The hills come alive this weekend in Wales as the 4th edition of Cymru Taith kicks off and riders from all over the world embark on what is definitely one of the most scenic journeys on the OCM calendar.
  
  Cymru Taith spans the better part of two days, with a large part of it spent winding through its famous hills. It is no doubt a challenging course, and widely believed to be one of the more technical tours around.
  
  The winner of this tour demands a certain respect from his peers, and this is readily given for the dragon jersey is not easily worn.
  
  The three stages of the tour will be keenly followed by not only the locals, but cycling fanatics from various countries. The hospitality shown by the Welsh hosts have become legendary and the towns that line the route will once again prepare for the deluge that will descend upon them soon. The tour is no only a boon to the riders, but to the local economy as well.
  
  Stage

1 kicks off in the North of Wales this Sunday. The sleepy town of Welshpool is just 4km from the Wales-England border and boasts some of the finest Georgian architecture to be found in the area. However, the riders won't have much time to admire the scenery for the first day's riding will see them head down to Bangor, Gwynedd, one of the smallest cities in Britain. It is a strange quirk that the 10,000 students at Bangor University form almost half of the city's population, and most of them will be out in force as the riders head for the finish line.
  
  There is not much time for a stopover however, as they will travel through the night by train down to the South of Wales. The dawn will see them contest a rigorous 35km timetrial around the city of Newport. The ride will lead the riders down along the River Usk before making a sharp turn at the Newport Docks and heading up towards St. Woolos Cathedral and the finish line.
  
  The riders will only get a little break to rest their

sore bodies though as they resume proceedings with Stage 3 in the late afternoon. This time they will be required to strike out further south for the capital, Cardiff. The testing 168km route will require an almost superhuman feat of endurance from the participants as the race leaders go for broke. The race route will see them enter largest city and most populous county of Wales before a zigzag route through the streets which ends in a final sprint that concludes at the steps of the Cardiff City Hall.
  
  Bertus Ratten of Rode Stier will not be back to defend his title, but last year's runner up Frank van Galen from Il Grillo leads a pack of riders eager to claim the outright title this season. His task won't be easy though as Team Dinmore's Ramiro Monteros has been having a stellar season to date and could prove more than a handful.
  
  They say the dragon jersey goes not to the best rider, but to the bravest. The 20 teams and 120 riders will be wise to heed those words.