Been raining here on t'north coast too. There won't be cars up there but let's hope no motos fall over onto the riders as per GvA in the Klasikoa a couple of years ago, similar gradient and surface.
I ride a lot of roads like this with 32c tyres at 60psi and still find it hard to keep traction on wet concrete. Though my pedal stroke by that point is far from smooth!
At least it's not something like Thwaites Brow or the other cobbled climbs in West Yorks where you don't just have the slots running across the road but have to avoid those in the line of your tyres as well!
Wow, that looks pretty mental for a grand tour route. Are the team cars following at those points?! If 31 percent gradient isn't enough, they're basically riding on a glorified shed base with grooves in it.
Brilliant!
I seem to remember reading somewhere that there'd be no team cars or spectators allowed up there as it's too narrow but that teams could put static crews up there with wheels & spares.
There's a hill like that not far from mine, basically just a farm access track. Concrete slabs with horizontal grooves cut in it. A local Sportive uses it once a year, it's brutal even on a CX bike.
[quote=weeksy ]And that, is the end of that discussion as to who's going to win.
[quote=anagallis_arvensis ]Could still lose 2mins on angliru but that would need some back luck
Remember how his "luck" was on the ride to Formigal last year? No wonder he's not getting complacent.
Let's hope Sky mechanics can adjust a B screw properly. They'll all be on mtb cassettes. Looks like a gentle Dartmoor climb to be honest 😈
there's rain knocking around, tough getting traction on 30% when the road is wet 🙂
they could really do with the new 11 speed Ultegra cassette in 11-34. 😉
wet descent, will they be testing froomes confidence?
Jesus - the camera shots...
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shit road too ! kind of reminds me of Antur Stiniog
froome looks like he's in trouble.
I see Nibali's Lazarus like form in the last few days of a Grand Tour has returned again 🙁
no quite to the "give wout poels a pat of the arse and off you go son have the win" script
slowpuncheur - Member
I see Nibali's Lazarus like form in the last few days of a Grand Tour has returned again
Yeah, 'cause he was rubbish in the first week wasn't he? Not like he won a stage or anything...
Sorry but I can't get over his 2016 Giro win. 5 mins back with 3 stages left etc. His TT yesterday was his best in many years and today he looked awesome on the really steep stuff which historically he has struggled on I think. I'm not that bothered that Froome lost a chunk, makes for some interest this next few days rather than a procession. I just find mr sticky bottle a bit unbelievable though.
He won that stage in the first week because of his descending and because he has the best kick out of the climbers in that group. He was well distanced on the ascent before the drop to the finish.
Outstanding stage. Oh and if Italians and Spaniards have "special" diets, what's in that Austrian's muesli?
[quote=slowpuncheur ]I see Nibali's Lazarus like form in the last few days of a Grand Tour has returned again
Is that a problem? If it was a thing, you do realise that it's not because he's going faster than he was, but that he's slowed down less than the others, whether because he's timed his peak that way or just recovering better. It's also the sort of thing a certain Chris Froome has been quite good at...
Though if you want to look at this race specifically, then Nibali has never been far off the pace and there were several other riders riding just as well or better than him today. Any time loss by Froome is either him just having a bad day, or simply that as good a job as he's done coming into the Vuelta on peak form, maybe that form is now fading. Or maybe the climb really didn't suit him.
I also note my comment above 8) - the race was far from over after yesterday.
awesome final climb, something the TdF has been missing, although the finish at the Altiport de Peyresourde-Balestas was steep, just not long enough to crack anyone significantly to make the race interesting
bertie proving again while he will be missed, would have loved to see him take that stage
It's interesting that even amongst the best climbers in the world, they can all excel/suffer depending on gradient. E.g. Contador seems to love it when it's steep - I guess it suits his stand-up and dance style. Vice versa for Froome who prefers to TT up gradual climbs from a seated position. Even Michel Angel-Lopez suffered compared to Bertie.
I'm not sure this means much for Froome's form - it was just a climb that didn't suit him. But the reduced time gap means the race is still on!
How different a climb is stage 20?
End isn't as brutal.
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It is longer, though.
Wow - a race broke out there for a bit. Awesome
So, do we think a bit of a rest day for Froome for the next couple of days and then smash it on the Angliru?
Nope. I reckon he'll lose a fair amount on Angliru too.
Will it be 1:17 though?
I think other teams will have to attack sky in a concerted effort over the next stages to avoid the train being at full power for the AngryLou (in accounts). Nice strong sidewind would help.
Well that's thrown up a bit of a storm. Contador, jeez you have to be impressed. I always take riders on face value and if current tests say he's clean, then i'm happy to respect him.
It is sad though that i was watching the Austrian and thinking "hell, is he on something?"
The GC battle was pretty intense, Froome seemed OK and smiley enough after it, but that was clearly a dark moment or two for him there.
Enjoying it !
Contador was very impressive yesterday, he just hoovered them up.
Would anyone actually be that impressed if Froome managed to hold on? The way (IMO) Sky ruined the TdF and effectively shut it down made his win inevitable; they appear to be trying to do the same but with less fire power?
People say this about Sky in Tours every year, but it's not their fault. That's their job, that's their reason for being, every year they do it with different guys that they've turned from excellent into exceptional, yet somehow it's their fault.
How about we blame Movistar/Trek/etc for not being good enough. Sky use minimally more budget than the other top 2-3 teams but destroy them season after season. That's not their fault though, they're just doing what they're best at.
Some teams focus and target the Classics, like the Bora squad etc, that's fine, Sky leave them to it mostly to an extent with a few exceptions with Kwia now being there.
minimal 😆
Surely this is good news for Froome, cam't have been keen on the pretty hard pace to start with. The break can set their own pace and the peloton will back off it allowing him to sit in the middle and defend.
I wonder if Froomes issue with super steep stuff is a problem with his oval rings. Either can't get one small enough for him to spin his way up or they have a "bio-mechanical" disadvantage over normal rings when the gradient really tips up. He's better than most on traditional alpine gradients 😕
Katusha first to attack
Nibbles cracks on the final climb, that bloody eurosport commentator though, if he had 9 arms he would give each team sky rider a reach around while pleasuring Portal with his tongue as Dave took from behind.
Klunk, I'd heard they can't get ovals small enough so he has to use those low-tech round ones for the uber steeps.
that bloody eurosport commentator though, if he had 9 arms he would give each team sky rider a reach around while pleasuring Portal with his tongue as Dave took from behind.
Don't think that's Kelly's style at all.
Would love Contador to go early, take the stage and get a 2min time gap to finish on the podium. Tomorrow looks like it should be a good stage.
Can Froome be beaten?
I'm still of the opinion he might be. Not likely, but...
Froome will take the stage tomorrow.
Bertie will have the ham, instead of the beef, sandwich for lunch. Will go early, blowup.
Aru will gurn and grind his way to second place to piss off his team management, who clearly hate him.
Nibbles will wheel suck, then whine.
Wood will take third.
Possibly.
Hope Bertie can wait until the final climb instead of going on the penultimate one yet again.
Say what you like about him, he has improved this race dramatically with his bamzai attacks.
Part of me wants to see him take the stage win tomorrow.
Yeah, despite his beefy past he's lit up this race and several others in the recent past and I'll miss him (or rather, his racing style)
Yeah, despite his beefy past he's lit up this race and several others in the recent past and I'll miss him (or rather, his racing style)
Agreed.
He's a doper. A cheat. He does race, though.
CaptainFlashheart - Member
He's a doper. A cheat. He does race, though.
Totally agree. Can't quite bring myself to like him due to the whole beefy thing, but he does like to race.
Find myself warming to Froome over the course of the Tour and Vuelta this year too - yes, he does have the number crunching and team full of would-be-GC-contenders-in-any-other-squad riders to drag him around, but can't deny he's a bloody competitive, honest, racer who hates to be beaten too...
Kind of hoping Bertie hits them at the bottom of the final climb tomorrow, gets a gap and then Froome goes all in to catch him but doesn't quite make it...
Massive day today, can Froome stay in touch on the steep stuff, its looked his weakness so far. Really looking forward to watching later.
