La Vuelta a Espana will have seen the WorldTour’s elite tackle more than 3,200 kilometres by the time this year’s race has reached Santiago de Compostela.
With nearly 58,000 metres of elevation packed into the 21 stages, the battle for the red jersey – which has attracted an all-star cast – is to be fiercely contested in the Spanish mountains.
And route mapping and tracking app Strava have plotted each of the 21 stages of this year’s route, from Saturday’s team time trial, won by Movistar, to the concluding race against the clock in Santiago de Compostela on Sunday September 14.
Many of the peloton’s top pros use Strava to track their rides, including the likes of Adam Yates (Orica-GreenEDGE) and red jersey contender Rigoberto Uran (Omega Pharma-Quickstep), allowing amateurs to compare their efforts with the pros.
And with detailed segment information available on Strava, it is possible to see how the professional peloton fares on some of the toughest climbs on this year’s route.
Are you planning on a cycling trip to Spain in the near future? Here are six of the most fearsome segments on this year’s route for you to consider tackling.