Upon leaving Martigny, the riders don’t go for the strenuous climb to Verbier. They remember that one from yesterday and head east instead.
Fortum Claudii Vallensium, that´s what Martigny was called in Roman times. The town is beautiful, located at an intersection of valleys. Among them is the Rhône valley and the riders follow that one upstream until they reach Viège (Visp in German), located at an altitude of 658 metres. Here they turn right and head for the closing climb of the 2014 Tour de Suisse. Tough is an understatement.
In Saas-Grund the mice will be separated from the men. The riders are at an altitude of 1,559 at this point. Amongst the mighty giants of the Alps the road itself is crawling higher and higher and at last the riders arrive in Saas-Fee.
Saas-Fee is at 1,803 metres and the oxygen is scarce. The car-free mountain village is surrounded by 13 peaks of over 4000 metres. With it´s summit at 4.545 metres, the Dom is the highest, in fact it´s the third highest peak in the Alps. Furthermore, in the Saas-Fee area you´ll find an abundance of glaciers and you can even ski in summertime at the Mittelallalin (3,500 metres). So the Tour de Suisse really closes at it´s peak.
The stage starts at 12:47 (CET) and the finish is expected around 17:05.
Tour de Suisse 2014 stage 9: Images and more
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