La Vuelta Espana stage 15- ALCALÁ LA REAL - SIERRA NEVADA 129.4 kilometres

Daroxtar

This one's a biggie.

Only 129km long but packing a serious punch with close to 2800m climbing. There are 3 categorised climbs but the second two are back to back making essentially one monster with very little respite.

Alto de Hazallanas16.3 km@5.5% - category 1

Alto del Purche.8.5 km@8% - category 1

Sierra Nevada. Alto Hoya de la Mora. Monachil.19.3 km@5.6% - category H

Hazallanas is a very uneven climb with a downhill before kicking up to an average of 10% for 7km with maximum of 22%.
Purche and Sierra Nevada combined comes in just a few km shorter but same average gradient as the Telegraphe/Galibier.


The GC boys will be looking to take lumps out of each other and with it being a relatively short stage there should be plenty of action from the gun. Hazallanas is tough enough to cause problems before they even get to the last climb. This could be savage.

Paddy Power is giving
M A Lopez 5/2
Nibali 11/2
Bardet, Contador, Froome 6/1
Atapuma, Majka 12/1
Chaves 35/1
Aru 80/1

Darkglasses

Love the distance and profile of this stage - hope it will be another entertaining stage. The GC has been a foregone conclusion so far in fairness, but the racing so far has nonetheless been so much more entertaining than the TDF.

Eamonnator

In 2013, Chris Horner had a good day on some of today's climbs and secured his Vuelta win.

MPFGLB

Eamonnator wrote: »

In 2013, Chris Horner had a good day on some of today's climbs and secured his Vuelta win.

Finishing on Hazallanas

Today they go 2 mountain further !!!

retalivity

Please let froome have an off day/catch sky off guard and make the final week interesting?!

neris

retalivity wrote: »

Please let froome have an off day/catch sky off guard and make the final week interesting?!

Especially with TT on Tuesday. If nothing happens today to dent Froomes time next week will just be a procession like the TDF

Lusk_Doyle

Bardet or Rui Costa to take this one.

Inquitus

Full Gas from the end of the neutral section, no break as of yet, not for want of trying!

Darkglasses

Looks absolutely exhausting already

MPFGLB

Darkglasses wrote: »

Looks absolutely exhausting already

My God this Vuelta is so so hard ...every day racing flat out and such hard climbing even on the 'flat' stages

It could be a matter of who is still standing by Madrid

neris

That gradient looks savage

Itziger

Saying Roche is in trouble. Long way to go if he slips off the back now.

MPFGLB

Itziger wrote: »

Saying Roche is in trouble. Long way to go if he slips off the back now.

Yep....head dropped

mp31

what a descent.... smooth roads.. fast...wow!

About time yer man at the front (S.Armee) got some new bar tape - unless he has his lucky bar tape on for the race

fat bloke

Jeez. Once Contador retires they may as well take to turbo trainers for the Grand Tours in future.

velo.2010

Sky's blank cheque book make it impossible for anyone else. Marginal gains is a nonsense.

neris

The skybots with Froome are killing it

mp31

Lopez ... that lad has got some legs...the next Contador maybe?

py

What just happened Yates?

pelevin

God I hate Sky.

pelevin

py wrote: »

What just happened Yates?

He had nothing left!

robyntmorton

pelevin wrote: »

God I hate Sky.

I'm not so much hating Sky as i am hating Kirby's "Sky are God's gift to cycling" routine.

(That said, I'm not a fan of Sky)

pelevin

robyntmorton wrote: »

I'm not so much hating Sky as i am hating Kirby's "Sky are God's gift to cycling" routine.

(That said, I'm not a fan of Sky)

With me it's hatred of Sky. Froome on the radio, info back & forth on the numbers, domestiques negating everything in front of him . . . Yeah, I hate them.

They make me wish I wasn't watching.

Boscoirl

Today Is the first stage I have watched, feel like I wasted my afternoon

velo.2010

Contador blew his chance of a podium with that effort today.

Where did Lopez lose the time to Froome? Could have been a real danger had he been closer, notwithstanding the TT to come. He could easily put a couple of minutes into the other GC guys on the Angliru.

not sane

Big yawnfest.

mp31

pelevin wrote: »

With me it's hatred of Sky. Froome on the radio, info back & forth on the numbers, domestiques negating everything in front of him . . . Yeah, I hate them.

They make me wish I wasn't watching.

Isn't that what all teams are doing these days, using the tech and working the numbers. The difference with Sky is that they have the strongest team leading Froome up the mountains

buffalo

Kirby apologising for nationalistic coverage ...on behalf of Spain. No hint of shame.

Eamonnator

Poels is some boy. Finished in 8th place today, a handful of seconds behind Froome, having protected him all day.

Inquitus

Lopez is some boy by all accounts it was a headwind up the final climb and he did the vast majority of it on his own, putting time into everyone, head and shoulders the strongest climber at this race by some margin! Anyone know what his race schedule was like this year? is he fatigued like most of the rest or has he come here at the very peak of his powers due to a truncated season or whatever?

RobFowl

Sky are brutal, in every sense of the word.

Inquitus

RobFowl wrote: »

Sky are brutal, in every sense of the word.

I see Poels is also in the top 10 just despite his domestic duties!

not sane

The way I feel the sport of pro cycling just died today. Well Grand Tours anyway.

All My Stars Aligned

Lopez had me thinking back to the early 90's looking at him fly up those climes today. The speed at which he sought Yates was ridicules even given that Yates was cracking. And this after his performance yesterday. I'd love to see this time compared to previous years for that mountain.

MPFGLB

Lopez has been out some time after a crash ...so he is very fresh....but still a big talent

Poles is a great climber but next week he could lose a bucket load of time ....not very consistent


I think today stage was too hard and thus made most attacks ineffective

TheBlaaMan

All My Stars Aligned wrote: »

Lopez had me thinking back to the early 90's looking at him fly up those climes today. The speed at which he sought Yates was ridicules even given that Yates was cracking. And this after his performance yesterday. I'd love to see this time compared to previous years for that mountain.

Follow Ammattipyoraily of Mihai Cazacu on Twitter if you want daily climb times compared to previous years etc

https://twitter.com/ammattipyoraily
https://twitter.com/faustocoppi60

REBELSAFC

Did Roche just lose time to go stage hunting later or was he just fecked today

dastardly00

REBELSAFC wrote: »

Did Roche just lose time to go stage hunting later or was he just fecked today

The smart option would have been to take it 'easy' today.
Then along with taking it easy on the TT on Tuesday, he should have something in the legs to go stage hunting Wednesday through Friday. 3 chances. Saturday is the Angliru stage so I'd rule that out.

D9Male

You can rule out Los Machuchos, too.

Inquitus

D9Male wrote: »

You can rule out Los Machuchos, too.

Aye without any doubt, unless he's in the break and it's weak on climbers.

dastardly00

I am presuming he will be in the breakaways

D9Male

It would be a peculiar breakaway composition that allowed Roche a chance on Wednesday. Thursday and Friday suit him more, but I fear he is dog tired. Lots of riders have been sand bagging the past fortnight while Roche has been fighting for GC.

MPFGLB

Nico didnt feel well today ...was feeing ill on 1st climb but rallied later

And Los Machuchos does suit him .... its 7 Km long

But Bardet , Majka, both Yates in break maybe better to wait for stages 18 and 19

buffalo

REBELSAFC wrote: »

Did Roche just lose time to go stage hunting later or was he just fecked today

He was fecked: http://www.independent.ie/sport/other-sports/cycling/ill-have-to-change-my-goal-in-this-vuelta-to-a-stage-win-36096721.html

MPFGLB

I wonder why Roche has these days on long climbs where he loses the wheel of sprinters early on the stage and then rallies and rides well to the line


Happened before...can you just be ill for part of a stage ?

Can you feel so bad and then recover
Navarro is a good climber who couldnt get round him so his pace at the end must have been good...strange

Daroxtar

There's a section of Muchacos fir about 500m that's too narrow and too steep for anyone to pass. If the other teams work together they could block the road and launch someone off the front or isolate Froome from his team. Not very fair but not outside the rules.

Malari

Daroxtar wrote: »

There's a section of Muchacos fir about 500m that's too narrow and too steep for anyone to pass. If the other teams work together they could block the road and launch someone off the front or isolate Froome from his team. Not very fair but not outside the rules.

Each day while watching we come up with wilder ways that Froome and the Skybots could be vanquished.

It's really got so boring, with Contador (and His Nibs, occasionally) almost the only one willing to take the risk of attacking at all. Did anyone see the Orica Backstage Pass, where Chaves was joking-not-joking about Neil Stephens giving out to him for attacking and potentially losing his GC place? It's just a procession. They'd all rather hold on to their top 10 GC position than attempt to move up or get a stage win, and be bowled over by Sky and their spinning spider team leader who seems to have almost no visible tells. It's very negative.

neris

Any one know what nikki terpstra said or tweeted about the Colombian team that seems to have offended

TheBlaaMan

Dunno

Michael Rasmussen was tweeting about it but I didn't quite get the reference.......Terpstra posted an image on Instagram. Did one of the Columbian team have a security issue on a transfer flight? He seems to be suggesting something about a bomb...

https://twitter.com/MRasmussen1974/status/904572501220614144

Macy0161

All My Stars Aligned wrote: »

The speed at which he sought Yates was ridicules even given that Yates was cracking.

Yates also said he slowed up once he knew he was coming to try and go again when he came up, so relative speeds at the catch probably not a fair judge. Haven't looked at the times, but they were saying it was tailwind, at least when Nibali went.

Malari

Well it seems to imply that the Colombians are the reason for the additional security checks.