Vuelta a España - Stage 16 Preview

La Olmeda Museum

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Unipublic, the organisers of the Vuelta, took a brave step in including the Alto de l'Angliru in yesterday's Stage 15. While it's only been a part of the race since 1998, it's so steep and so difficult that it has already achieved the notoriety of the Mortirolo and Zoncolan and is even approaching the semi-mythical status of Mont Ventoux, the holiest mountain in cycling. As a result of that inclusion Stage 15 - though otherwise really rather non-descript - takes on the feel of a Queen Stage; and for those following it to avoid seeming like somewhat of an anti-climax the route planners will really need to have done their jobs well.

Unfortunately, Stage 16 seems a little bit of a let-down. Having said that, there are those out there who enjoy sprints and prefer to watch a plain stage - those people will probably be glad we're back to the flatlands today after the mountains of Asturias. However, the majority of fans - because cycling is a sport in which we love so much to see our heroes suffer - prefer the mountains; and while today has a couple of upward bits, from a climbing fan's point of view it all seems a little dull. In fact, the really testing mountains are all behind us now: there are some interesting Cat 1 and 2 climbs still to go in the coming days and a selection of respectable 3s and 4s all the way to Madrid, but the big ones have all been ridden.

Oh well. At least there's still lots to look at - and when we say lots, we really mean it on this stage.

A mosaic depicting a hunt, La Olmeda

They've certainly found a good start point - Villa Romana La Olmeda in Palencia was for many years the site of  chance discoveries of Roman artifacts, leading to an exploratory professional archaeological dig beginning in 1969. Yet although some of the artifacts found earlier were impressive, nobody was expecting what turned up 165cm under the present day surface - some of the most splendid and complete Roman mosaics ever found, not just outside Rome itself but anywhere in the world. Subsequent - and on-going - work has revealed the site to have been a village complete with villas, necropolis and a range of buildings, some remarkably well-preserved. During the last decade, a roof has been built over the village to protect the remains, now displayed in situ in an increasingly popular museum.

We leave La Olmeda via the PP-2420 running north-east towards Ganinas de la Vega, turning left at the intersection just before the village to head along the CL-615 to Saldaña, first passing by Lobera de la Vega. We turn right at the junction with the CL-624, head across the wide bridge into Saldaña and then turn right onto the P-240 which at first leads back in the direction we came. The neutral zone ends after 6.4km on a straight section of road around 0.5km from the town.

Abia de las Torres

The road is flat and largely straight until it veers slightly left to bypass Velillas del Duque after 5.1km; continuing past Quintanilla de Onsona, Villaproviano, Gozon de Ucieza (crossing another bridge shortly beyond the village) and Bahillo in a similar vein until we reach a T-junction with the P-236 23.2km into the race. We turn 90 degrees left, then 90 degrees right after approximately 60m onto what the Vuelta road book calls the P-245 but our maps say is a continuation of the P-240. The road passes Abia de las Torres, mentioned by Ptolemy - who knew it as Avia - as being an oppidum, a regional capital with defensive walls. Some remains of ancient defenses can still be seen at the site of what's left of the castle, most of it destroyed during the subsequent centuries and by the construction of the rather unattractive houses now occupying the top of the castle mound; but the Roman tombstone set into the wall of the church's porch is probably more worth a look (the stone, incidentally, was found in the town and incorporated into the church when it was built in the late 18th Century).

Osorno town hall

After another 5km, the route reaches Osorno la Mayor where the peloton come to a junction with the N-120 and turn left to head east towards Burgos. Osorno has taken over from Abia as the most important town in the area these days, though it would have been a busy place in Roman times too due to the presence of a garrison. Towns tended to spring up around garrisons, but to date no organised professional digs have been carried out here, so the Roman importance of Osorno is unknown. It has a very fine 17th Century town hall and a church, Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, begun in the 15th Century but incorporating many details from later dates. Nearby, the Yacimiento del Dolmen de la Velilla points to a local human society far predating even the Romans. As we travel around the south and eastern edges of the town, the road becomes the N-611.

Iglesia de la Asuncion. Melgar de Fernamental

We remain upon the N-611 until reaching a junction back onto the N-120 after 36.9km, turning right to head along the very straight, very flat route to Melgar de Fernamental. A crossing over the A-231 and a bridge leading into the city do little to break up the monotony - however, it's worthwhile (for those of us who have time to stop for a while at the end of the section, anyway), because Melgar is a fascinating place. For a start, its name is possibly of Hebrew origin, derived from the name for the sun god of ancient Ammon (though there are other, probably slightly more likely, explanations too; including one pointing to Celtic and Iberian roots). By the early 13th Century, the town belonged to Pedro Fernández de Villegas (hence "Fernamental") and began to grow and, unlike much of Spain, entered a period of great prosperity following the decline of the Moors. Many of the finest buildings in the region date from the centuries immediately after the establishment of the Catholic monarchy; including the Iglesia de la Asunción - though much of what we see today is from the 18th and 19th Centuries. Slightly later is the 16th Century town hall by an unknown architect of considerable skill. We enter the town across a bridge over the Canal de Castilla, the largest civil construction project ever undertaken in Spain at the time work began in the 18th Century and still among the largest today, then turn trhough sharp left and right bends to enter the Av. de Palencia. Since the road is one of the main routes into the town centre, there is a high likelihood of diesel spills, puncture-causing detritus and similar hazards here. After 0.5km, the race turns right and joins the Av. de Burgos, a continuation of the N-120, and leads out of town to the east. The route then turns south-east before curving around to cross the A-231, passing straight through a complex interchange and thus reducing the hazard of diesel spillages, before following alongside the motorway for a short while and heading arrow-straight to Padilla de Abajo.

Eermita Nuestra Senora del Torreon

Padilla, though a tiny community, is worth a brief visit in passing for the Roman milestones built into the wall around the entrance to the church - they're badly eroded these days, but the typically Latin carved lettering can still be seen. The solid-looking 13th Century Ermita Nuestra Señora del Torreón, nearby, should also be seen for its remarkably carved masonry; though the 12th Century carved Señora (actually the Virgin) cannot be seen, as she's been stolen.

Having reached Padilla, the N-120 veers away to the south-east, passing underneath the A-231 and becoming straight once again on the way to Villasandino, taking another bridge as the road curves north-east and once again follows the A-231. There's slightly difficult roundabout junction north of Olmillos de Sasomon, site of a castle that looks precisely how we all expect a medieval castle to look. However, as we look at it little sections which don't look quite right begin to catch the eyes - the turrets which, when we look closely, are not turrets at all but mere decoration; the walls don't have that same solid look that real castles have... in fact, it's a late 15th Century stately home designed to resemble a castle but not to perform the same function and anyone with even a passing knowledge of medieval warfare can see that it wouldn't have withstood a siege for five minutes. During the 20th Century, when the aristocracy began at last to relinquish some of their wealth to the starving masses, the castle fell on hard times and looked like it would rot away. Fortunately it was bought by a caring new owner in 2003 who has spent over three million euros restoring it so that it can now be run as a parador.

We cross the motorway again, following alongside for a little longer this time until we reach Villanueva de Argaño, 74km from the start of the race. We travel south of a steep slope almost 100m high stretching around to the north and ahead, almost a mesa; then through an 8km section without any villages en route to Las Quintanillas - it's an attractive town, the well-executed buildings of light-coloured stone achieving the look of a place far wealthier than it really is. The road bisects the village before turning south-east for Tardajos, another very pretty village that was inhabited for many years by some very ugly people, seeing fit to vote an openly fascist member of the far-right Democracia Nacional party onto its council several times. Less than 2km later, we arrive at Burgos.

Burgos

The race organisers have decided, for some reason, to make the route through Burgos very complicated; despite the fact that we've completely passed by a few towns in earlier stages that would seem far more suited to a quick tour. Having passed under the motorway one final time, we turn towards Villalonquéjar, an industrial area with many roundabouts making it potentially hazardous. According to the road book, this will lead us to the BU-600 - however, according to our maps there is no road of that name in Burgos. It does, however, lead to the BU-622. If we assume this to be the right road and follow directions by turning right onto it, we arrive at a roundabout located between the Calle de Valentín Niño, the most likely identity of the road book's Av. de Valentín Miño - there being no road in Burgos with that name, either - and the Carretera del Cementerio; which does exist and, as the road book warns us, grows narrower towards the eastern end, thus creating a hazard if the entire peloton try to get down it at the same time. We turn right at the roundabout at the end to travel along the Av.de Cantabria, meaning the book has named two roads correctly in a row, arriving shortly at the Plaza del Rey and turn left onto the Calle de Vitoria. This road is also called the N-1 and leads out of the city, heading to the feeding station 2.4km away.

Papamusca, the Flycatcher

While we wonder why the race needs to take such a convoluted route around this city when it's avoided so many others, we wouldn't want to suggest that it's not without it charms. In fact, it has many - one of the finest being the Catedral de Santa María; built in the 13th Century in the French Gothic style it looks, to North European eyes at least, far more how a cathedral should than any other we've seen so far in this race. Among the cathedral's many unique aspects are the Capilla del Santísimo Cristo de Burgos with a rather frighteningly lifelike Christ upon the cross which, according to legend, was found floating far out to sea before being brought here, his body covered in gory wounds and his modesty a little bizarrely preserved by a green silk skirt with lace trim. Less gruesome is Papamusca, the Flycatcher, an automaton by accident or design looking a lot like Mephistopheles. Forming part of a clock, each hour he raises his hand to sound a bell and opens and closes his mouth - this, presumably, having at some point resulted in the demise of a fly and the birth of the name. Nearby, another not so well-known automaton named Martinillo. Just west of the city is the 12th Century Monasterio de Santa María la Real de Las Huelgas. Still run by Cistercian monks, the monastery has a long tradition of providing shelter to any woman who requires it and maintains ten rooms so that such help can be provided.

Arco Santa Maria

There is a great deal of military and civil historical architecture within the city, too. The most important is surely the Arco de Santa María, one of the twelve medieval gates into the city, looking like it belongs in an Arts and Crafts period illustrated tale of King Arthur. It was built in the 14th and 15th Centuries, then completely remodelled during the 16th for no reason other than to make it look more the part of a great triumphal arch - an aim which anyone who sees it will have to agree was surpassed, for it's one of the most impressive sites in Northern Spain. High above the city atop a natural mound is the 9th Century Castillo, much remodelled during the 15th and 16th Centuries; though what we see today is only a tiny remnant of what was once a vast complex since medieval fortifications proved to be of little use against 19th Century explosives when Napoleon's forces blew it up in 1813. In addition, there are numerous palaces, some looking surprisingly Art Nouveau despite their 16th Century origins; many fine parks and squares; countless beautiful houses and a superb selection of theatres, concert halls, galleries and museums.

Oh, alright then - we do know why they took such a long way round the city: there's a lot of stuff worth seeing.

Homo antecessor

When we arrive at the interchange with the A-1, the race turns right and travels south to an interchange with the N-120 upon which, having negotiated the slip-road, it once again makes its way east and arrives almost immediately at Castañares - though an industrial area, the road bends only very slightly and as such there is little danger. An underpass takes us beneath the E-5 motorway and between Tomillares and Castrillo del Val, both strangely regimented places which from the air look as though they belong on a circuit board rather than in the Spanish landscape, then to Ibeas de Juarros. Nearby is the Sierra de Atapuerca where remarkable fossil discoveries of three species of hominids - including our own - have been made. The other two, Homo heidelbergensis and H. antecessor have been extinct for 250,000 years in the case of the former and a million years in the case of the latter, making this one of the earliest sites inhabited by what we would recognise as a form of human being anywhere in Europe. The town has a museum with exhibitions of finds and recreations of their lives.

On the eastern side of the town we reach a junction and turn right onto the BU-820, beginning the first intermediate sprint 120.2km from the start, then soon reaching Arlanzón with a tight right corner onto a narrow bridge. During the Middle Ages, Arlanzón was inhabited by Euskara-speaking Basques - the language has since died out in the area, but echoes still remain in place names and some local family names. Villasur de Herreros, home of what is probably the only museum in the world devoted to mining trains, lies a short way ahead with two sharp corners and another narrow bridge. The terrain it noticeably different after Villasur, having changed from the wide open fields that have characterised the stage so far to more rolling, wooded terrain.

Embalse de Uzquiza

A few kilometres later - and visible long before - we reach the 65m high dam wall of the Embalse de Úzquiza, named after one of the three villages flooded by it. Uzquiza was demolished before the valley was flooded, but pieces of tile and pottery can be found along the shores. The route heads around the northern side and through some of tight and potentially slippery bends among forest, before being joined from the south by the UP-820 - from this point, the road is known as the BU-813. It climbs 50m in the next kilometre, arriving at Alarcia after 136.2km from the start of the race. The highest point of the entire stage, at 1192m (using TeleAtlas altitude data), comes just beyond the village; from here onwards it's downhill almost all the way, but with nearly 70km still to go it's not time to sit up and freewheel just yet.

Pradoluengo

As we approach Valmala, around 5km from Alarcia, we come to a 90 degree left-hand bend followed by three tight, descending hairpins. The first, dropping 11m, is tightest; the second, dropping 14m, is steepest; the third, dropping 10m, is perhaps the most technical as a smaller road joins at the apex, this tending to result in mud, dust and gravel. The route passes trough the northernmost tip of Santa Cruz del Valle Urbión, taking in a sharp left followed by a sweeping right into a U-shaped bend 130m later. We soon arrive at Pradoluengo, 147.4km from the start, where the BU-813 becomes the BU-811 - or so the road book states, anyway; but it seems to depart somewhat from reality for a while again at this point as there is no BU-811 in the town. The route through is also unclear, but the BU-813 passes through along the Av. de Dionisio Roman before reaching a junction with the Carretera de Belorado (our next town), a road also known as the BU-847 or BU-V-8104, heading north and becoming the BU-811 after some kilometres north-west of Villagalijo. This still leaves the route through Pradoluengo unclear, but fortunately for the riders the way will be marked with the usual barricades and so on. From the point of view of those of us watching the race, a complex route would be better as it's very much the quintessential small Spanish town and well worth seeing for that reason.

Belorado (from SlowCamino, probably the best blog about
this part of the world)

The road to Belorado passes through green valleys before reaching Ezquerra, then follows the Rio Tiron past an attractive village named San Miguel de Pedroso, home to a convent from 759 CE until Desamortización, the long process beginning in the late 18th Century which saw the Spanish government confiscate a large percentage of property belonging to the Church. The race then enters open country, passing by wide fields before arriving at Belorado. Though the largest town we've seen since Burgos, Belorado retains a rural nature and, in parts, a distinctly medieval feel; it has a number of ancient buildings which are of great interest lining narrow, winding streets. It has the country's oldest documented fair, held annually since the 12th Century in what was once the Jewish Quarter (pictured), the right to hold one being awarded by Alfonso the Battler, king of Aragon. Two centuries later, the town supported Pedro the Cruel during his various wars; he showed another side to his personality in the great generosity with which he demonstrated his appreciation. Unfortunately for Belorado, he was eventually defeated by his enemies who punished the town and especially its Jewish population who eventually decided the time had come to depart for pastures new; the loss of them and their businesses adding to the woes of a town that was now in decline. There was once a castle here, but what's left of it is all but indistinguishable from the rocks upon which it stands to the east of the town.

Tormantos (from the village's website)

We enter Belorado along the Av. Campo de Deportes, crossing the N-120 by a little park to join the Calle Las Cercas. This leads us past the medieval arcades and around the town centre, turning right onto the Carretera de Haro which leads out of town and is known also as the BU-P-7101. The road is almost perfectly straight, running alongside a river for a short while and after 171.2km from the start enters the Comunidad de la Rioja - home of the famous wine. 13km after Belorado we come to Tormantos which, until recent years, hosted an annual reggae and ska music festival - rather an unexpected event in a little Spanish village of narrow streets and ancient buildings, but no doubt a valuable addition to the local culture until its demise in 2005 due to opposition from some of the villagers. There are three speed humps on the way through the village, then we're back out into the countryside.

Venus de Herramélluri 

The next town, Leiva, is 2km away to the east. It has a somewhat dilapidated fortified palace, believed to date from the 14th Century and apparently in need of urgent care. The road becomes the LR-200 as it enters the town, remaining such on the other side and on to Herramélluri - the name is believed to mean "burnt village," a reference to the destruction wreaked here and at Leiva by the Visigoths who razed to the ground many of the towns in the region following the fall of the Roman Empire - which the road book calls "Herramalluri." The Romans' presence here is well represented in the archaeological record - in addition to a cemetery and typically Roman road, a bronze figurine of Venus 20cm tall was discovered here and is now displayed in the Mmuseo de Logroño. The road narrows considerably as we enter the village and come to a junction where riders on the right of the peloton risk being forced onto the central island - always the ideal place for bits of broken glass, pieces of metal, sharp stones and a host of other tyre-penetrating goodies to collect. We turn left onto the Calle de las Eras, from which we'll hopefully just be able to glimpse the medieval bridge with its three arches, then leave along the LR-201.

Ermita de Nuestra Señora de Legarda-Ochanduri

Ochánduri passes by on the opposite side of the river, another town which it seems a pity to miss; not least of all in the hope that people watching might decide to visit the town and contribute to its economy, because the unfortunate inhabitants labour under the highest per capita debt anywhere in Spain. The route passes right by the Ermita de Nuestra Señora de Legarda-Ochanduri, a medieval chapel which, when constructed, stood at the heart of a long-vanished village. 5.5km later the race reaches Cuzcurrita de Río Tirón ("de" rather than "del" as it appears in the road book), a town that was fortified in the Middle Ages with defensive walls and a castle - the latter being rather ruined today by the addition of ugly modern windows in places no medieval castle would have windows, making it look like a boring social housing project with a castle keep poking out of the top. However, the town is attractive overall, the churches and chapels being of particular note. The bulk of the town lies on the opposite bank of the river, but the route passes through the small part on the southern bank and past some of the best buildings. There are three speed humps and the road narrows beyond the second turning on the left.

Tirgo, less than a kilometre away, is visible from Cuzcurrita. Tirgo's church, restored at various times in its history, has some very strange wall paintings and carvings. Among the characters depicted are a mermaid with two tails, two birds biting a tree, a woman breast-feeding two snakes, clawed demons with the faces of crocodiles...in other words, not the sort of thing usually found in a Catholic church. The architect's mindset can only be guessed at - but anyone who suspects he may have been a follower of some bizarre cult or merely fond of experimenting with the local mushrooms could be forgiven for thinking so. Having travelled south of the town centre, the route reaches a junction with the N-232 where the peloton will turn left and then, after the bridge, right 0.5km later onto what the road book says is the LR-209 but our maps call the LR-301. This leads 2.5km over the N-232 and on to the LR-202, where the race turns right towards Haro. The road is straight, wide, flat and leads directly into Anguciana.

Anguciana's most noticeable feature must be the 14th Century Torre Fuerte, built to control the nearby bridge and today looking a bit incongruous on a residential street. It was purchased by a Franciscan order in 1920 and housed a school, more recently passing back into private ownership. The race turns right in the centre of town, travels across the bridge onto the Calle de la Torre de Palacios and following through to the Av. Príncipe de Asturias - the location of the second intermediate sprint: it's straight and shouldn't cause any problems.

Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Vega - 10th Century,
despite appearances

We cross the AP-68 motorway and, after 197.2km, reach the outskirts of Haro. Having entered the city, the route turns left onto the snappily-named Av. de los Ingenieros del Ministerio Obras Públicas, over the bridge and along the Av. de la Costa del Vino (omitted by the roadbook) to the Av. de Vizcaya. A right turn carries the race onto the Av. de la Estación and back to the Av. de la Costa del Vino. Left leads to the roundabout, then onto the N-124 heading south. Having reached a large roundabout, the peloton turn sharply right to double back along the LR-111, soon coming to another roundabout and a left onto the Av. Miguel de Cervantes. Another roundabout comes after 0.3km, the race going straight on into the final 400m sprint to the finish at the sports ground 203.6km from the start.

Remains of the Roman castle, Haro

Haro was the first town in Spain to have electric street lights - but it has many more claims to fame and a wide selection of old stones to prove it. The earliest is the Roman castle, Castrum Bilibium, of which some traces remain. The first documents to mention the town come from the 11th Century - the first, dated 1040, lists possessions in the city donated by King García Sánchez III to his wife Estefanía de Foix; the second, dated 1063, lists the Jews living in the city. Another charter from the 13th Century mentions the Jewish population again - but, as a contrast to the violent antisemitism found throughout Europe in the middle ages, it's positive: Alfonso VIII of Castile placed the Castillo de la Mota under their care, laving them entirely responsible for it. It should be remembered that not only was this an extremely unusual move at a time when Jews were forbidden from holding public office and involvement in most occupations, access to and use of a castle would have been very welcome indeed to a people who regularly faced attack. Sadly, they were to suffer badly after Haro fell to Sancho IV of Castile and Leon: though the castle withstood a two month siege, it was eventually over-run and the Jews were severely punished. Many were killed and much of their property was confiscated. Following the Expulsion during the 15th Century, the old Jewish Quarter was leveled prior to the construction of the Iglesia de Santo Tomás.

Medieval tower, now an art museum

There are many buildings of interest in a city with so much history. In addition to the castles and Iglesia de Santo Tomás there's the Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Vega, of 10th Century origin, despite the Baroque appearance resulting from an 18th Century remodeling; the 14th Century Convento de San Agustín, used since its demise as a convent as a school, a hospital, a prison, a bus station and - since 1989 - a hotel; the medieval tower in the Plaza de la Paz which had been in danger of imminent collapse before 2007 when it was restored at great expense and converted into a museum of contemporary art and the three imposing medieval gates, once the only way to enter the city through its defensive walls.

Predictions: Mark Cavendish and Marcel Kittel would both have been in with a very, very good chance of winning this final flat stage - unfortunately, they've both gone home early (and in Cav's case might by his own admission not have survived the climb to finish Stage 15. The absence of the two supersprinters leaves the possible outcome wide open - there are points and a stage win up for anyone who wants them enough. We'll see Bradley Wiggins working hard to either win back the red jersey or maintain a place on the leadership board from which he can mount a final assault on it in the last few stages.

Weather: A good bit warmer than it has been for the last few days: in fact, positively hot towards the end of the stage. We can expect a low of 21C at the start, rising to 24 or 25C in the wide flatlands either side of that little first climb. Even the highest points between 130 and 140km will be no cooler than the mid-20s, with that rising higher during the descent to the finish line where it'll be as high as 28C. There will be gentle tailwinds all the way to the last 10km, making this potentially a very fast stage indeed, and the headwind for that last part should remain gentle and cause no hardship. Sun is expected over the entire parcours.

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Vuelta a España - Stage 15 Preview

Alto de L'Angliru

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"What do they want? Blood? They ask us to stay clean and avoid doping and then they make the riders tackle this kind of barbarity." (Vicente Belda)

Stage 15 is the one the riders have been dreading. The reason? Alto de L'Angliru. The stuff of nightmares, perhaps the most demanding climb in professional cycling.

Angliru starts off relatively easy - the average gradient on the first 5km is 7.6%, enough to hurt but well within the realms of rideable for a professional. The sixth kilometre is easy, flattening for a while and even descending for a short way. From then on, it gets tough. Very tough. The average gradient for the last 6km is 13.1%, beginning to stretch the boundaries of what can be done - but, as if that wasn't harsh enough, there's the Cueña les Cabres 3km from the top with a gradient of 23.8%.

In the past, this climb has seen riders forced to ride to the summit with flat tyres after team cars stalled and were unable to follow them up. The mountain has not taken life, like Ventoux which inspired its inclusion in the race, but it could one day prove capable of doing so.

Centro Cultural Internacional Oscar Niemeyer, Avilés

The start town today, Avilés, couldn't be more of a contrast; its located in the flattest part of Asturias. This is a region which has been inhabited by humans for a very long time, a fact proven by the discovery of the Trelles Axe discovered at the site of the present day Calle de La Cámara and subsequently sated to 100,000 years before the present. The city's name is believed to be derived from that of a Roman landowner, Abilius, but the settlement appears to have been just a village during his time and remained one right up until the 10th Century when it was granted permission to build a castle to defend itself against pirate raids. The village rapidly began to develop into a town and then, gaining a charter under Alfonso VI in 1085, becoming a city.

The port, source of much of the city's wealth

Avilés grew wealthy through the storage and distribution of salt, an activity then managed as a monopoly by the Spanish crown, its large harbour making it an ideal place for trade in the mineral to take place. That same harbour permitted the development of the ship-building industry, bringing in more income. A disastrous fire destroyed many buildings in 1479, but such was the importance of the city that the monarchy granted large sums of cash to ensure that it was rebuilt - hence the many Renaissance buildings, well-thought-out structures to replace the medieval ones that didn't survive the fire.

Calle Galliana, some of the Renaissance buildings dating from
redevelopment after the 1479 fire.

During the 19th Century Avilés was occupied by French forces, but guerilla attacks carried out by underground resistance groups proved highly successful in bringing the city back to Spanish rule. Industrialisation brought yet more wealth, enormous weaving mills and iron smelting works springing up in the area. Heavy industry remained right up until the 1980s - in the second year of that decade, it was discovered to be the most polluted city in Spain with the highest number of asthmatics and the second most polluted in Europe, only Katowice in Poland being more contaminated. Today, there are many projects based in the locale which devote themselves to cleaning up the local environment and promoting sustainable industry and lifestyles.

The neutral zone begins at the Niemeyer Centre, a superb modernist complex housing assorted cultural institutions, then travel south-east and around a right corner to the Puente Azud. W reach a junction between the road we're on, the  Av. Marqués de Suances and the Av. de Cervantes, turning right once again to take the latter road. The directions, as is often the case with the Vuelta road book, require a little interpretation at this time, for they list the next section as being the Calle de La Cámara - the trouble being that the Av. de Cervantes and C. de La Cámara do not at any point meet one another. The two most obvious connecting routes are to turn right onto the C. de la Marques and then left onto the C. del Rivero before a short section of the C. de San Francisco leads to the C. de La Cámara; or - probably the better and more likely route - continue along the Av. de Cervantes, right onto the C. Galliana and then either the C. de San Francisco or C. de Alfonso VII. Fortunately for the riders, crowd barriers and race organisers will be marking the route.

The peloton follows the C. de La Cámara all the way to its northern end before turning right to join the C, Pruneda and then left at the roundabout by the river for the Av. de Ludo, also known as the N-632, which carries on long and straight before turning west and reaching the end of the neutral zone after 3.8km. They soon come to a roundabout, taking the third exit past the salt works and onward to Piedras Blancas where they follow the road to the right, along the Av. de Eysines and onto the Av. de Galicia leading south-west towards Vegarrozadas. The route passes straight through the roundabout just outside the village, underneath the A-8 motorway and past a filling station then reaches a sweeping S-bend at Carcedo, from where there are good - if not particularly beautiful - views to the motorway viaduct carrying traffic far above the landscape. We pass under two more fly-overs either side of Folgueras, the the road turns west.

The bridge into Muros de Nalon

The race soon reaches Soto del Barco, soon coming to a roundabout where we turn right to follow the N-632 - the right path around the centre is slightly shorter, the left much easier and possibly faster due to the less acute angles - then past the Hotel Palacio de la Magdalena, the kind of hotel that only professional football players can afford to stay in these days. A bend to the right leads onto a wide bridge across the Rio Nalón, where fishermen launch their tiny boats from spindly-legged wooden jetties. On the opposite bank, the road bends left and enters Muros de Nalón. During the 20th Century, Muros became an important port shipping coal from the rich mines further up the river. Nowadays, it relies for a large part of its economy on the eucalyptus trees that grow in great numbers on the surrounding hillsides. At the next roundabout, the peloton take the third exit on the left for the AS-352 then, 0.6km later, turn left at Somado onto the AS-224. When we reach the edge of the forest on the left a short while later, a large red villa with an unusual glazed gallery extending right around its first floor can be seen to the right - a so-called casano del indiano, a mansion built by someone who had made a fortune in Spain's American colonies.

Santianes de Pravia

The road travels on and into forest and around a series of potentially slippery bends, coming soon to Los Cabos and Bances, then Agones. Passing straight through one roundabout then turning left at the next, the peloton travels west for approximately one kilometre and coming to another roundabout where they leave the AS-224 behind and join the AS-225 leading into Pravia. Having skirted the northern edge of the town, they turn south to another roundabout and then left at another roundabout, across a bridge and onto what the road book calls the A-16, probably meaning the AS-16 since the A-16 was a motorway on the other side of the country subsequently renamed the C-32.

Having passed east of a forest, the route bypasses Forcinas and the road follows the banks of the Rio Narcea for a short while then travels under another fly-over and through a 200m tunnel to Veganas and Villanueva. After Palla, it follows the river again to Corias and Repolles, coming to a stretch of river by San Justo with higher ground either side - a very beautiful stretch of the race. It crosses the river south of Luerces and then, 40.3km from the start, reaches a roundabout near Cornellana. The riders turn left and climb 70m through the forest towards Villar, missing the turn-off into the village to continue on the N-634 east. The road isn't difficult, but does climb gradually; hitting 360m at Cabrunana. The stage's first intermediate sprint takes place on the gentle descent beyond the village. There is one hairpin and a roundabout - straight across, left and right routes are equal - just before Grado, but it's otherwise quite a non-technical section.

Penaflor from the air.

We follow the N-634 right through the town, passing through a hazardous section with rubber traffic-calming devices embedded in the road - what the road book calls tacos de goma "rubber feet" - and two roundabouts before a final right bend leads onto the Calle del Puente and over the river into San Pelayo (or Sampelayo, in the road book). The route passes straight over the next roundabout, the left path being the better one this time, and into Peñaflor before once again following the river - this is an even better section with an old, narrow bridge stretching across to the Casa Aurorina on the other side, an unusual house supported on stilts in the river. We travel by Anzo, Vega de Anzo, Valduno and Llera, then underneath the A-63 and after 0.8km turn left at a roundabout before climbing slightly to Fuejo. After 63km, we reach Bercio and then descend into Udrión, taking the road through to the river where the route passes by the bridge, changing onto the AS-228 as it leaves town through an industrial area, a possible hazard spot due to spilled diesel on the road.

More villages pass by, starting with Trubia. The feeding station is at San Andres, 71.5km from the start. The following section could prove hazardous - it's obvious now that we're heading back into the mountains because while the slopes along the sides of the road are not high, they're very steep and have rocky outcrops among the forest. This means that during and after heavy rain mud, leaves, thorns and stones wash down the slopes onto the road, leaving it slippery for a while and covered in assorted bits and pieces able to cause punctures - both things very capable of causing crashes. Tunon comes shortly after a 0.2km tunnel, then the parcours turns left onto the AS-360 0.3km before Villanueva. The first categorised climb, Cat 2 Alto de Tenebredo, starts at this point.

High in the hills, Comenteros
(from Grupo de Montana Ramon Mercader/Radio QK)

The road climbs rapidly and, without a guard rail, is potentially dangerous for the same reasons as the previous section. 300m is reached just around the first bend, then we enter a gentler section to Tenebredo village which is followed by a much steeper ramp gaining over 100m in 0.6km. The summit, 510m above sea level, is reached in between two forks in the road. The descent isn't challenging but has fewer trees, making the bends even more likely to be slippery due to mud following rain or dust following dry spells. We pass through Cotomonteros (Calmonteros in the road book) and Lavarejos, then arrive at a T-junction with the AS-322 and turn an acute right, climbing then descending again en route to Palomar. The road enters forest, emerging a short way ahead into much flatter terrain around El Polledo before reaching Soto de Ribera where the parcours crosses the river and turns 90 degrees right onto the N-630.

Once past Argame and Morcin, we enter a section featuring a series of unlit tunnels in quick sucession, one of the most hated of all hazards among cyclists. The first and second, 95km from the start, are 150m long; the third is 200m; the fourth 110m and the fifth 105m - expect the riders to be in filthy moods.

Palacio de Arriba, Mieres.

We then enter an industrialised region, crossing over the A-66 motorway and following the same road around various roundabouts until we reach the roundabout junction with the AS-242 and take the fourth exit to the right for Mieres de Camino. The parcours follows the Calle de Onon and C. Teodoro Cuesta, then runs along the C. Ramón y Cajal for the stage's second intermediate sprint before joining the C. Fray Paulino Alvarez leading out of town.

Mieres grew around coal mining and the steel industry - the former now declining and employing a far smaller percentage of the population than it once did, the latter having all but vanished by the end of the 1970s. However, its history is much longer - there are several prehistoric forts nearby and the Romans found a town here when they arrived, but how important a town it was under their rule is unknown because with the declining industry there are insufficient funds available to finance archaeological research. It appears, meanwhile, to have been a small and little-known place throughout the Middle Ages; an irregular inclusion in documents until the 19th Century. Unsurprisingly, with a large population of labourers and mine workers, it became a stronghold of leftist politics during the Civil War, though workers' organisations took on a more Stalinist flavour here than in most other Spanish towns who tended overall to favour anarchistic thought. Anti-Falange activity, including guerilla attacks, continued even after Franco's regime held power.

From decaying eyesore to fine hotel: the Palacio de Figaredo

We continue along the AS-242 through the town; leading us past old collieries and the modern university which is today one of the most profitable industries in the region with courses in mine technology and engineering attracting students from all around the world. As there is still much heavy industry nearby, all bends have a possibility of diesel spillages and are thus possibly hazardous. On the very southern tip, almost but not quite a part of Mieres, is a tiny village named Santullano with a sweeping bend again possibly with spilled diesel. The next village is Figaredo, site of the Palacio de Figaredo - until recently a rather ugly, decaying brown edifice; now fully restored and converted into a very fine hotel, and much kudos to the owners for saving the old building and returning it to its former grandeur.

To the south of Figaredo the peloton reaches a complex interchange with the A-66, the main route into Mieres and thus once again subject to diesel spills, turning right crossing the bridge over the river to the southern tip of Las Vegas and then left to continue south. Presently, we reach Villallana, then La Vega and after 1.5km to a junction with the AS-231 where we turn right into a short tunnel under the railway and begin the Cat 1 Alto del Cordal climb which will see the peoloton ascend 510m in 5.3km. The first village on the climb is Munon Fondero which comes just before a 90 degree right bend into forest with an even tighter left into La Cuquera de Abajo. Two more 90 degree bends, one right and one left, lead into La Maderada and through more forest to a mining facility. At this point, the race encounters a series of four tight hairpin bends rising through 69m - the second looks to be the most technical, turning through more than 180 degrees. Four 90 degree bends then lead up to a junction with a road to the left, but the route passes by around another 90 degree right and almost immediately another turning left - the highest point, 790m above sea level, is halfway between the two.

Cuena les Cabres

The first part of the descent, though fast, is not particularly testing; however, once through the first vertical 110m it reaches a section with four tight bends - two left and two right. A brief section at less of a gradient leads straight into a faster descent past Canto la Vera, then a twisty section travels through forest and around two easy hairpins. A relatively straight section leads into a tighter hairpin, then straight on to La Vega (not the same one we passed through before the climb). Halfway through the village, opposite a bus stop, the riders need to negotiate an extremely tight left corner to join the RI-2. After 0.3km, the final climb - Especial Category Alto de l'Angliru, highest point 1557m - begins.

The race proceeds up the wide valley, past the junctions with the RI-3 and RI-4 and around a wide and easy hairpin, then through two 90 degree rights - the first wide and sweeping, the second much tighter. There are two junctions for the RI-5 and the road book is once again a little unclear; however, there is little difference between either as the distance is much the same and they both lead to Viapara. We'll hope the travel past the first one and through Grandiella, meanwhile, because it's a very pretty little village with its low stone houses and narrow streets. From now on, we're on the final stretch, at the bottom of the mountain.

The road climbs gently, then descends for a short while until we turn 90 degrees left and head south, reaching 800m between two gentle left hand bends, then three hairpins in 0.6km take us up another 50m. A fourth hairpin a short way ahead brings us to 900m, then the terrain flattens out enough for the next 100m to be climbed along a long and straight road. At the end of the section is a very tight hairpin, turning through around 170 degrees before turning slightly left, at which point the parcours straightens out again to allow the next 150m to be climbed without bends.

Climbing Angliru (from Cozy Beehive)

The next hairpin is another tight one and, on the other side, it starts getting steep again with the following hairpin only a short way ahead. A longer section precedes two hairpins with only 30m between them, rising 22m, then another straight rises approximately 40m to one of the tightest hairpins yet. The next, slightly less tight, is just ahead and we reach 1500m just before the one after that. After one more and a 90 degree left where the road dips into a cleft in the mountainside, we reach the summit around a 90 degree right. Another 90 degree left begins the descent to the carpark and stage finish at 1557m, 142.2km from the start. What percentage of those riders to begin the stage complete it - within the maximum allotted time or at all - will be revealed here; all those who complete it, even outside the maximum time and being disqualified as a result, can take great pride in having survived what is probably the most difficult stage in any of the 2011 Grand Tours.

Alto de l'Angliru profile

Prior to 1999, the high pass over Angliru was known only to local farmers and hikers. It was "discovered" by Marcel Prieto, a director of the ONCE team, in 1996; but his proposal that it be included in the race was ignored by the Vuelta's managers Unipublic who at that time favoured the climb to Lagos de Covadonga which had been used several times since first inclusion in 1983 (and was last climbed in 2010). However, two years later when organisers were looking for a test to equal the Col du Galibier in the Tour and Monte Zoncolan in the Giro, they looked again at the mountain and realised that they could not only equal those better-known challenges, but beat them by a long chalk. José María Jiménez was the first to the summit, emerging from thick mist to take what has become one of the great, legendary victories of cycling. Since then it has been included on another three occasions: in 2000 when Gilberto Simoni was first up; 2002 when it went to Roberto Heras; and 2008 when Alberto Contador took the honours. Note that these four riders are widely regarded as the strongest and most technically gifted climbers of the last two generations of professional cyclists, reflecting the severity of the mountain - it's simply too steep, too punishing to be won by lesser men.

Predictions: No sprinter, breakaway expert, puncheur or all-rounder can win this stage - with a mountain like Angliru looming over today's race like some vast, threatening presence it can only be the strongest of the climbers. The question is, who is that? We think that Rodriguez is the only candidate this year, though had the Schlecks and Contador been in the race we'd have seen an epic battle. However, nobody really wins a stage like this one - someone will be the first across the finish line, but Angliru will take more from them than they'll receive in return. Wiggins, having recently emerged as a handy climber, will stand a good chance of holding onto the red jersey or, if he loses it, at least leave himself a reasonable opportunity to win it back in the coming days.

Weather: Temperatures remain pleasantly cool again, ranging from highs of 19C down to 15C on the smaller mountains. Angliru will be chillier due to altitude, dropping as low as 10C. Skies will be overcast all the way but no rain is expected. The first 120km will experience changeable winds, varying between light crosswinds and tailwinds - we may see echelons on the flatter sections. Towards the end, as the race approaches Alto del Cordal, things change - as though that last killer climb isn't enough, the riders will fight headwinds all the way from here to the summit of Angliru. As if it wasn't hard enough!

More Previews: Click here

More information on Angliru: click here

Video Links:
Angliru '08 (best watched with sound turned down to avoid the dreadful Eurohouse music)
Angliru '08 #2 (same  again re. the music)
Descent of the Cuena les Cabres (on motorbikes)

Vuelta a España - Stage 8 Preview

Stage Map: click here
Stage Profile: click here
More Stage Previews: click here

We've had one mountain stage during the first week and some of the plain stages have been anything but flat; today and tomorrow are guaranteed knee-breakers and are likely to have a detrimental effect on the individual time trial specialists who have their sole chance to show what they can do in Stage 10 and ensure all the riders appreciate the rest day following the TT.

Remnants of the Moorish defensive walls at Talavera.

The stage begins in Talavera de la Reina (for more information, see yesterday's preview) along the long, straight Paseo de Padre Juan San Mariana. However, straight doesn't equal easy - there are plenty of speed bumps, roundabouts, street furniture and tricky corners o the way out of the city, meaning even the neutral zone isn't a simple process and could claim a few scalps before the racing is even properly underway. The first corner is a tight right-hander onto the Calle de Olivares and carries the peloton past the Alfar del Carmen, a 17th Century church that lay derelict for many years before a sympathetic restoration completed in late 2010 and new life as a library. Opposite, on the right, is the Iglesia de San Andrés. The road ends with a 90 degree left to join the Calle de San Miguel which sweeps to the right, then a less acute left is made technical by the addition of a small roundabout forcing riders to take a deviating line to the right, tucking in sharply to avoid the corner of the footpath. The Calles de la Marqués de Mirasol and Almanzor shouldn't pose any problems, though the roundabout at the end when the riders cross the Av. de Pio XII requires some thought - the right and left lines have pros and cons of their own, though the left looks the preferable way. The following road is straight, followed by an egg-shaped roundabout with a fountain hence a potentially slippery section if the wind is strong and blowing from the right direction, then passes over railway tracks on a wide bridge and becomes the CM-5100 at the roundabout, easily negotiated by taking the line to the right of the centre. The remainder is flat and with the exception of two bends and a large roundabout poker straight, meaning that the real start at 7.5km will be reached within minutes.

Not far from Cervera de los Montes and in the same province,
Toledo, is Illan de Vacas. With a population of six, it's the
smallest municipality in Spain.

Just to the west and lying next to a lake is Medillin Hill, the site of the British encampment during the Battle of Talavera in 1809. A fly-over carries the peloton over the A-5 motorway then past open-cast mines before the road bends left and right, passing some ruined buildings on the left and then entering a section along the side of a steep slope, potentially hazardous if wind and rain have deposited dirt from the scrubby hillside on the road and almost certainly a place for punctures. The parcours flattens out in less than a kilometre (though the terrain doesn't) and trees replace the jara shrubs as the race enters the irrigated area around Cervera de los Montes, a village 6.6km from the start. The road in narrows sharply and has a number of raised speed bumps. The origins of the village are not known, but it acquired official status in the middle of the 17th Century after religious figures from Talavera built houses here - it was a larger community in the past, reaching over 800 inhabitants in the first third of the 20th Century but was home to just 329 in 2006. The church is a solid and attractive structure, built of large blocks of grey stone and looking rather North European - a complete contrast to the bright village hall which is unmistakably Spanish.

The route begins to climb as Cervera is left behind, reaching 610m after a few kilometres as it passes by a forest. It reaches another roundabout just before Marrupe, where the peloton turn left to pass along the Carretera de Sotillo south-west of the village and soon finds itself on another potentially slippery section with wooded slopes either side. After around 3km, it reaches Sotillo de las Palomas - like its neighbour to the south, Sotillo's population in much reduced but, despite now being home to only 200 people, is officially a town; having been granted such status in 1692. Having clipped the very edge of the town, the road turns northward once again and passes an artificial lake surrounded by trees.

Terrapins are a common sight in the Rio Tietar.

A Z-bend a short way before Buenaventura may prove hazardous, especially on the first bend which intersects with an unsurfaced farm track and may be dusty as a result. The road into the village features two wide bends, one passing by the Ermita de San Sebastián with its gateway that looks like a Neolithic dolmen, but is then straight for the remainder of the way through - a few raised speed humps should therefore cause no problems. There is a fine village square with some good jettied buildings, but little of it can be seen from the road. Just outside the village, there may be mud on the road where a footpath crosses the road between the fields either side and road crosses a bridge - however, it's flat and wide and should not be a hazard. A little further on is a longer bridge over the Río Tiétar, with a modern concrete span supported by what appear to be much older stone piers, and the road becomes the AV-927 which carries the race to the junction with the CL-501 where the peloton turn right and head towards Madrid.

The CL-501 heads north-east, passing by green hills and farms, coming presently to a large roundabout at the junction with the AV-P-705; a much narrower and twistier road with some tight bends. There are some superb views from here into the valley we've just left. Molino del Labradero watermill is one of the most picturesque buildings along the stage - the most, if you prefer tumble-down stone ruins set among shady woods and babbling brooks to high-and-mighty Renaissance and Baroque. High ground to the west leaves no doubt that the race is heading into the mountains, as becomes even more apparent when the road begins the Category 1 climb after 37km, soon reaching Gavilanes.

There are few twists and turns on the way into the town, then a slightly difficult corner in the centre of town as the race reaches the Plaza de Sagrada Familia before it curves around onto the Carretera Mijares. There follows a hairpin and a 90 degree left, then the climb suddenly becomes steeper before reaching Mijares after 4km. The town sits right in the heart of the Valle del Tietar with mountains stretching to almost 2000m on three sides, making the views the best reason to visit. There is also an interesting church and many interesting - if ramshackle - ancient buildings, some with aesthetically-pleasing but terrifyingly unsafe-looking wooden balconies. The AV-P-705 leads to the Calle de Mayor which continues into the town centre, but the peloton will turn the other way to join the AV-901 which passes up to the northern edge of town, then loops around to the south and travels into a hairpin from where there are superb views over the valley, then passes over an old bridge. Once through a Z-bend, the parcours begins to climb steeply once again and reaches 1000m within a kilometre.

The next hairpin is a site of especial beauty, the road crossing by way of an old stone bridge a mountain stream as the water falls onto large boulders further down. The parcours changes to travel south, then west as it makes use of the contours of the land to find the least steep way up, then reaches a very tight hairpin and travels north again, crossing the same stream a second time via a bridge 150m higher up the mountain. For some reason, there's a stone-built public oven - about the size of a small bus stop - next to the stream. Another hairpin leads to a right-hand bend which looks set to be trouble-free, then leads to the next hairpin. The following section is spectacular as the road clings to a very steep mountainside, the gulley to the right dropping down 100m and the summit to the left rearing up 650m above the road. At one point, it passes a waterfall flowing through a deep slot it's cut into the rocks, no doubt over many hundreds of years; using a bridge perched on the slope. Down the gully stands a ruined bridge apparently of great antiquity. The last trees of any size can be seen nearby - from here until the descent, it's all ground-hugging shrubs, heather and moss. A hairpin in a narrow gully takes the route west again, leading past barren rocks. Just around the following hairpin is a roadside trough which, by the looks of it, was a welcome sight for many centuries to the horses and oxen that pulled loads up here and a little way further on the peloton reaches the highest point of the climb, 1570m above sea level.

Two hairpins lead down to some roadside buildings, then a reasonably straight section will encourage high speeds before the road rounds a bend and traverses another steep slope with views to the forest and lakes further down. Four hairpins in half a kilometre drop the route 100m before it straightens out and leads into Villanueva de Ávila, which although small has some attractive architecture; the buildings designed to cope with both the high summer heat and deep snow in the freezing winters. There are three raised speed humps, then a hairpin on the outskirts before the road heads into a forested section where corners could be slippery due to mud, gravel and leaves washing down from the slopes. A high bridge with one main arch and one smaller arch carries the road across a river a short distance from Burgohondo, where it changes name and becomes the AV-900. A local legend states that this bridge, of Moorish origin, was the meeting point of a poor boy and a beautiful girl from a rich family - their love, as is the way in legends of this sort, having been strictly forbidden by her father. So that she would not be seen using the bridge and questioned about where she had been, the girl would cross the river by jumping from rock to rock below the arches on her way to secret meetings with her beloved until one day when she fell in and was drowned. Her ghost can apparently sometimes be seen in the waters below the bridge, where it has been known to lure men to their own deaths.

Burgohondo is home to the Ermita de los Judíos, "the Chapel of the Jews." The building was constructed in the 14th Century and served as a synagogue, but later became a Christian site - as is made clear by the paintings on the walls within which, featuring the Crucifixion, Christian saints and the Virgin, would most certainly look out of place in any Jewish place of worship.


A short film (in Spanish) about the Chapel of the Jews.

Despite being home to less than 1300 people, the town has become famous for its cuisine and gastronomes travel for many miles to visit the restaurants, some of which serve fish caught in the crystal-clear river. It's also famous for giving the world two professional cyclists: Jesús Hernández Blázquez of Saxobank-Sungard, born in 1981 and an ex-training partner of Alberto Contador when he was a member of the Basque Iberdrola team and a friend of Rabobank's Luis Leon Sanchez; and Rubén Calvo, born in 1985, who now competes in professional mountain bike racing.

Carlos Sastre, winner of the 2008
Tour de France, is a native of
El Barraco.

The road begins to clim again as the town is left behind, passing arable land and woods en route to Navalmoral de la Sierra which is reached 81km from the start. The road turns a 90 degree left corner right on the outskirts of the village, then an equally tight right before joining the AV-905 heading east and coming to the feeding station. It passes through more fields, then enters an area of scrubland and becomes straight as it approaches the next village, San Juan de la Nava, passing straight through, over a bridge and onward to the junction with the N-403 leading into El Barraco, which hosts the start and finish of the annual 122km Ciclomarcha Carlos Sastre cycle race. Sastre was born here, as was his father Victor; himself a cyclist and the creator and director of the Fundación Provincial Deportiva, a unique school of cycling which has successfully developed a number of promising local talents into world-beating professionals including Carlos's brother-in-law José, who came 3rd overall in the 1998 Vuelta and tragically died of a heart attack five years later when he was aged just 32, Omega-Pharma-Lotto's Óscar Pujol and Movistar's Pablo Lastras, one of the very few riders to have won stages in all three Grand Tours (the Tour de France, the Giro d'Italia and this race).

Fiesta de las Luminarias

The road through El Barraco passes the town hall and central square; allowing us a chance to see some of the town's old buildings, some of them constructed using large, roughly-hewn blocks of local stone. Right on the south-eastern edge, the route turns a sharp left and continues along the AV-P-306 which, after a while, follows the course of a small river and is surrounded by greenery irrigated by the water. Some kilometres out of town is a narrow bridge followed by a junction between the road and a dusty track, a possible danger point as riders forced to drop back from the peloton when constricted by the bridge try to catch up; then a short distance on it begins a Cat 2 climb, reaching 1000m just outside San Bartolomé de Pinares. Four switchbacks take the race up the slope immediately south-east of the town, then the 1214m summit comes just before turning onto the AV-P-307 heading north - however, the parcours continues to climb. San Bartolomé de Pinares' has half a church - the end with the tower still stands next to the ornate stone arch that forms a gateway into the churchyard, but the other half has fallen down. For more than two centuries, ever since a mysterious disease killed all the horses in the vicinity, the town has held a unique annual Fiesta de las Luminarias during which large bonfires are lit on the streets and the horses ridden or jumped through the flames. While the horses probably don't like it very much, owners bring their most valuable animals in an effort to drive out the evil spirits that were blamed for the epidemic and take very great care to ensure no harm comes to their expensive beasts.

But for a few gentle bends, the AV-P-307 is almost perfectly straight as it passes through the arid landscape all the way to La Cañada. This town forms a single municipal entity with the nearby village of Herradón de Pinares and the two communities have seen fit to vote in two members of the extreme right-wing Democracia Nacional, an equal number to the centre-right conservative Partido Popular, the deputy mayor openly expressing Nazi sympathies. Fortunately, it's an uninteresting little town without interesting architecture and so there's no reason to bolster up Democracia Nacional's reputation by remaining in the area and contributing to the local economy. After passing through an ugly new development on the southern edge of the town, the parcours turns a sharp right onto the CL-505 which, following a twisty section just beyond the town, is argely straight as it passes Navalperal de Pinares on the way to Las Navas del Marqués.

Castillo-Palacio de Magalia.

Those readers who have also seen our earlier stage previews may be thinking that, thus far, Stage 8 has been oddly devoid of castles - it seemed that virtually every village, town and city the race passed through earlier in the race had at least one and often two. Las Navas del Marqués, meanwhile, provides one more than sufficient to satisfy the castle fans with the Castillo-Palacio de Magalia, which is unique due to having two flat vaults in one of the towers. Though it looks like a medieval castle, the structure is in fact a Renaissance palace; however, the defenses are more than decorative and demonstrate that violence was still an ever-present threat during the 16th Century when it was built by Marquis of Las Navas, Pedro Davila y Zuniga. It was abandoned during the 18th Century, then sold in the 20th to a commercial concern who later gave it to the Spanish state to be converted into a cultural centre. It became a residential hall for the Women's Section of the fascist Falange party after the Civil War, eventually being put to good use following the introduction of democracy and now hosts cultural events and conferences. Recently, the town has gained another cultural centre in the Convento de Santo Domingo y San Pablo; built in 1546 then abandoned in the 19th century to those looters brave enough to venture inside despite the stories of terrifying moans said to come from ghostly monks (but, upon investigation, discovered to have actually come from non-ghostly owls). Masonry was carted off for use elsewhere, a bronze tombstone marking the grave of the same Marquis who built the Castillo-Palacio was stolen by left-wing forces in the Civil War (subsequently returned, and now on display at the site), then the building was left to rot - the mild summers and cold winters of the region taking little time to reduce an uncared-for building to rubble. In 2004, it was sold and is now run by the Ministry of Culture who use it to host art exhibitions and other events. The owls, presumably, are now terrifying stupid people elsewhere.

The peloton leaves the town heading east on the AV-P-308 and, having crossed a wide bridge, begins to climb Cat 2 Alto de Santa Maria. The first hairpin follows a 90 degree left-hand bend and the altitude reaches 1200m halfway round. The next, coming in close succession, carries the race up to the 1435m summit just before the road becomes the M-535 at another hairpin, south of Santa Maria de la Alameda. The descent is long and fast but relatively free of obvious hazards other than a bridge set among stunning scenery as it crosses the Rio Aceña  followed by a 90 degree right bend, then it begins to climb again into Robledondo, located 155.5km from the start and 1330m above sea level.

The Rio Acena Road Bridge, one of
Spain's most popular sites for
bungee jumping. Each to their own.

Santa Maria de la Alameda is officially a part of the Comunidad de Madrid region but it not geographically linked to it, being located within an enclave between Segovia and Avila. Not far to the south is a high bridge where the M-505 crosses the river, one of the most popular places in Spain for bungee jumping. Robledondo is an attractive village, though it has little to detain visitors for long. The road passes straight through with four raised humps, then turns sharply south for the beginning of the first intermediate sprint along a road offering excellent views of the Monasterio de El Escorial desde la Cruz Verde, many kilometres away. A short climb ends at a crossroads just east of what appears to be an ancient defensive earthwork, very much along the lines of Bronze Age forts in Northern Europe (40°34'23.28"N 4°12'14.15"W). At the end, a 90 degree left followed by a hairpin lead to the junction with the M-505 near a restaurant named La Venterola. It heads east, then south to a cafe at Puerto de la Cruz Verde, a popular haunt of the motorcyclists who come from right across Europe to ride on the local roads, then enters a twisty section heading north-east before the peloton turn left onto the much narrower Carretera de Robledo leading into San Lorenzo de El Escorial. This road could be slippery, especially if the August rains that sometimes fall in this area have washed leaves and mud onto the tarmac from the forested hill to the north. A forest track joins the road about halfway along, forming an added hazard as agricultural vehicles may have left mud on the road here. As the race enters the town, it passes the Casa del Infante with its formal gardens.

Monasterio de El Escorial

The second intermediate sprint takes place in the town, using the narrow streets and tight corners around the enormous Monasterio to create a testing course that may see several crashes and possibly even lead to a few riders abandoning the race. The Monasterio, which combines a palace and a basilica along with an actual monastery is commonly, widely and even rightfully considered among the most beautiful and spectacular buildings anywhere in the world. Begun in the 16th Century, it covered over 33,000 square metres by the 18th when it became known as the 8th wonder of the world. It was built largely as a reaction by the Catholic King Philip II to the Protestant Reformation, using finances from royal coffers swollen by gold brought across from Spain's New World territories. His design brief was straight-forward: "simplicity in the construction, severity in the whole, nobility without arrogance, majesty without ostentation." The half-million tourists who come every year are doubtless struck by the building's success in achieving all of those aims. On the outskirts of the town is the so-called Chair of Philip II, where legend has it that the king would sit whilst viewing the construction of his remarkable Monasterio. Whether he did or not and whatever it originally was, the "chair" had been there for a long time before he sat on it - it's visibly ancient and is probably pre-Roman.

A view from the west, showing the vast scale of the Monasterio.

Having raced through the streets, the peloton turns onto the Ctra. de la Presa and Calle Fuente de la Teja as they head upwards into the forest north-west of the city, then a hairpin leads onto the Pista Forestal as it traverses the hill and leads gradually back down to join the the M-600, which turns left into El Escorial. The peloton passes along the Calle de San Sebastian which has several speed humps, then joins the Av. de la Arboleda Pascual. At the end, it turns a sharp right and travels under a bridge carrying train lines and becomes the Av. de Reyes Católicos leading back to San Lorenzo de El Escorial, then turns right into the Calle del Doctor Don Juan Abelló Pascual, much narrower.  A final 90 degree left corner leads onto the Calle Cañada Nueva before the final run to the finish at 177.3km. This stage, however, does not end with a straight-forward sprint - there are two ramped sections rated at gradients of 27 and 28% which, though short, will feel like hammerblows to the kneecaps this late in the race.

Joaquin Rodriguez

Predictions: We're back into the hills for this one: after a flat (well, flattish) start, it's pointy stuff all the way starting with Cat 1 Puerto de Mijares featuring a harsh 1050m of climbing - and parts are very steep. Pay attention here, because whoever rides well on this climb will also do well on Angliru, the mountain that could decide the overall winner of the race (and may very easily decide which riders are going home early). There are several climbers - and a few puncheurs, for that matter - who are showing early promise this year. Daniel Moreno is one of them, the first man up Sierra Nevada in Stage 4. So is Chris Sorenson, who followed him up and was second over the line. What we need to remember, though, is that the big climb comes early on in the stage - when at the summit, the riders have still got 120km to go and there isn't a flat section anywhere among them. Will Moreno and Sorenson be able to keep up the pace? What you need for this sort of stage is a combination of grimpeur and Classics specialist, a man who can race skywards with the best and then keep going and going and going. That sounds rather a lot like Joaquin Rodriguez.


Weather: Mercifully cooler again. It'll be hot at the start, around 26-27C right up until the foot of the first mountain. As would be expected, the temperature will drop progressively with altitude, finishing up at about 19C at the summit. Top temps on the other side should reach no more than 26C and then becoming cooler on the following climbs with 24C expected at the finish. Light headwinds shouldn't cause too much hardship and no rain is expected anywhere along the parcours.

More Stage Previews: click here