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Looking for a bit of advice.
La Vuelta passes quite close to home on Saturday and I have a small dilema, to go or not?
The finish is [url= http://www.salite.ch/mundo.asp?mappa=http://www.viamichelin.fr/viamichelin/ita/dyn/controller/Cartes-plans?mapId=-tq85843a1r71md&dx=485&dy=330&empriseW=970&empriseH=661 ]La Bola del Mundo.[/url]
Do I...
a)Go early, park up and hang around all day and take photos when they finally arrive?
b)Leave the car at the bottom of the hill and cycle up the 20 odd kms? (no camera)
c)Cycle from home, 85kms round trip? (no camera)
d)Stay at home, go for a ride in the morning and watch it on tv?
e)..........?
Looks like rain on Sat, so sitting on a 2,000m hill in lycra is not too attractive.
It's going to be crowded and I'm not used to mixing with the proles.
Has anyone done a mountain stage?
Is it worth it or is it a PITA?
Do it. (go there that is)
Last time I saw La Vuelta was Navacerrada in 2003, it was great to be there about an hour before the riders came through - it's awe inspiring to see the effort on their faces and to see them hooning up the climbs. When I went it was in the third week of the race and at the end of the season, so the aggression still being applied was amazing to see. As a bonus, we saw the incident that led to Manolo Saiz being chucked off the race for trying to force a tv moto of the road!
Of course you will see the race better on tv, but you'll get a totally different experience going to the roadside. You can always watch the tv later.
Ok, so that's the why.. the how? err, dunno, one thing I would say is that it might not be that busy as La Vuelta isn't as packed out as the tour de France is. So maybe you don't have to get there too early and do a) Mind you, it might still be a few too many proles for a Don, I don't know your tolerance levels. The fans were great imho. Quite the family event, I liked the lagered up guys with their regional flags - for the most part they seem like happy drunks in Spain.
So, worth it in my opinion, so very worth it. Put your pics up here if you do go.
one thing I would say is that it might not be that busy as La Vuelta isn't as packed out as the tour de France is.
Last time it finished in Puerto Navacerrada the guardia civil had closed the road at Cotos and I had to flash my pass to get through, it was heaving. Otherwise an 8km walk 😯 .
I think I'll go and have a mooch, at least there's some bars up there and hope the rain holds off...
Cheers.
hmm, yes, the ever cheery guardia civil.. if it is raining they'll have one less reason to smile. Looks like a good spot to see the race - have fun mooching.
As requested, a couple of photos. In the end I decided to go, and I've been left with a simple question. What other sport gets this type of support? I left home at 11am and drove the 40km to the stage, the guardia civil had blocked the entrance and I had to park 11km away, the walk began. Two hours later I arrived at the point I wanted and there were already several thousand people milling around. There was plenty of time between arriving and the reace passing to chat with people and say hello to a few friends who were either working or riding up and down. The race, Ezequiel Mosquera came through about half an hour before Cav in the peloton, he's not a happy climber, is he? And now back home. Four hours+ walking to spend 30 mins watching cycling! And I wasn't the only one who did this treck. Will I go next year? Yes. Will I go with the proles? No!
Some photos.
[url= http://simoncarter.zenfolio.com/p351942746/h85a74ec#h85a74ec ]Ezequiel Mosquera
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Vincenzo Nibali
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Mark Cavendish (stage right)
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We're going where?
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Excellent pics you got there. I watched the end of that stage on tv. Was the climb as steep as it looked?
Was the climb as steep as it looked?
Oh yes! The first km is about 20% and there's a section about 1km from the finish which is about the same. The middle section is easy. 😯