En krävande avslutningsmil i afton:
http://www.c-cycling.com/sites/vuelta14/stage11.html
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The 9.9 km towards the top of Alto de San Miguel de Aralar have an average gradient of 7.5 %. Several times the riders will have to overcome parts of over 10 %. One of the steepest parts (of 14 %) comes in a hair-pin corner with about 2.6 km to go. On the final kilometer, the climb evens out a bit. After struggling with the poor road conditions all the way up, the riders will get a bit of relief, as the final 300 meters take place on an asphalt road in much better conditions.
Alto de San Miguel de Aralar has never been used in professional cycling before. Seeing the road, you will understand why. Due to the poor road conditions, the city council has decided that no vehicle (bike, scooter, car etc.) is allowed to ride faster than 20 km/h up the climb. The cement surface is in very bad shape. It’s bumpy to ride on and there are numerous big cracks in the road. There have already been several accidents involving cycling tourists. Hopefully, there won’t be any misfortunes today.
Contador har imponerat och torde vara favorit. Av outsiders nämner Mikkel Condé bl.a. Aru och Esteban Chaves. Jag hoppas Quintana inte lider av sviterna från gårdagens krasch, men det är väl lite mycket begärt att han ska satsa här. Froome går knappast att räkna bort. Det vore kul om Rodriguez och Valverde kunde utmana Contador:
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Joaquim ‘Purito’ Rodriguez did very well in the time trial, losing only 1:10 min to Alberto Contador. Purito is in great shape right now and today’s final climb suits him perfectly. If he manages to stay close to Contador, he should be able to outsprint him on the line. He’s 1:37 min down in the general classification, meaning Contador may not chase him down immediately if he attacks near the top. Of course, Contador won’t let Purito get a big gap but he could look to riders like Alejandro Valverde or Chris Froome to close the gap.
As the climb evens out a bit near the top, Alejandro Valverde might have a chance of winning this stage in a sprint. As explained numerous times, Valverde always manages to find extra energy when he sees the finishing line. Nobody in the professional peloton has the same killer instinct as him. You may remember how Valverde and Purito caught Contador on Collada De La Gallina in 2012. This could happen again today…
