Stage 12 of the Giro d’Italia took place around the Cinque Terra, five villages on the Italian Riviera with some of the most spectacular scenery around. The course drew criticism from the peloton for its’ hills and tight turns. Belgium Knee Warmers has video and defence of the course:
Stage 12’s mountainous time trial was one of the most exciting stages I’ve seen in a Grand Tour in the last five years. The course was breathtakingly gorgeous and over roads any cyclist would kill to ride on as a closed course. Shouldn’t the course of a Grand Tour take in roads that are at once challenging, thrilling and precarious? Certainly we don’t wish harm to come to the riders (e.g. Pedro Horillo), but roller races aren’t nearly as fun to watch.
