Cycling Weekly | August 22, 2019 | 29

STAGES

A lthough a new summit finish for the Vuelta a España, the
Vuelta a Asturias races these roads almost every spring. A nd

for the last two editions, R ichard Carapaz has made the stage

that climbs around Acebo his own, winning the stage and

building overall victory here. Likewise Hugh Carthy in 2016.

On a circuitous route that passes through the town of

Cangas del Narcea three times, the peloton does an early

variation of the finishing climb, before sloping off for a couple

more first cats in the region.

A fter a bit of valley riding, the first of these is the Puerto del

Connio at 1, 315m. Then it ’s the Puerto del Pozo de las Mujeres

Muertas, a longish, unsteady climb, with a name that translates

to 'pass of the well of the dead women'. Charming, you may

think, but the etymology is thought to be a gross corruption of

a reference to the area’s history of mineral extraction.

A fter the day ’s onslaught of climbing, however, the

Sanctuary at Acebo, will provide exactly that to the riders.

Of course, as many good Spanish santuarios do, it sits on the

summit of a mighty mountain that needs conquering first.

“The first half of this climb is going to be really hard,” says

Oli Cookson, DS at Ineos. “A nd it ’s another 3, 300m day with

three cat ones beforehand.

“The Vuelta is doing a really good job with their course

planning,” he adds. “The way they do shorter, more intense

stages, it makes for an exciting race.”

15

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 8

TINEO>SANTUARIO DEL ACEBO |

154 .4KM | MOUNTAIN

Assuming all the sprinters haven’t packed up and gone
home in a massive huff, a bunch gallop in Oviedo looks
the most likely outcome. While the final kilometre slopes
gently to the line, there is nothing here to cause any undue
difficulty for the big powerful finishers.
There are a few little ups and downs along the way, but
that ’s just the result of the route following Spain’s northern
coastline as it makes a beeline west towards the mountains
of Asturias where the following two stages take place.
Regardless, sprint or break, for GC contenders this is a
day off.

14

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 7

SAN VICENTE DE LA

BARQUERA>OVIEDO |

188 KM | FLAT

A chance for the fastmen to lay down some power

Proven mountain man Simon Yates

would relish today's challenge