- Location
- Somewhere wet & hilly in NW England.
I would be much happier if the whole race was about GC action. To me, the TT & sprints get in the way of the real racing.
Not a popular opinion, I know...
Critérium du Dauphiné 2025 Spoilers
- Thread starter Adam4868
- Start date
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I would be much happier if the whole race was about GC action. To me, the TT & sprints get in the way of the real racing.
Not a popular opinion, I know...
No Ta Doctor
Über Member
The final two climbs are interesting today - a pair of cat 2s with some pretty steep ramps
What makes them unusual is that the 3.6 km between them is.... an uncategorised climb of 5.9%. At no point is there any actual flat or descent.
That uncategorised climb is both longer and steeper than some cat 3 climbs in the race (yes, I know categorisation isn't an exact science and a lot depends on where the climb is in the race, how they want to distribute points etc.), so you can think of the finish as a cat 2, a cat 3 and another cat 2 with no pause between them.
Alternatively, you could think of the entire finish as a single climb of 8.7km @ 7.1%, which is both longer and steeper than a cat 1 climb on stage 8.
I don't know why they've split the climb up like this, except a guess that the town of Domancy paid good money for the KoM point but that for the race they wanted the finish further up. But if you thought today wasn't that tough, think again, that's definitely a Cat 1 worthy finish
This is the breakdown of the climb:
Section 1 - Côte de Domancy, Cat 2
2.4km @ 8.6%
Start height 572m
End height 778m
Elevation gain 206m
Distance 2.4km
Section 2 - Combloux, Uncategorised
3.6km @ 5.9%
Start height 778m
End height 989m
Elevation gain 211m
Distance 3.6km
Section 3 - Côte de la Cry, Cat 2
2.7km @ 8.2%
Start height 989m
End height 1190m
Elevation gain 201m
Distance 2.7km
Total climb:
8.7km @ 7.1%
Start height 572m
End height 1190m
Elevation gain 618m
Distance 8.7km
There are Cat 3 climbs on other stages that are both shorter an easier than the uncategorized middle section, and there is a Cat 1 climb shorter and less steep than the total climb
Stage 2:
Cat 3
Côte des Rivauds 3.6 @ 4% - inc 600m at 6.6%
Côte de Saint Jacques d'Ambur 3.1km @ 5% inc 500m at 6.9%
Stage 8:
Cat 1
Cole de Beaune 6.7km @ 6.7%
You can see the finish details here on the interactive map
Cyclingstage interactive map with elevation, gradient etc
What makes them unusual is that the 3.6 km between them is.... an uncategorised climb of 5.9%. At no point is there any actual flat or descent.
That uncategorised climb is both longer and steeper than some cat 3 climbs in the race (yes, I know categorisation isn't an exact science and a lot depends on where the climb is in the race, how they want to distribute points etc.), so you can think of the finish as a cat 2, a cat 3 and another cat 2 with no pause between them.
Alternatively, you could think of the entire finish as a single climb of 8.7km @ 7.1%, which is both longer and steeper than a cat 1 climb on stage 8.
I don't know why they've split the climb up like this, except a guess that the town of Domancy paid good money for the KoM point but that for the race they wanted the finish further up. But if you thought today wasn't that tough, think again, that's definitely a Cat 1 worthy finish
This is the breakdown of the climb:
Section 1 - Côte de Domancy, Cat 2
2.4km @ 8.6%
Start height 572m
End height 778m
Elevation gain 206m
Distance 2.4km
Section 2 - Combloux, Uncategorised
3.6km @ 5.9%
Start height 778m
End height 989m
Elevation gain 211m
Distance 3.6km
Section 3 - Côte de la Cry, Cat 2
2.7km @ 8.2%
Start height 989m
End height 1190m
Elevation gain 201m
Distance 2.7km
Total climb:
8.7km @ 7.1%
Start height 572m
End height 1190m
Elevation gain 618m
Distance 8.7km
There are Cat 3 climbs on other stages that are both shorter an easier than the uncategorized middle section, and there is a Cat 1 climb shorter and less steep than the total climb
Stage 2:
Cat 3
Côte des Rivauds 3.6 @ 4% - inc 600m at 6.6%
Côte de Saint Jacques d'Ambur 3.1km @ 5% inc 500m at 6.9%
Stage 8:
Cat 1
Cole de Beaune 6.7km @ 6.7%
You can see the finish details here on the interactive map
Cyclingstage interactive map with elevation, gradient etc
No Ta Doctor
Über Member
I think the sprints have their place, but the TT is definitely part of GC action. It's also absolutely critical to the GC in that it brings more riders into contention. If the race was solely mountains there would be far fewer riders with a possibility of winning.
Dogtrousers
Kilometre nibbler
Well the sprint finish on stage 1 turned out to be a GC day. Which just goes to show... something. Maybe.
TakeTheHighRoad
Well-Known Member
The climb is the same one from the TT a couple of years ago when Vingers destroyed Pog. It climbs up into the village, and then they turn out of the village up to the finish. The ride through the village is also uphill as it's a ski resort, and they tend to be built on the side of hills 
OP
OP
Adam4868
Legendary Member
It's all about you innit !
I don't mind a TT and the sprint stages give a chance for someone else to shine,also give me a chance to actually go to work !
I mean if there were no flat stages would sprinters even bother turning up,plus I guess a grand tour is meant to be a race across a country not just some mountains.
No Ta Doctor
Über Member
The climb is the same one from the TT a couple of years ago when Vingers destroyed Pog. It climbs up into the village, and then they turn out of the village up to the finish. The ride through the village is also uphill as it's a ski resort, and they tend to be built on the side of hills
Nice, I hadn't noticed that. I can see that for the TT back then it skipped what I call the third section and finished in Combloux, whereas today they continue up the Côte de la Cry
mididoctors
Über Member
I wish all big mountain top finishes were split up like this . It's good for the KOM competition . HC should be a 1st cat and a lower 2nd cat and perhaps a even lower 3rd and 4th cap . Instead of double points . Incentivises long range KOM attacks where you get something even if caught before the finish
Last edited:
Shadow
member
- Location
- edge of the south downs
My interpretation. Not that it has any value, it is Monsieur Prudhomme's opinion that counts!
This^^^.
No Ta Doctor
Über Member
No Ta Doctor
Über Member
Was it the Giro that did that golden kilometre thing for intermediate sprints with two sprints a km apart?
- Location
- Somewhere wet & hilly in NW England.
TakeTheHighRoad
Well-Known Member
The Giro version was just extra Red Bull hoardings around a "normal" intermediate sprint.
The Eneco Tour has the Golden Kilometre, which is 3 sprints within 1 km
Dogtrousers
Kilometre nibbler
They all tend to fizzle out somewhat though, don't they? Commentators: Woo, here comes the zingy super-sprint! Riders: Whatever.
