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59th Vuelta a España - GT
Spain, September 4-26, 2004
Preview Map Stage profile Start List Results
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Stage 7 - September 10: Castellón de la Plana - Valencia, 170 km
Commentary by Jeff Jones, with additional reporting from Martin Hardie
Complete live report
Live coverage starts: 14:30 CEST
Estimated finish time: 17:15 CEST
14:26 CEST
Welcome to Cyclingnews' coverage of Stage 7 of the Vuelta. We're almost one
week down with two to go in the last grand tour of the season. Today's stage
takes place between Castellón De La Plana and Valencia, and looks on paper to
be a walk in the park. However, the short Cat. 3 climb up Coll del Marianet
(km 45), and the longer 17km Cat. 2 climb up Puerto de Montemayor (km 80), will
do its best to split the peloton. The final 90km descent into Valencia will
see the peloton trying its hardest to regroup before tomorrow's individual time-trial
in Almufases.
Today's three intermediate sprints are at Azuebar (km 50.5), Altura (km 65.8)
and Lliria (km 114.7). Manuel Beltran (USPS) is still in the gold leader's jersey,
while Francisco Mancebo (Illes Balears) wears the mountains jersey and Stuart
O'Grady (Cofidis) the points jersey.
The weather at the start today is similar to yesterday, but not quite as humid.
It's sunny and hot and approximately 30 degrees.
14:42 CEST 57km/113km to go
The seventh stage started at 13:15 and it only took a couple of kilometres before
the first attacks were launched. After 16 km, a group of seven riders got clear
and are now some five minutes ahead of the peloton after 57 km.
The names in the group: José Miguel Elias (Relax-Bodysol), Patrick Calcagni
(Vini Caldirola-Nobili Rubinetterie), Hebert Gutierrez (Cafes Baque), Ruslan
Ivanov (Alessio-Bianchi), Erki Pütsep (Est) Ag2R Prevoyance), Carlos Torrent
(Paternina-Costa De Almeria) and Daniele Righi (Lampre).
None are really threatening on GC, with Elias the best placed at 8'46 down.
14:52 CEST 66km/104km to go
At the top of the Cat. 3 Coll de Marinet, Jose Miguel Elias was first over ahead
of Herbert Gutierrez, Erki Putsep and Patrick Calcagni. The intermediate sprint
at Azuébar followed shortly afterwards, and it was Calcagni first ahead of Gutierrez
and Elias. The second sprint at Altura was also taken by the Swiss rider Calcagni
ahead of Torrent and Gutierrez.
The break still has around 5 minutes on the Fassa Bortolo led peloton.
15:05 CEST 71km/99km to go
The first hour was raced at 43.7 km/h - it's been the quickest start yet of
this year's Vuelta, but it can and will get faster.
Iñigo Cuesta (Cofidis) is suffering some problems at the moment and is
being attended to by the race doctors.
The breakaways are climbing the long, but not too steep Puerto de Montemayor,
with its summit at 90 km to go. Fassa Bortolo and Rabobank are leading the peloton,
thinking of their sprinters Alessandro Petacchi and Oscar Freire.
15:12 CEST 73km/97km to go
Rabobank and Fassa have the race well under control, and there are also a couple
of Saeco jerseys in front. The leading group is now 4'35 in front, toiling away
on the climb.
15:15 CEST
The Fassa boys have dropped back from the front rank, trying to keep things
easy for Petacchi. Rabobank is riding a bit harder though, trying to make things
hard for Petacchi.
15:19 CEST 81km/89km to go
Elias (Relax) leads the breakaway group over the top of the climb with Gutierrez,
Righi and Calcagni on his wheel. Now they can enjoy a nice long - but also not
too steep - descent.
The average speed after the second hour is 39.9 km/h. It's slowed down considerably
due to the climbs.
15:22 CEST 84km/86km to go
Rabobank leads the main bunch over the top of the climb at 3'49 behind the seven
leaders. Petacchi is still there, so we can expect Fassa to start riding again.
The leaders are now at the feed zone, having reached the halfway point.
15:26 CEST 87km/83km to go
The seven leaders (Elias (Relax-Bodysol), Calcagni (Vini Caldirola), Gutierrez
(Cafes Baque), Ivanov (Alessio), Pütsep (Ag2R), Torrent (Paternina) and Righi
(Lampre) quickly refuel on the descent, sucking down bidons and tossing them
away. Gutierrez is annoyed when he misses one of his feed bags, but he grabs
one from his second soigneur.
It's so hot today that the riders will be constantly drinking. It's almost impossible
to drink too much on a stage like this.
15:32 CEST 90km/80km to go
The feed zone has slowed down the peloton somewhat, but its still only 4'09
behind the leaders. With two or three teams controlling things, there's no way
that this break will stay away unless Petacchi and Freire crash or something.
15:38 CEST
Elias has gone off the road on the descent, but he looks unhurt and he should
be able to get back into the race. The break isn't waiting though. They have
4'23.
15:40 CEST 95km/75km to go
Elias is back with them now. He missed a corner and did a "Jan Ullrich", finding
a gap in the safety fence and shooting off into the bushes. Fortunately there
was no ravine. He gets some attention to his bike, but everything is ok, luckily.
15:47 CEST 106km/64km to go
The break is motoring along at between 55 and 60 km/h on this long descent,
and has kept the peloton at 4'20-4'30. Rabobank and Fassa have things strung
out, but we get the impression that they haven't really started chasing hard
yet.
15:56 CEST 111km/59km to go
For the GC riders, today will be a relatively relaxing day in the peloton. There
are no sneaky climbs to break things up in the finale, and it should be a regulation
bunch sprint.
T-Mobile's Alexandre Vinokourov is looking slightly better than he has been,
sucking down an energy gel as he endeavours to keep up his reserves. Riders
are using the opportunity to take on-the-bike nature breaks.
The Relax-Bergasol mechanic puts his fingers at risk by adjusting Elias's rear
brake with a small spanner, all done from out of the team car window. As long
as the rider doesn't hit a bump, he'll be ok...
15:59 CEST 115km/55km to go
The third and final sprint in Lliria is not contested by the breakaways, but
it's still Calcagni who takes the 6 points and 75 euros ahead of Putsep and
Ivanov. That's about a fifth of the amount of a sprint prime at the Tour de
France.
16:02 CEST 118km/52km to go
Rabobank and Fassa are doing the majority of the chasing, although Rabo only
has two men on the front. At the sprint line, the gap is 3'30.
16:07 CEST 122km/48km to go
Tyler Hamilton is cruising along in the peloton with a brace on his right wrist.
There's nothing broken, but he does have some strained ligaments which is making
it harder to change gears.
Matt White (Cofidis) has moseyed on up to the front of the peloton to assist
in the chase. Vasseur and Atienza are up there too.
16:08 CEST
Josu Silloniz (Euskaltel) has abandoned. He was the last rider to finish yesterday.
16:12 CEST 126km/44km to go
We're still on the lookout for some elusive wildlife in this Vuelta a España,
but so far it's been slim pickings. Wait, is that a very fierce Rice Pudding
lurking in the bushes? We await confirmation.
The gap has fallen to 2'53. The seven leaders are not laying down without a
fight.
16:15 CEST 128km/42km to go
At the back of the peloton there is quite a bit of action with riders constantly
signalling to their team cars for bidons of water. It's very warm and sunny,
and it's essential to drink constantly.
The road is fairly flat now, although we descend a little more before getting
to Valencia. Cofidis, Fassa and Rabobank are putting the screws on. O'Grady
is quite well placed near the front.
16:22 CEST 132km/38km to go
The break is cooperating quite well at the moment, but steadily losing time
to the juggernaut of the peloton behind it. Clearly the sprinters' teams are
not worried about catching the break too early, because with three teams riding
on the front there is almost no chance that a late counter attack will succeed.
That shouldn't stop riders from trying, as there is still a bit of publicity
to be gained.
It's now 2'34.
16:24 CEST 134km/36km to go
The peloton divides and reforms as it navigates one of the many roundabouts
on today's route. It's fairly strung out, but the pace is not super high yet.
That is usually saved for the last 10 km.
16:25 CEST
The leaders pass a couple of kids riding on the bike path next to the main road.
They're clad in shorts and pretty much nothing else. But they can't keep up
for more than a couple of seconds.
16:28 CEST 138km/32km to go
The break is working well at 43-44 km/h, but it's not going to be enough to
hold off the peloton. Putsep, Ivanov, Elias, Calcagni, Gutierrez, Torrent and
Righi are the men in front, having attacked at km 16.
16:33 CEST 141km/29km to go
In the break, Jose Miguel Elias punctures his front wheel and has to chase back
on. The Alessio team car helps him a bit, and he should make it to the breakaway
group again.
16:34 CEST
The group sits up and waits for Elias, who is now back with them. He is one
of the strongest, so they need him!
16:35 CEST
The peloton is now just a kilometre behind the break, and can see it ahead on
this long straight road.
Vinokourov is at the back of the bunch, taking on bidons for his surviving teammates.
Maybe today will be a Zabel day?
16:37 CEST 143km/27km to go
The cooperation is not quite as good now in the break, as the riders realise
that they are doomed. The gap is 1'10 to the peloton with 27 km to go. They
would need about four times that to ensure success.
16:39 CEST
Jeff from Wisconsin writes: "You can identify a Spanish Rice Pudding by the
way it trots. They may look fierce, but...their barf is worse than their bite."
16:40 CEST 145km/25km to go
The gap is exactly (allowing for time dilation and Einsteinian relativity) one
minute as Cofidis, Rabobank and Fassa Bortolo continue the hunt for the breakaways.
16:42 CEST
It's 51 seconds now as Putsep looks back and sees the bunch riding hard. Not
a sight to instill confidence into a breakaway rider.
16:45 CEST 150km/20km to go
The peloton is racing along a nice wide road - no more hills, just a flat and
fast run into Valencia. Petacchi knows this city well, having won the Trofeo
Luis Puig, which finished here last year.
At 20 km to go, it's 34 seconds.
16:48 CEST 152km/18km to go
Gutierrez does a strong turn in the break, even though there is realisation
that the peloton will swallow them up. There's no "most combative" prize in
the Vuelta, so there's less of an incentive to stay out in front for as long
as possible.
The breakaways are just soft pedalling now, sitting on the tops of the hoods.
16:50 CEST 153km/17km to go
It's over. With just under 17 km to go, the break sits up after 137 km in front.
They all take long drinks from their bottles and allow the peloton to swarm
past. No-one feels like attacking for that last kilometre of glory.
The pace isn't super high at the moment and we can except a few more attacks.
16:54 CEST 156km/14km to go
Cofidis has kept men at the front of the peloton and we can see a few other
teams trying to move up as well. US Postal is there, keeping Beltran and Floyd
out of trouble. Also Vini Caldirola (for Zanotti and Garzelli).
The bunch is not in a long line, but it seems that most riders will happily
settle for a bunch sprint. Cofidis drives it at 47 km/h up a small climb. Ouch.
16:55 CEST 158km/12km to go
Ahah, Stéphane Berges (Ag2r) decides that he can achieve the impossible and
attacks on the left hand side of the road. But Cofidis lift the pace slightly
and he lasts all of 200m.
16:58 CEST 159km/11km to go
A Cafes Baque rider misses a corner as the peloton now rides along the coast
into Valencia. Phonak takes over in front, trying to break the peloton in the
offshore breeze. It's hurting a lot of people, and it's a very long line. Petacchi
is just behind Beltran and surrounded by teammates. Beltran moves up behind
Michael Barry, who is at the front of the peloton.
16:59 CEST 161km/9km to go
10 km to go and the Phonak offensive hasn't done much except drop a couple of
riders. There's just enough shelter from the trees on the median strip to avoid
the crosswinds.
Garcia Acosta is on the front, pedalling at 53 km/h. That's gotta hurt.
17:00 CEST 162km/8km to go
The bunch is a big block again - not strung out despite the high speed. The
final kilometres are ticking away rapidly, but Fassa is biding its time in the
second rank.
17:02 CEST 164km/6km to go
The bunch passes a hotel monstrosity as it heads into Valencia, led by Vini
Caldirola. At the back, the Cafes Baque rider who crashed has regained the safety
of the bunch. CSC is also there, pacing Sastre up after a mechanical.
17:03 CEST 165km/5km to go
6 km to go and there's another attack. It's Paternina's David Fernandez, who
puts in a huge sprint and gets about a 70m gap. Not a bad effort at all. He'll
feel it in about 30 seconds.
17:04 CEST
Cofidis has three riders on the front and Fernandez blows up and goes backwards
fast. Then Fassa is next in line, not panicking.
17:05 CEST
Valverde is very close to the front, looking for Petacchi. He finds him, with
Zabel on his wheel. O'Grady is also there and Freire.
17:05 CEST 166km/4km to go
The Rabobank train moves up on the outside with 4 km to go, with Cofidis still
on the front. They are all clustered on the right hand side because of the wind.
That could be dangerous for punctures.
17:06 CEST 167km/3km to go
3 km left and Rabobank, Cofidis and one T-Mobile are in front. Fassa is ready.
17:07 CEST 168km/2km to go
Fassa has four men leading Petacchi, while Freire and O'Grady are fighting for
the Italian's wheel. Zabel has chosen to sit behind them. Freire gets Petacchi's
wheel and O'Grady is not happy.
17:07 CEST
Zabel slides up next to Petacchi now, trying to get rid of Freire.
17:08 CEST 168.5km/1.5km to go
The Fassa quartet takes over with 1.5 km to go and it'll be between Petacchi,
Freire, Zabel and O'Grady it looks like.
A Lampre rider attacks. It doesn't work.
17:08 CEST 169km/1km to go
1 km to go, and three Fassas lead Petacchi. Then Zabel, Freire and O'Grady.
they turn into the final straight...
17:09 CEST 170km/0km to go
Trenti leads out from 300m then Petacchi comes past at 200m with Zabel on his
wheel. Zabel tries to get round but he can't and Petacchi wins his third stage!!
Freire third, O'Grady fourth. Petacchi was clocked at 71 km/h across the line
as he won by a bike length.
No changes to the GC, and Manuel Beltran will wear the golden jersey going into
tomorrow's 40km individual time trial. But as he's on the same time as Floyd
Landis on GC, it could well be that Landis takes back the jersey. The performances
of Hamilton and Gonzalez will also be interesting.
Results
Provisional 1 Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 3.53.04 2 Erik Zabel (Ger) T-Mobile Team 3 Oscar Freire (Spa) Rabobank 4 Stuart O'Grady (Aus) Cofidis, le credit par Telephone 5 Luca Paolini (Ita) Quick.Step-Davitamon 6 Pedro Horrillo (Spa) Quick.Step-Davitamon 7 Giosue Bonomi (Ita) Saeco 8 Andy Flickinger (Fra) Ag2R Prevoyance 9 Cristian Moreni (Ita) Alessio-Bianchi 10 Miguel A. M. Perdiguero (Spa) Saunier Duval-Prodir General classification after stage 7 1 Manuel Beltran (Spa) US Postal Service p/b Berry Floor 26.28.43 2 Floyd Landis (USA) US Postal Service p/b Berry Floor 3 Denis Menchov (Rus) Illes Balears-Banesto 0.04 4 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme 0.09 5 Cadel Evans (Aus) T-Mobile Team 0.16 6 Benoit Joachim (Lux) US Postal Service p/b Berry Floor 0.23 7 Francisco Mancebo (Spa) Illes Balears-Banesto 0.39 8 Carlos Garcia Quesada (Spa) Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme 0.47 9 Victor Hugo Peña (Col) US Postal Service p/b Berry Floor 10 Tyler Hamilton (USA) Phonak Hearing Systems 0.50
