2016 Vuelta a España preview: the course
Ten summit or uphill finishes
On Saturday the third and final Grand Tour of the year starts with a team time trail as the 71st Vuelta a España gets underway in Balneirio Laias. It is a climber’s course of 10 summit or uphill finishes, with most of the heavy lifting in the first 2/3 of the race, and an individual time trial on the third to last day that will go a long way to determine the final GC.
After the 27.8-km team time trail on day one, the first uphill finish, a Cat. 3, comes on Stage 3, with a tougher Cat. 2 one the next day. After three more hilly day, Stage 8 sees a Cat. 1 summit finish following 170-km of steady 1% uphill drag.
The last day before the first rest day ends on the brutal Especial climb of Lagos de Covadonga, 12.2-km of 7.2% including the infamous La Huesera stretch of 13%.
The queen stage is Stage 14 in the Pyrenees, featuring four evenly spaced climbs in France including the Soudet and Marie Blanc, with the climax on the fearsome Aubisque.
Stage 14 of @lavuelta looks like fun. #Climbing #LaVuelta pic.twitter.com/8Q2K40uMc0
— Ellis Lane (@EllisLane3) July 21, 2016
Two more Cat. 1 summit finishes await the riders before the determining individual time trial: 37 flat kilometres from Xàbia to Galt.
The penultimate stage is another climb-fest, giving the riders who lost time the day before a last chance to move up in the GC.
E20 #LV2016: 184 km con final en el Alto de Aitana.
¡Nuestro más sincero agradecimiento al @EjercitoAire! pic.twitter.com/KZnZYHzUNN— La Vuelta (@lavuelta) July 4, 2016
Finally, on September 11, there’s a procession into Madrid, so the neglected sprinters can have their day.
