Strade Bianche 2024 ***Spoilers***
I am not going to be investing so much time in starting major race threads, as this new format has limited my options.
This week is worthy, so we'll see how things go.
Rubbish graphics this year for Strade Bianche. Gone are the usual, 3 D images. Instead we get this:
technical info
The course is twisty and undulating, with no extended climbs but with quite a few punchy bits, especially on the unpaved sections of the route. There are roughly 71 km of gravel roads, across 15 sectors, twelve of which are shared with the Women Elite course. The race starts near the Stadium/Fortezza Medicea in Siena. The first undulating kilometers on tarmac lead to the 2.1 km-long gravel sector 1 at km 18, which is perfectly straight and slightly downhill. Sector 2 (5.8 km) is just a few kilometers away; this will be the first tricky bit of the race, with a short descent followed by a long climb featuring sections over 10%. Upon reaching Radi, the route takes in the third gravel sector (4.4 km long; namely the second part of the first gravel road stretch of the race’s first edition) shortly followed by sector 4 – named “La Piana” – one of the race’s classic gravel sectors (5.5 km in length, and featured in the course ever since the first edition) with no significant gradient, leading to Buonconvento. The Montalcino climb, the second ascent of the day (4 km at 5%), is just a few kilometers away. Sectors 5 (11.9 km) and 6 (8 km) begin just past Torrenieri, with only 1 km of tarmac in between. Both are hard, hilly and very punchy, with many challenging bends, climbs and descents. After the second pass through Buonconvento, the riders will reach the feed zone, located around Ponte d’Arbia. Shortly after, the route reaches Monteroni d’Arbia, which marks the beginning of sector 7 of San Martino in Grania (9.5 km) in the middle of the Crete Senesi. It’s a long sector marked by a sequence of gentle undulations in the first part, and ending with a twisting climb that leads back to paved road. Sector 8 begins in Ponte del Garbo (Asciano). At 11.5 km, it’s the hardest of the race, mostly uphill and marked by major slopes, especially near Monte Sante Marie, with steep gradients on both climbs and descents over short distances. Past Castelnuovo Berardenga there’s a very short, flat unpaved section (300 m) followed by the ninth dirt road sector, after Monteaperti. At only 800 m in length, it greets the riders with double-digit gradients. The route goes back on tarmac in Vico d’Arbia where the 30 km circuit begins. Past Pieve a Bozzone, sector 10 (2.4 km) comes next, on the climb toward Colle Pinzuto, with gradients peaking as high as 15%. After a few kilometers, the route features the eleventh sector, Le Tolfe, (1.1 km), marked by a fast-running descent followed by a very punchy climb (with a maximum gradient of 18%). Shortly after Le Tolfe, upon the first passage, the route takes a first-ever ride on the Strada del Castagno (12th sector, 1.3 km), which leads to some challenging passes on tarmac all the way to Pontignano, Ponte a Bozzone and San Giovanni a Cerreto, where we enter the 13th sector (Montechiaro 3.3 km), which was covered in the first editions of the race. The circuit ends at the end of this sector, in Vico d’Arbia. The sectors of Colle Pinzuto (14th) and Le Tolfe (15th) will be repeated before the route turns towards Siena with a little over 10 km left to the finish.
Final kilometers
The demanding final kilometers approach the city of Siena along wide and straight roads, connected by sweeping curves, initially downhill, and further on slightly uphill. With 2 km to go to the finish, the route takes the Via Esterna di Fontebranda; here the gradient touches 9%. The stone pavement begins 900 m before the finish line, just past the Fontebranda Gate. The gradient is over 10% until 500 m from the finish, reaching its steepest gradient of 16% along Via Santa Caterina. A sharp right-hand turn leads to Via delle Terme, and then to Via Banchi di Sotto. Starting 300 m to the finish onwards, the road is a slight, continuous ascent. With 150 m to go, a right turn leads into Via Rinaldini. The route enters the Piazza del Campo just 70 m from the finish line. The final 30 m descend at a gradient of 7% to the finish line, which is on level road.
Comments
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Puck Pieterse's Strade recon video
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Just noticed that she likes to hold the bars aft of the hoods while at tempo off the brakes. Thought it was just me.
The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
I am not sure. You have no chance.Veronese68 wrote:PB is the most sensible person on here.0 -
Watching the woman’s race and conditions are dry but overcast.
Not sure about the chances for rain, but it does look possible.
"Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.0 -
Race is decent for the women. Very active at 15km to go. Lots of riders making big digs buT it’s all pretty close together.
Borghiji, Vos, Vollering and one other are in a small group ahead but there’s not much gap, though Lidl look like they’re trying to shut the chase down.
scrap that it’s now a group of 7 at the front since I started writing.
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ELB and Kopecky now have a 14s lead over Kasia N and Vollering. 7.5km to go
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Kopecky did a lot of wheel sucking there ...but it's not against the rules.
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0 -
Fabulous TV shots of the winner crossing the line.
“New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!0 -
When the group got away with Kopecky and Vollering it was always odds on for a SD Worx win. As usual the other teams did all the pulling on the front to set up SD Worx for a 1-3 🙄
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UAE looking chilled as f
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0 -
Peeing down now.
Alaphilippe has climbed off.
"Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.0 -
Crashed or just not feeling it?
Napoleon, don't be jealous that I've been chatting online with babes all day. Besides, we both know that I'm training to be a cage fighter.0 -
Pog goes with 81km to go 😮
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Pog going super long 81k
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0 -
He’s left it late.😂
"Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.0 -
Off to secure his mis season transfer to Vini Fantini. The benefits in kind were too good to ignore.
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Cake is just weakness entering the body0 -
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Quinn Simmons on the deck...he's ok
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0 -
Do i need to start valuing podium places more? If I don't this race is pointless for the next 2 hours.
"Unfortunately these days a lot of people don’t understand the real quality of a bike" Ernesto Colnago0 -
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How long until people start paying him non-appearance money?
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Cake is just weakness entering the body0 -
He might crack spectacular
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0 -
They need to pay the other top riders to show up. This race has suffered from a poor start list the last couple of years despite the claims people make about how big a race it is. Where are van Aert, Roglic, van der Pole, Evenepoel?
"Unfortunately these days a lot of people don’t understand the real quality of a bike" Ernesto Colnago0 -
81km? That's Froome 2018 Giro territory. Spectacular if he pulls it off. Panache in spadefuls
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UAE in the paceline ......doing everyone's head in
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0 -
He doesn’t even look like he’s breathing hard.
Napoleon, don't be jealous that I've been chatting online with babes all day. Besides, we both know that I'm training to be a cage fighter.0 -
Visma doing nothing in the chase group
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Chase sits up
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0 -
He attacked just where he said he would in his pre-race interview!
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Racing for second with 60km still to ride
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Cosnefoy jumping out
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0
