Don't miss friday's stage of Vuelta al Pais Vasco, which portrays a climb similar to that of Montelupone in Tirreno-Adriatico:



Spanish national champion Joaquim Rodriguez, aka 'Purito', climbing the final slopes of Aia during a training ride [thanks to JoaquimRodriguez.com for the photo]. He was the winner of Montelupone's stage.

Alto de Aia
Average gradient of 11% for more than two kilometers. Maximum gradient of 26%. Just 13 kilometers from the finishing line.

This would be a 'Hurts more' in chris scale for Ronde hills, right? :)

Look at the gradients:

Some more pictures here:
link here