Giro 2024:- Stage 1: Venaria Reale – Torino, 140.0km ***Spoilers***

blazing_saddles
blazing_saddles Posts: 22,730

Stage 1: Venaria Reale – Torino, 140.0km

4th May.

Start Time: 12-50BST.

The Giro dÍtalia opens with a 143 kilometres long race featuring five climbs. Both start and finish are in Turin, while the finale is a technical downhill from the short and sharp San Vito climb. The riders tackle over 1,800 meters of climbing in the opening stage. It’s the second Grande Partenza in Turin in four years time. In 2021, the pink caravan set off from fourth largest city in Italy with an individual time trial. Filippo Ganna took the first maglia rosa in that edition ahead of Edoardo Affini and Tobias Foss.

map

climb detail

final kilometres

Turin and Piedmont – every journey is an event… 365 days a year!


In Piedmont, you are spoiled for choice when it comes to art and architecture, history and culture, legend and tradition, and natural beauty. Turin is the home of the Royal House of Savoy.

Turin is also the perfect departure point for exploring Piedmont, a great destination for those in search of a holiday that satisfies all the senses: the area’s boundless natural, artistic and architectural beauty is joined by a very rich variety of the finest foods, such as truffles, rice and chocolate, and its internationally acclaimed wines. The vineyard landscapes of Langhe, Roero and Monferrato offer some of Piedmont’s most spectacular scenery, where nature’s beauty comes together with the skilful work carried out by man over the centuries to create products of excellence, such as the area’s most prestigious wines, Barolo, Nebbiolo and Barbaresco.





Gianduja

Gianduja is a sweet creamy spread made of chocolate and ground hazelnuts. It was invented in Turin in the 19th century as a means of stretching the limited amount of chocolate available due to an imposed shortage of cocoa supplies in Italy. Since the area of Piedmont has always been rich in high-quality hazelnuts due to the region's indigenous hazelnut trees, a chocolatier named Michele Prochet created the first gianduja by extending the insufficient amount of chocolate with the region's exceptional hazelnuts.



"Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
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Comments

  • Mad_Malx
    Mad_Malx Posts: 5,183

    Lovely starter Blazing - raised my enthusiasm considerably.

    I'd assumed st1 would be a dull TT. This looks has the potential to be an interesting stage.

  • kingstongraham
    kingstongraham Posts: 28,199

    If pog wants it, surely that finale is right up his street. 3km @ 10% unclassified? Yes please. Hello Giro.

  • jimmyjams
    jimmyjams Posts: 781

    As well as Gianduja, Turin is the 'birthplace' of Grissini, Zabaglione and Vermouth.

    And also of Bagna Cauda - anyone who, in the 1990s, followed Rick Stein's TV programmes about Italian cooking probably has the appropriate dish for Bagna Cauda (possibly now in the attic).

    Blazing's church picture (first photo above) is the Sanctuary of Oropa, so belongs to Sunday, stage 2 !

    Instead, for Saturday/stage 1, pictured below is the Basilica di Superga, which is at the top of the Superga climb, km 79.


    The descent from Superga, although not long, has short sections (250 m) which are pretty steep (12-18%), with flatter sections in between, and about 7-8 pretty sharp turns. So is 'technical'.

  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,730
    edited May 3

    Thanks for picking up the baton, I wasn't very subtle about throwing down. I am relying on yours and others input, as I am trying to knock out as many of these stage threads as possible, before I swap my keyboard for (hopefully) a sunbed.

    So I am looking to you to "feed" the forum in weeks two and three.😉

    You are quite correct. In fact there are so many enticing foods produced, that I had to be selective. As for Oropa, there are so many fabulous photos, that I deliberately plagiarized the Giro website, which added Piedmont to stage 1, along with that picture!

    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • ddraver
    ddraver Posts: 26,707
    edited May 4

    wrong thread

    We're in danger of confusing passion with incompetence
    - @ddraver
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,909

    They are pedalling

    "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 pm
  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,730

    For once we are going to get a protracted battle to get in the break. Lots of WT who haven’t a GC rider mixing it with the wildcards.

    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,730

    UAE signaling Pogacar’s intent. 6 riders allowed up the road. Others have continued to try, but have been immediately marked out.

    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,909

    UAE riding

    "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 pm
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,660
  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,730

    LOL

    Eurosport tagging everyone other than Pogacar as outsiders.

    They ain’t wrong.

    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,529

    You’d never guess Franco Pellizotti was Italian 😂 He sounded and looked like he should be an extra in the Super Mario movie in his interview.

  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,730

    I am really enjoying the relax, almost giggle free commentary. It's so nice to listen to a varied and informative conversation about the actual race.

    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,730

    Groups all over the place. Lots of riders dropped before the start of the second cat climb.

    Now we’ve had our first crash involving Gesink and Pozzovivo.

    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,730

    Arensman in difficulty

    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,529

    Why do Ineos have the number 1 jersey? Obviously Roglic isn’t there but doesn’t it usually stay with the winner’s team?

  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,529

    Some podium outsiders getting dropped on the first serious climb.

  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,529

    My pick now dropped

  • JimD666
    JimD666 Posts: 2,293

    For the most unpredictable grand tour, everyone's answer to who is going to win is very predictable! 😏

  • kingstongraham
    kingstongraham Posts: 28,199

    For a supposed second string uae support team, they going good so far

  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,909

    Pretty brutal

    "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 pm
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,909

    Bardet looking old

    "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 pm
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,909

    Very hard pace

    "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 pm
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,909

    Where's lupowitz

    "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 pm
  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,730

    Bardet follows Arensman out the rear. The latter is now 50 seconds down.

    Alaphilippe sitting on Pogacar’s wheel….

    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,529

    Bardet dropped, Arensman dropped, Woods dropped, one of the Parrot Pant brothers dropped, Plapp dropped.

  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,529

    Meanwhile Ganna is sitting in the middle of what’s left

  • Dorset_Boy
    Dorset_Boy Posts: 7,595

    UAE destroying everyone in the mind games on the first proper climb.

  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,529

    I’m not sure I agree the GC hopes of those dropped are over though. With there not being any really strong podium candidates outside Pog it feels like a good day somewhere else in the race could see them back up there.

  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,730

    I can’t believe Ganna is still there, with all those so called contenders dropped.

    It will be a laugh if he or Alaphilippe beat Pog in the sprint for Pink.

    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.