

You actually watched the Granon stage?

 

[AlfaLum]

I voted for stage 6 of Basque Country. For me most exciting races are the ones where the “script” has a lot of unexpected changes.

Remco being dropped quite early, Martinez with a mechanical. Martinez and mostly Remco getting back on. Everybody racing against Remco again. Martinez eventually winning the race. It was just a tremendous race for me.

I also enjoyed the Higuita/Carapaz stage a lot because it was exciting for such a long time. And because that stage started with 0 expectations for me.

But of course all races listed here have a nice story.

 

[Netserk]

Hautacam was better than Peyragudes.

 

[Jumbo Visma Fan :)]

Hautacam was better than Peyragudes.

Both were on the same level for me, I picked the one that had the most unexpected moment, Bjerg pulling for a long time.

 

[Ilmaestro99]

Giro Fedaia stage?

 

[hayneplane]

Has to be Granon. When a stage is so good it is your highlight of the year despite the rider you wanted to win (Pogacar) getting turned over comprehensively in the end you know it has been an instant classic.

 

[Devil's Elbow]

It has to be Granon, the only one we'll still be talking about in ten years. Roubaix, Torino and Arrate were all excellent too, though.

I think there's a lot of smaller races that deserve a mention too, though. This year's awesome edition of Laigueglia was the first that came to mind for me, but I'm sure I've forgotten about or didn't watch a bunch of others.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

The smallest one that I'd say was truly epic was the penultimate stage of the Ronda Pilipinas, with Ronald Lomotos overturning a 9 minute deficit on his own teammate Ronald Oranza, after attacking his breakmates that he was monitoring in the queen stage to Baguio with a lot of serious climbing. Oranza had been happily letting Lomotos monitor the break even as the gap got dangerously large, then panicked and attacked his group solo over the last couple of climbs, seeing the time gap drop rapidly, but not quickly enough, as it became a straight shootout between the two solo-climbing teammates, and he fell 21" short - if the last climb was a couple of km longer he'd have held on.

I think Granon is the one though, while a case could be made for some of the others from an entertainment point of view, I think the combination of entertainment, expectation and significance makes Granon the winner, ahead of Torino. While the Granon stage was obviously a stage for action and Galibier north is an absolute monolith, I had the expectation that Galibier would largely be attrition and Granon would be where the action was, as its position in the mountain range and the fact it was followed by an Alpe d'Huez stage with three HC mountains meant I thought people wouldn't take too many risks in the stage until Granon itself lest they pay for it the following day, but instead caution was thrown to the wind, with Jumbo pulling off the kind of tactical masterstroke those of us who've known them since the Rabobank days thought was completely beyond them (especially after the masterpiece of failure-to-capitalise that was the 2020 Tour).

 

[Extinction]

The first real mountain stage in the Vuelta, when Remco showed he is GT material. Only Mas could follow, hanging on for dear life. By the way, the form Mas showed through Lombardia demonstrated he was no weak opponent to Evenepoel in Spain.

 

[Cookster15]

Yes I am biased but I vote for Stage 20 of the Giro. Masterful execution of a race long strategy by Bora and Hindley. I lost interest in the TdF after the Granon stage and have stated why in the other forum. The Vuelta was better for me as a neutral observer.

 

[DaLong]

RvV because MvdP bamboozling Pogacar. I still chuckle when I think about it.

 

[gregrowlerson]

RvV because MvdP bamboozling Pogacar. I still chuckle when I think about it.

I voted this too. A Tour winner threatening to win a cobbled monument in the modern era; very unique. The amusing ending was icing on the cake.

 

[Kaptain Kool]

I voted Torino but hardly remember any of the others.

 

[Armchair cyclist]

I missed most of the smaller races this season .

And we are grateful

 

[Red Rick]

There was this one small moment on the Torino stage I thought Nibali might win. We will never think it again.

 

[Netserk]

Torino would only be able to contend with Granon if it won the Giro. So if one of Carapaz and Hindley had dropped the other for good and with the help of Nibali and Yates had put a great distance between them.

 

[Bonimenier]

Tour of Oman stage 4. Best solo of the year.

 

[Põhja Konn]

Thought about being original for some time, but in the end the Granon stage was the most memorable and by far the most consequential one of the year.

 

[DNP-Old]

Toss up between Roubaix and the MTB World Cup in Nové Město for me.

 

[ice&fire]

You actually watched the Granon stage?

I didn't. I was in a work meeting abroad.
Last time I had a work meeting abroad during the Tour was on 21/7/2011.
Let me know when you want me to have my next work trip.

 

[Red Rick]

I didn't. I was in a work meeting abroad.
Last time I had a work meeting abroad during the Tour was on 21/7/2011.
Let me know when you want me to have my next work trip.

Are you a colleague of @Gigs_98 by any chance?

 

[Jumbo Visma Fan :)]

I only voted for Roubaix because I saw it, likely would’ve picked Granon if I was living the moment and the excitement of that stage.