Vuelta 2017: Stage 18: Suances - Santo Toribio de Liébana 169KM *Spoilers*

blazing_saddles

Stage 18: Suances - Santo Toribio de Liébana 169KM

The two climbs preceding the finish are the same as in 2012, when the stage finished at......................Fuente Dé.

Map:


Profile:


Climbs:

Km 109.5 - Collada de Carmona.4.8 kilometre-long climb at 7.2% - category 3


Km 126.0 - Collada de Ozalba6 kilometre-long climb at 6.6% - category 3


Km 139.7 - Collada de la Hoz7 kilometre-long climb at 6% - category 2


Km 169.0 - Alto de Santo Toribio de Liébana3.2 kilometre-long climb at 6.4% - category 3


Final kms:

bm5

Contador took off in the Hermida desfiliado a couple of years ago.

tailwindhome

BM5 wrote:

Contador took off in the Hermida desfiliado a couple of years ago.

They'll still catch him.

mrb123

Had an excellent holiday in Potes in July. Lovely part of the world.

rick_chasey

What is it with Spanish parcours graphs and using comic sans?

ContrelaMontre

Everyone's getting excited about this stage and hoping that it could be an ambush day like Contador did to Purito, but I would love it if Sky turn the tables on their would be ambushers and Wout Poels attacks and gets himself into a podium position. Could turn the last few days into a tactical minefield.

larkim

If I were Nibali, after yesterday I would follow Froome all the way to the 11% section 1km from home and put in a very cheeky dig to see if he could hold on. If he loses another handful of seconds today on a steep section its going to keep those questions live about whether he can ride a steep pitch well enough.

Bo Duke

I have a question for you maestros:

Who red lined most in the combined TT stage 16 and yesterday's brutal stage 17?

Berti and Nibbes pushed the boat out on both days - have they tired themselves more than Froome?

Is it possible that in pulling those 42 seconds back on Froome after a massive TT than Nibbles struggled to get out of bed this morning? Maybe Froome will be in better shape, can Nibbles put in another massive performance, the third in a row to take time off Froome or will Froome steal a few back? Think of the combined effort of 16 and 17 and not just 17 in isolation.

Baldrick's cunning plan?

Richmond Racer 2

Someone's struggling with the idea that Froome simply struggled yday...

You want him to be human, right? Well yday he was just that. A human performance.

rick_chasey

Because Nibs is well known for folding when he gets a sniff of victory in week 3.

salsiccia1

Richmond Racer 2 wrote:

Someone's struggling with the idea that Froome simply struggled yday...

You want him to be human, right? Well yday he was just that. A human performance.

Yup. The big question is was it just a jour sans, or illness/exhaustion?

blazing_saddles

RichN95.

Salsiccia1 wrote:

Richmond Racer 2 wrote:

Someone's struggling with the idea that Froome simply struggled yday...

You want him to be human, right? Well yday he was just that. A human performance.

Yup. The big question is was it just a jour sans, or illness/exhaustion?

Daniel Friebe reckons he looked ill on the rest day and actually looked worse than yesterday.

rick_chasey

Salsiccia1 wrote:

Richmond Racer 2 wrote:

Someone's struggling with the idea that Froome simply struggled yday...

You want him to be human, right? Well yday he was just that. A human performance.

Yup. The big question is was it just a jour sans, or illness/exhaustion?

He's ill.

TheBigBean

Decent TT from a sick bloke if he's had it since the rest day.

I think Sky are too strong too mug. I can't see how Froome can be isolated.

salsiccia1

Rick Chasey wrote:

Salsiccia1 wrote:

Richmond Racer 2 wrote:

Someone's struggling with the idea that Froome simply struggled yday...

You want him to be human, right? Well yday he was just that. A human performance.

Yup. The big question is was it just a jour sans, or illness/exhaustion?

He's ill.

Confirmed?

rick_chasey

He couldn't have looked more like he had a cold on the rest day interview with Friebe had he tried.

bm5

MrB123 wrote:

Had an excellent holiday in Potes in July. Lovely part of the world.[/quote
Totally agree

gsk82

After the TT I thought that wasn't the kind of winning margin Froome would usually get over those guys. I hoped he was saving himself for yesterday, but he was obviously struggling. He didn't look great on Sierra Nevada either.

blazing_saddles

Rick Chasey wrote:

He couldn't have looked more like he had a cold on the rest day interview with Friebe had he tried.

It has to be a fair bet, given that nine riders that came out of the same bunch and finished ahead of him.
A couple OK, but nine strongly suggests all is not well.

Anyhows, we will see.

rick_chasey

gsk82 wrote:

After the TT I thought that wasn't the kind of winning margin Froome would usually get over those guys. I hoped he was saving himself for yesterday, but he was obviously struggling. He didn't look great on Sierra Nevada either.

Froome saying he might have gone too deep in the TT.


Maybe that brought on the illness.

Vino'sGhost

Rick Chasey wrote:

He couldn't have looked more like he had a cold on the rest day interview with Friebe had he tried.

Totally and he looked wasted at the end yesterday. Poss he's run himself into the ground. I recon its now or never for everyone else. if theyre able to make it hard all day and then burn him on all three climbs. TASTY!

mrb123

BM5 wrote:

MrB123 wrote:

Had an excellent holiday in Potes in July. Lovely part of the world.[/quote
Totally agree

We found a nice little bar with a terrace overlooking the river with a big outside flatscreen TV. Couldn't have worked out better. Out on the hills in the morning and then back mid-afternoon for a couple of cold Mahous watching the last hour or two of Le Tour.

blazing_saddles

Over 50kms in and as yet, no breakaway formed.

ContrelaMontre

Julian Alaphilippe, Matteo Trentin (Quick Step), Alessandro De Marchi (BMC), Magnus Cort Nielsen (Orica-Scott), Nelson Oliveira, Marc Soler (Movistar), Patrick Konrad (Bora-Hansgrohe), Clément Chevrier, Alexis Gougeard (AG2R-La Mondiale), Toms Skujins (Cannondale-Drapac), Antwan Tolhoek (LottoNL-Jumbo), Matej Mohoric (UAE Team Emirates), Alexey Lutsenko (Astana), Sander Armée (Lotto-Soudal), Giovanni Visconti (Bahrain-Merida), Jérémy Maison, Anthony Roux (FDJ), Stéphane Rossetto (Cofidis), Sergio Pardilla (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) and Aldemar Reyes (Manzana-Postobón) have already opened a 2'50" gap

blazing_saddles

Live now with 92.5kms to go.
The break have 8 minutes and the peloton look to have come to a complete stop.

DeVlaeminck

Just checked out his interviews after stage 16 and 17, there's nothing in them that suggests illness. That's not to say he isn't ill of course, exhaustion can bring on illness through weakening the immune system so it's not always an either / or answer illness or simply worn out.

larkim

He was a bit guarded after stage 17, but then I think that's entirely natural given the line of questioning is basically "are you feeling crap, will you lose by the end of next week". OTOH, if he's just had his "contador" day, it could well be back to business as usual for the rest of the week.

Vino'sGhost

Froome looks pretty good today. Looks like it was a blip to keep everyone else interested

rick_chasey

Vino'sGhost wrote:

Froome looks pretty good today. Looks like it was a blip to keep everyone else interested

How on earth can you tell?

blazing_saddles

13'-15" gap as the break are almost over the first climb.