Back on April 25th, Alberto Contador said of the descent of Monte Crostis (Stage 14, this Saturday) "It gives me fear". Rightfully so based upon this video made yesterday by Alessandro Gaspari (national champion, mountain bike orienteering) and Marco Vector .
Gaspari commented, "The first part of the roadway, about 3km has not been been compacted, while the second was already finished. You can really gain speed, and with the mountain bike I lost rear wheel traction at least two times. It feels like asphalt but when you use the brakes the bike slips in the corners. There are safety barriers and banners but these really serve mostly to give you an idea where the road ends."
WOW.
The video:
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I rode this a couple of weeks ago. They've really improved the mostly-level 5 km dirt section (Panoramica delle Vette) a lot since last year. It is narrow with a steep drop-off on the side though, so the guys will need to be careful. They were still repaving many sections of the descent to Ravascletto, so it should be pretty smooth. I think it will be a great stage if it doesn't rain/hail.
ReplyDeleteI would love to bomb down that one. Technical descents are lots of fun
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