The race runs mostly along the coast. Only when the route first reaches the arrival place after approximately 90 kilometres, the riders turn left to make a 40 kilometres loop through the interior. The last 20 kilometres or so are again played out in the vicinity of the Bay of Biskay.
Racing along the sea doesn’t necessarily mean that the route is flat. The first part is on undulating roads and at kilometre 58 the first KOM-climb appears. The climb to Natxitua is 3.3 kilometres at 5.1%.
Following the passage om arrival place Bermeo – without crossing the finish line – the route continues to the foot of the Almika Sollube. This is the toughest climb of the 2nd stage, amounting to 5.5 kilometres and averaging 6.6%.
At kilometre 110 the riders are back in the valley to race back to the coast on undulating terrain. The Jata is the next uphill section, rising for 5.3 kilometres at 3.6%, before the route once again heads inland. Following a 20 kilometres loop through the interior the sea views are back and the riders hit the last ascent of the day. Leading to La Ermita de San Pelayo this is a 4.6 kilometres climb at 6.5%.
When the race reaches the crest there are 6.6 kilometres left to go, mostly on descent. So it should be an extremely fast finish.
The first three riders on the line take time bonuses of 10, 6 and 4 seconds, while the intermediate sprints (after kilometre 78.4 and after kilometre 141.0) come with 3, 2 and 1 seconds.
Read also: results/race report 2nd stage 2018 Tour of the Basque Country.
Tour of the Basque Country 2018 stage 2: Route maps, height profiles, and more
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