Utrecht runs out for Vuelta start

Traffic services and the organization advise visitors to make the last part of their journey towards the city center by bicycle or public transport. People arriving by car are advised to park outside the center of Utrecht. The riders will explore the course from 4 p.m. The ‘green’ caravan leaves the Jaarbeurs at 5.30 pm. At 6.30 pm the first team starts the time trial. The last Jumbo-Visma team arrives around 8.30 pm.

If you don’t manage to break through as a professional, there is a nice consolation prize for the amateur cyclist: you can be crowned King of the Mountain (KoM). To do this, you have to drive the fastest time on a defined piece of road in the Strava sports app. Now that the Vuelta riders are training in Utrecht, many a ‘Kommetje’ is being cut to pieces. Amateur cyclist Arnold Gaasenbeek, among others, has lost his record. The 50-year-old Maarssenaar was the fastest on March 28, 2021 on a piece of almost 3 kilometers near Tienhoven. Until a few Vuelta riders came to make a training round…

Maliesingel 62 in Utrecht is decorated with Sam Oomen banners. The rider of the Dutch Jumbo-Visma has just come from the Tour of Poland and has some problems with his ribs. Can his team win the time trial today and if so: who will put on the red leader’s jersey?

“I found the team time trial a scary part. You have to expose your buttocks for your teammates and you are very vulnerable,” said former rider and cycling analyst Stef Clement van,iddag on Radio M Utrecht. “The team time trial is great when you win, but I also screwed up sometimes. I took my whole team on a wet ride. It’s one of the hardest parts of cycling. It’s about exploring the track, dividing the roles , setting goals and clear agreements.”

Rain will also be an important factor tonight. “On a dry course, the average speed will be 54 to 55 kilometers per hour, although that decreases somewhat if the roads are wet. But on the wide roads in Utrecht you can reach very high speeds with eight riders. is a nice track.” Clement currently lives in Utrecht and was at the start of the Tour in the Domstad in 2015. He also talked about this today on Radio M Utrecht.

Today the team time trial is in Utrecht, tomorrow a large part of the stage will take you through the province. Between 2000 and 4000 farmers are expected to come to a protest meeting in Woudenberg. They gather at an ‘action area’ along the course. In several places, the farmers are trying to draw attention to their fight against the government’s proposed nitrogen measures. There will be no blockages, assures chairman Bart Kemp of organizer Agractie.

In the morning, the activists arrive at the location on the Rumelaarseweg in Woudenberg. Kemp expects hundreds of tractors. They have to be in around 12 noon, because then many roads around the course will be closed. There are several speakers and there is music. At 4 pm the cyclists pass the location and the farmers hope that they will get a good picture. “We discussed a text with the Vuelta that they will read aloud in five languages. This explains why we are campaigning for farmers,” says Kemp.

The farmers have planned playful actions over a length of about 10 kilometers between Scherpenzeel and Woudenberg. There are flags, tractors with banners and with straw bales they have written ‘sos Dutch farmers’. Everything to “make a statement en masse”.

The Spanish cycling team Burgos-BH has already lost a rider before the start of the Vuelta in Utrecht. Spaniard Manuel Peñalver has tested positive for the coronavirus and is therefore not allowed to participate in the stage race. It starts with a team time trial over more than 23 kilometers with start and finish at the Jaarbeurs.

Burgos-BH, with the Dutchman Jetse Bol, will be the first team to start the time trial at 6.30 pm. That happens with seven instead of eight riders.

The municipality of Utrechtse Heuvelrug warns its residents against closures during tomorrow’s stage in Amerongen, among others. For example, the southern part of Koenestraat that runs to the N225 will be closed tomorrow from 14.14 to 17.00, the northern part that turns into Bergweg has been closed from 7 a.m. on Saturday morning and remains closed to motorized traffic until 5 p.m.

The city of Utrecht is much less accessible for cars today and tomorrow: the routes of the stages are even closed to car traffic. But it is different for cyclists and pedestrians, because they can move about normally in many streets. “For some roads, cyclists have to get off because only the footpath is accessible,” the municipality said.

All kinds of activities are planned in Leusden this weekend because of the arrival of the Vuelta to the municipality. Mayor Gerolf Bouwmeester told this morning on Radio M Utrecht. “What is most striking is that in front of the town hall we have a combined performance by Leusden Jazz and Stichting Opera Leusden and a performance by Hans Dulfer. That happens with Spanish snacks and drinks, so it promises to be a big party.”

Bouwmeester: “And on Saturday there is plenty to do in shopping center De Hamershof regarding music and Spanish activities. After that, everyone will move towards the Doornseweg around 4.30 pm because they will then cycle through the most beautiful part of the Netherlands between Den Treek-Henschoten and Leusderheide. “

Listen back to the interview below: