Updated
The official announcement of the next Corsa Rosa is scheduled for December 2, but CN quotes Tuttosport reporting that the Giro will include a short mountain time trial, 13 km or thereabouts, up the Oropa. Oddly, the selection of this climb is a tribute to Marco Pantani, whose win here in 1999 distanced him from everyone but the doping control agents. Ah, the good old days... Italy's relationship to Pantani is, shall we say, complicated. Anyway, the Giro spiked last year's uphill ITT when the riders revolted over having last day split stages, so in that light consider this stage overdue.
Update [2006-11-16 19:4:24 by chris]: In tomorrow's CN notes, Gregor Brown reports that Giro organizers have been spotted in Bergamo -- home to Paolo Savoldelli -- scouting finishing sites. Two salient points:
- Finding a stage on Savoldelli's home turf would be a nice gesture of respect to an aging champion.
- Apparently Tuttosport and maybe Gregor Brown are secretly following Giro personnel around, presumably in an unmarked van, scouting the scouts for advance info. This is a very entertaining development.