The 100th Giro d'Italia

[Gen]

Seems like the peloton is pushing the pace at +-50km/h at the moment

A day like today really needs live coverage from km 0..I see coverage only after 12[emoji35]

 

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[Oxter]

SS feed only to start at 12h20, plenty of time for a 5 step plan. Step 1: find a tube of toothpaste, step 2: open lunch box to expose your sammie, step 3: add toothpaste to sammi, step 4:    , step 5: go home

[EmptyB]

How am I going to wangle it so I can watch..mmm..should I start sneezing now and cancel the hockey match..or would puking be more believable. ..

 

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Force a puke, I'm almost done renewing my drivers license (enough to make me puke) then it's home to watch!!!

[Pure Savage]

The unsleeved:

 

 

The sleeved: 

Apparently they said they were doing a shoot for their sponsors winter catalogue...

[Pure Savage]

What ever happened to Warren Barguil?

As a frecnhy, are they not taking him to TDF?

[Gen]

Force a puke, I'm almost done renewing my drivers license (enough to make me puke) then it's home to watch!!!

Aaah so we can count on you for updates[emoji12]

 

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['Dale]

Looks like everyone hates Quintana all of a sudden...

 

Not too long ago everyone loved the little smurf.

He's not a spiritual leader

He chased bonus secs even after the maglia rosa paused the race

Competitive he is

 

I'm behind the grimpeur with the stoic face

 

Whoever is worthy will wear pink in Milan

[Patchelicious]

Apparently they said they were doing a shoot for their sponsors winter catalogue...

Such a PureSavage thing to do.

[Patchelicious]

He's not a spiritual leader

He chased bonus secs even after the maglia rosa paused the race

Competitive he is

 

I'm behind the grimpeur with the stoic face

 

Whoever is worthy will wear pink in Milan

 

Yoda, please give 'Dale his account back!!

[EmptyB]

Aaah so we can count on you for updates[emoji12]

 

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Yup but I PVR it and start watching about 30 mins later so I can fast forward all the Cecil Nurse and Cyclelab adverts ????

 

Delayed live viewing....

['Dale]

Aaaw another tribute to Scarponi

 

 

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That is stunning ⭐️

[Gen]

25km in and all together. . They aren't letting anyone go yet.

 

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[Pure Savage]

And we have an attack and it looks like a break has begun to form. Just three riders, with Samoilau, Teklehaimanot and Foliforov going clear. They have 19 seconds on the bunch after around 27km of racing. 

[Cav']

16th stage of the Giro d'Italia Preview

 

A surprisingly hard 15th stage allowed Nairo Quintana to score some unexpected bonus seconds and thus get a little moral reward before the most important test. After Monday's rest day, the peloton is about to hit the Stelvio Pass and the feared Mortirolo, thus offering a brutal route, the perfect terrain to finally try and break Tom Dumoulin. 

 

The route

In recent years, you have often had the race's queen stage on the Tuesday after the last day rest day. This is also the case in 2017, where on the last Tuesday of the race a completely brutal day is waiting, sending the field over two of Italy's most famous inclines in the heart of the Alps. Indeed, the long, exuberant stage does not offer a mountain top finish, but one pass through the feared, extremely steep Mortirolo and two passes through the Stelvio, among the highest of Italy's mountains, the pure climbers could not have wanted better terrain for to create time differences. This is just the beginning of a brutal last week, but there is no doubt: The 16th stage will give a clear answer to who can win this year's Giro d'Italia.

 

Not only is the terrain challenging, the stage is also very long. Thus, a total of 222 km must be traveled between Rovetta and Bormio, located in the middle of the Alps. The riders will enjoy the start, where a slight downhill leads south-east into the valley, turning towards the northeast and continuing through flat terrain to the first admired sprint coming after 59.9 km. After that, hell breaks loose when leaving the valley to climb up the dreaded Mortirolo. This time, however, it has to be tackled from the southern side, which was last done in 1990, and it is therefore not as difficult as on the recent visits. In total it rises by 7.6% over 12.8 km, and most of the time the climb is 7-9%. Towards the top a flatter piece is expected before the last 2.5 km rises by 9.6% on average. The mountain sprint comes after 84.5 km and is followed by a very heavy downhill to the north ending in Grosio. Here you continue to the north via the slightly rising valley road to Bormio, where you cross the finish line for the first time after 122.4 km.

 

The stage ends with a brutal 99.6 km long round and back, consisting essentially of two passages of the Stelvio climb from two different sides. Right from the start, you drive north up the mountain, rising by 7.1% on average over 21.7 km. This is a relatively regular increase with 7-9% growth rates only interrupted by a few easier pieces along the way, especially in the latter half. However, the last 3 km are steep with percentages of 8-11%. The top is the Cima Coppi of the year, the highest point of the race, and is located when at 78.5 km to go.

 

Then a very technical descent awaits the stage's northernmost point. From here, it begins to rise slightly to the Swiss border, passing by 183,3 km. Continue south to the bottom of the Stelvio climb again, which is known as the Umbrail Pass. Here the average percentage of climb over the 13.4 km is 8.4 and reaches a maximum of 12%. This is an extremely regular increase, with the climbing rate most of the time between 8 and 10%. The peak is reached after 202.5 km when you hit the first part of the route immediately south of the Stelvio and driving down to Bormio with the same road as you came up. It is another technical very hard descent, which ends only 1 km from the line where you make a U-turn. After that, several 90-degree turns await a very technical final before reaching the 100m long 7m stretch to the finish line.

 

 

http://static2.giroditalia.it/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/T16_Bormio_plan-2.jpg

 

http://static2.giroditalia.it/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/T16_Bormio_alt-3.jpg

 

http://static2.giroditalia.it/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/T16_S01_Mortirolo_web.jpg

 

http://static2.giroditalia.it/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/T16_S02_Stelvio_web.jpg

 

http://static2.giroditalia.it/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/T16_S03_Umbrail_web.jpg

 

http://static2.giroditalia.it/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/T16_Bormio_ARR-1.jpg

 

http://static2.giroditalia.it/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/T16_Bormio_ukm_web.jpg

 

The weather

In recent years, the giro has been hit by terrible weather when they have moved up to these heights, and since the presentation of the stage there has been anxiety for it to be effected entirety. Fortunately, the forecast for the coming week is absolutely perfect. On Tuesday there will be only a few clouds in the sky and the temperature in Bormio will be comfortable 21 degrees. There will be an easy to steady wind from the north, which gives headwinds on Mortirolo and the first pass of Stelvio as well as the downhill. Then turn around and have a tailwind on today's last mountain as well as the downhill to the finish. Only on the last 100m do you get side winds.

 

The favorites

When the Giro route was presented and riders were asked to point to the race's key stage, there was no disagreement. Each and every one referred to 16th stage as the race's most important and difficult one, and this is without reason. Not only is there a full length of 222 km of mountain bells, which you rarely see in grand tours. It also contains three of Italy's most difficult climbs, all of which are very long, giving rise to a huge number in altitude gain. In addition, it is possible to double the height of more than 2500 m, which always plays an important role, making it clear that it is one of the most difficult mountain stages in the Giro in recent years Well, in fact, since Angelo Zomegnan left the job as running director, and therefore he ceased designing avid routes with one absurd steep rise after another.

 

The only thing that might be missed is a mountainto finish.Of course, the descent can make a difference, and the distances may not be the same when you reach the bottom. However, it is only because the downhill is difficult. There is no end where a field is favored at the expense of a single rider. In addition, one might have liked Mortirolo to be captured from his difficult and legendary side.

 

The combination of a large number of altitude gain, many very long inclines and colossal length means that it is a completely different stage than we have previously been exposed to. This is a real mountain stage, which means that Tom Dumoulin will be tested for the first time.

 

It also means that Nairo Quintana has set this stage as his great opportunity to put Dumoulin into the wall. Should he take maximum advantage of the stage hardness, it is not possible to wait for the final passage of the Stelvio. The race has to be done right away, and he is not the only one to go about. Thus, Thibaut Pinot and Vincenzo Nibali have exactly the same interest, and therefore we are not in doubt that there is already pressure from Mortirolo. It is not unlikely that the favorites attack on today's first mountain, I expect the first attack for the at the Stelvio.

 

In a stage like this it is important to have people out front and therefore we expect a very aggressive start. Movistar, Trek, Bahrain and even Sunweb will all have people placed in the early breaks and therefore it is very likely that - as is often the case in mountain stages - a massive break with representation from almost all teams. Then I expect Movistar to take control and create the first split at Mortirolo, and then the battle between favorites will be begin early. 

 

It also makes me point to Nairo Quintana as the stage's favorite. Admittedly, the little Colombian showed unexpected weakness on the Oropa climb, but you can not really compare the explosive final last Saturday with what's expected on today. Quintana is far more comfortable on long hills, he loves long, exuberant stages with many mountains. The climbs here are much more comparable to Blockhaus, where after all Quintana proved to be the strongest climber of the race. Although he is clearly not in top form, history shows that he is at least one level above his rivals, and he should also be during this stage. I do not expect anyone to follow Quintana the last time over the Stelvio.

 

Two years ago, Mikel Landa won during the Vuelta after falling out of GC contention. He undoubtedly dreams of doing it again. After the crash at the Blockhaus stage, there has been some doubt as to whether he was in shape. Landa showed in 2015 that in his best days he belongs with the world's very best climbers, and he has shown that he can handle long, hard days like these. He may not have shown his ability to perform at these heights, and he may not be a clear favorite, but he has the great advantage in that his rivals do not care about him. I expect Landa to plan a big move and, with its current form, he is the man who can finish it.

 

All logic says this stage is too difficult for Tom Dumoulin. However, all logic also said that he would lose a lot of time at Blockhaus, that Quintana would hit him on Oropa. Over and over again, Dumoulin exceeded expectations. What goes against a stage victory is his great head start. Dumoulin will undoubtedly drive the stage defensively and with a certain margin of safety, avoiding going to the red zone. He can thus afford to give Quintana one minute to the last mountain, and he has shown he is chilled enough to let the Colombian go. On the other hand, he has also shown that he can easily drive him back, so Dumoulin has a good shot too.

 

Also, Ilnur Zakarin. There were many who were disappointed with the Russians performance in the first week, but everything indicates that he has timed his form to perfection. Thus he had an exceptionally quiet spring, and it all indicates that it was part of a conscious plan to ensure that he had form in the third week of the Giro. After the performance at Oropa, it is clear that he is close to 100%, so he is deadly. In 2015 and 2016 he put the biggest stars to the wall on the ranks in Romandia Rundt, and he also showed the class when he laid Rafal Majka to shame in last year's Tour, even though he was not in big form at the time. Zakarin is simply one of the world's best climbers and thus one of the great favorites for this stage.

 

Thibaut Pinot has been unstable in this race. However, it is not surprising that he had a problem with Oropa. The short, explosive increase was almost anti-pinot. On Tuesday he is in his terrain where many long climbs make it a hard, raging day. That's precisely what the Pinot's diesel engine prefers, and he has shown several times in this race that nothing is wrong with his shape. He was not far from following Quintana at Blockhaus, and his options at this stage should be even bigger. The biggest challenge for the Frenchman is to maintain a possible lead to the finish.

 

Vincenzo Nibali is clearly not 100%. Luckily, the Oropa stage ended as a bit of a downhill. Nibali is far better in the narrow mountains, and he is a champion when the stages become long and exuberant. The many downhill sections speak to his advantage and he is not afraid to put everything on a board with a big attack. Nibali is the man who can find a solution and create something when you least expect it, and he will certainly try during this stage.

 

 

[Gen]

Found a link.. they haven't crossed over live yet, doing a pre stage show atm..but I think they may have earlier coverage than some of the other sites...as it is a RAI feed.. so heads up it's in Italian

 

https://www.firstonetv.eu/Live/Italy/Rai-Sport-+-HD-27

 

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[Velouria]

This guy seems to be a character too.

 

Yup - quite a character:

 

 

And his teammates think so too: