Today, it’s time for the king stage. With 181 km, it’s by far the longest stage in this tour, and also definitely the stage in which you can lose most time if your legs aren’t okay. The province is crossed from the west to the east, travelling almost from the sea into the mighty Andes Mountains. Already from the start in La Ligua, roads are rising slightly, but it never gets steep until 50 kilometres have been travelled....
Read moreToday, it’s time for the king stage. With 181 km, it’s by far the longest stage in this tour, and also definitely the stage in which you can lose most time if your legs aren’t okay. The province is crossed from the west to the east, travelling almost from the sea into the mighty Andes Mountains. Already from the start in La Ligua, roads are rising slightly, but it never gets steep until 50 kilometres have been travelled. From here, a long, but not so steep ascent to Las Minillas starts, arriving at the top of this climb after 20 km at 4%. An easy descent follows, after which the roads are rising once again very slowly, at the same time coming closer and closer to the Andes.
The small town of Rio Blanco marks the beginning of the great decision maker in this tour: 26 kilometres of climbing, all the way upwards to a dazzling height of almost 2900 metres. Only those who are used to these heights will be able to fight for it. Lucky for the riders, it’s quite a regular climb, with percentages constantly somewhere between the 5 and 8%. There are some steeper parts, but they are pretty rare. It’s definitely the length which is making this climb so difficult. On the finish in Portillo, big differences are expected between the GC-contenders. However, with tomorrow’s stage to come, nothing has been decided yet, although the rough shape of the final classification might be clear yet.
