Vuelta 2018 Stage 10:Salamanca - Bermillo de Sayagor 177 km

neris

They said stage 2 was a flat stage so what is this??

University town Salamanca holds the start to the 10th stage in La Vuelta a España. At 177 kilometres, the route navigates towards the Portuguese border.

The route navigates the plateaus of northwestern Spain and, for Vuelta standards, the course is rather straightforward. The riders are racing around an altitude of approximately 800 metres for most of the time.

Departure place Salamanca is defined by its university, which dates back to 1218 and is the third-oldest in Europe. Firstly, the route takes the riders on a loop to the east and at kilometre 48 they once again move through Salamanca. The course parallels the south side of the River Tormes to the Portuguese border. A large part of the race runs along the reservoir behind the Almendra Dam, that backs up 2.5 billion cubic metres of water and several drowned villages.

At kilometre 135 the route drops down from 800 metres to 410 metres. The riders cross the Tormes Rivier before they have to go back up again, first with a 4,9 kilometres climb at 5.3%. Following a flat and a drop – both short – the ascent continues and after 7 kilometres at 2.2% the Alto la Venta de los Arribes is crested.

No descent at the top, the route is back at its regular altitude – 800 metres above sea level. Still around 20 kilometres to go in northeasterly direction before a likely sprint showdown in Bermillo de Sayago.

1 SIMON PHILIP YATES 71 MITCHELTON - SCOTT 36H 54' 52''
2 ALEJANDRO VALVERDE 88 MOVISTAR TEAM 36H 54' 53'-
3 NAIRO QUINTANA 81 MOVISTAR TEAM 36H 55' 06
4 EMANUEL BUCHMANN 42 BORA - HANSGROHE 36H 55' 08''
5 JON IZAGUIRRE INSAUSTI 4 BAHRAIN - MERIDA 36H 55' 09''
6 TONY GALLOPIN14 AG2R 36H 55' 16''+ 00H 00' 24'' B : 10'' -
7 MIGUEL ANGEL LOPEZ MORENO 21 ASTANA PRO TEAM 36H 55' 19''
8 RIGOBERTO URAN 111 TEAM EF EDUCATION FIRST - DRAPAC P/B CANNONDALE 36H 55' 24'' -
9 STEVEN KRUIJSWIJK 131 TEAM LOTTO NL - JUMBO 36H 55' 35''
10 GEORGE BENNETT 132 TEAM LOTTO NL - JUMBO 36H 55' 40

cunavalos

Strange profile but really shows how high the Meseta plateau is in Spain. Almost the entire stage takes place at an altitude comparable with the top of Kippure (757m) or Mount Leinster (795m)

Fair amount of punctures here towards the finale.

mirrormatrix

Can see on cyclingnews that there have been about 5 flats in the last few km. Any suggestions of foul play?