Author: cyclingmole

Sanremo > Cuneo 150.2km Some will say sprint, others will say break, it’s a well-designed stage at this point in a grand tour.  Weather Sunny and warm. The Climb 9.8km at 6.8% is a proper climb, despite its cat 3 rating. With a tailwind to help, this is way over the limit of all the...

Parma > Genova 204km The cat 3 climb at the end of the stage is a hard one, it’s too much for the sprinters in the race, that means we’re in for another edition of breakaway bingo. Only van der Poel could survive it from the GC group, but Alpecin-Fenix won’t be interested in chasing...

Santarcangelo di Romagna > Reggio Emilia 203.6km This stage was meant to be a quiet day for the GC riders, with a boring sprint stage anticipated, but all of that changed thanks to a late increase in the wind strength. Just yesterday, the prediction was for a quiet day, but tonight’s forecast will spread panic...

Pescara > Jesi 196.1km A stage with a very boring start, but the second half looks great. Constantly up and down, a route that will likely be too hard for many fast men, but not all. Will we see anyone try and control the early break? That’s the big question of the day. Weather Scorchio!...

Isernia > Blockhaus 191.2km The GC battle starts here. Make no mistake, this is an enormous day of cycling. We have five categorised climbs and 5015m of climbing, this will be a hugely significant day in the battle for the pink jersey. As we have a rest day on Monday, and the next GC day...

Napoli > Napoli 153.1km After today’s fun, Saturday brings another cracking looking stage. We have a lap circuit around the streets of Napoli, and it has a bit of everything. There might only be 2210m of climbing, but this is a hard day in the saddle. Weather Very pleasant.  Key Points This is the lap...

Diamante > Potenza 196.2km When I first looked at the Giro route, this was a stage that caught my eye. 196km in length, 4500m of climbing, and without a mountaintop finish. It’s a beautifully designed stage, one that’s certain to be for the breakaway, and it’s a day that many different types of riders will...

Palmi > Scalea 192km After today’s excitement, it’s back to a standard sprint stage, this time on the Italian mainland. Weather This is a great stage for echelons, it’s a shame nobody told the wind. It’s going to be a lovely day for the bunch. Finale I joke you not, the final turn is with...

Catania > Messina 173.8km The final stage in Sicily, one that should be for the fast men. There’s only 2000m of climbing, but over 1000m of that comes in the cat 2 climb, which crests with 100km to go. Will the climb be ridden at tempo? Or will someone look to up the pace? Weather...

Avola > Etna 171.7km The first of the mountain stages. The bunch have had a rest day to enable the race to move from Hungary to Sicily, and we’re now ready for two stages on the island. Mount Etna has become popular finish for the race, this is the 5th time we’ve had it since 2011,...