28 | August 22, 2019 | Cycling Weekly

Aqua Blue’s Stefan Denifl survived the early break when the

Vuelta first visited this old goat track finish two years ago. But

since his covert preparations were found out by Operation

Aderlass last winter, cycling’s revisionists see the likes of

Contador, Lopez and Nibali at the top of the stage’s results.

Tellingly it was a day that put eventual overall winner Chris

Froome on the backfoot — and that stage didn’t have quite the

same sawtooth profile this one carries.

In total there are seven classified climbs on this haul from

Athletic Bilbao’s football stadium into the wilds of Cantabria,

where all there is at the finish line is a monument to the local

cattle breed (what more do you want?). While none of these

warm-up ascents are very high, the climbing adds up, and it

will be a tricky stage for anyone to control.

Starting in the village of Bustablado, where dogs run wild

in the street, the final 7km climb is an inconsistently pitched,

variably surfaced lane that plays its own freeform jazz with the

contours. Rolling across meadows, rumbling over cattle grids,

cutting through the limestone outcrops, it winds all over the

hillside like the Yorkshire Dales on steroids. At its steepest,

gradients reach 26 per cent. There are sections where the road

is scored for traction and ladders up in hairpins. Adding to the

disorientation, there’s also the odd downslope thrown in.

“It ’s ridiculously steep at the bottom,” says Ineos DS Oli

Cookson “A nd narrow too. There are places to recover in

between the steep bits but the guys at the front will get to

recover more than those trying to chase up to them.”

Cookson points out that a lot of energy will be wasted if

riders are not well positioned at the pinch point in the village at

the bottom.

“ We’ll use Street View, videos of previous races and

VeloViewer profiles to brief the riders in advance,” he says.

“ You need to get your gearing right too. We’ll be using a 36

or 34 chainring and a 32 sprocket at the back. I don’t think

there’ll be anyone cruising up this climb.”

VUELTA A ESPANA

13

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 6

BILBAO>LOS MACHUCOS. MONUMENTO

VACA PASIEGA | 16 6 .4KM | MOUNTAIN

A convoluted trail of three short, sharp third-category climbs

around the suburbs, industrial estates and wooded hills of

Bilbao will see the finale of stage 12 play out. The A lto El

Vivero was the launchpad for Igor A nton’s win in the city in

2011 but, after it failed to prevent a group sprint in 2016, it ’s

relegated to the penultimate ascent this time round. The 5k m

A lto de A rraiz takes on the role of final climb.

Typical Basque Country terrain, this is the kind of stage

that suits a punchy opportunistic climber. But GC contenders

will need to be on their toes.

12

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 5

CIRCUITO DE

NAVARRA>BI LBAO |

171.4KM | HILLY

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The road to Los Machucos

is a bumpy one...