Tour of Darmen
Tour of Darmen
Location: Darmen
Discipline: Road cycling
Type: Stage Race
Organizer: Darmeni Cycling Association
First edition: 2011
Editions: 3
First winner: Winslow Mathers (BR3)
Most recent: Preben Kvaal (MYT)
The
Tour of Darmen is a multi-stage
road cycling race held periodically in Darmen. The Tour has earned a reputation for being one of the most difficult cycling races in the multiverse, in large part due to its numerous high mountain climbs and extremely long stages, although in the latter case, changes have been made to improve rider welfare.
The race was initially held under the auspices Nation States Cycling Union for its first edition, before becoming part of the World Tour of Cycling for its next two editions. Since then, no editions of the Tour had been organized until the Darmeni Cycling Association announced its return for the inaugural 2048 Darmeni Road Cycling Cup.
The fourth edition of the Tour of Darmen will cover ten stages over an eleven day period, held during the first two weeks of June. The first six stages will be mostly flat, giving an opportunity for the sprinters to showcase their skill, something which was almost totally absent from the first three editions. The final four stages have been declared by the DCA to be "traditional stages" and they will follow the same courses that the third edition of the Tour of Darmen covered. These stages include three mountain top finishes and a time trial in the high elevation municipality of Mansfield.
EditionsEdition Stages General Classification Mountains Classification Points Classification
1st 3 Winslow Mathers (BR3) Denis Schweinsteiger (MEG) Jovan Voralic (THT)
2nd 3 Scott Perry (DAR) Not Awarded Scott Perry (DAR)
3rd 4 Preben Kvaal (MYT) Not Awarded Preben Kvaal (MYT)
StagesFirst Six StagesThe first six stages of the race do not follow any fixed route. The DCA's decision to add them to the Tour was largely based on two considerations: the routes of the first three Tours did not provide any incentive for sprinters to participate in the Tour due to the many mountainous stages; and the Tour had been completely confined to the northwestern and north-central areas of Darmen, denying cycling fans living elsewhere in the country easy access to line the race's route and cheer. Due to Darmen's size, six stages is not adequate enough to take the race to all areas of Darmen, but the DCA's ability to choose different stage routes will allow them to visit all of Darmen over the course of a few years. Several stipulations are placed upon the routes of the first six stages however: each stage is to have an intermediate sprint, one of the six stages is to have a slightly uphill finish and at least two categorized climbs are to be included throughout the six days. A rest day will be held following Stage 4.
Stage 7Leaving the central business district of Darmen City, the Tour enters the Tyger Mountain Range and begins its mountainous phase with a 158 km stage with three categorized climbs. The first climb, the Category 1 Mt. Jalvár, begins after 32km. The climb up Mt. Jalvár lasts 9.2 km with an average grade 7.8%, including a 500 meter section at 12% as riders crest the summit. At 88 km, the riders face their second climb, the
Hors catégorie Mt. Lyons. With an average grade of 9.28% over 11.5 km, the climb up Mt. Lyons is not the longest, but certainly the steepest of the big mountains: the last half kilometre has grades of 13.2%. The race concludes at the summit of the Category 2 Mt. Nord. A six kilometre climb at an average grade of 6.54%, it is the first of three mountain top finishes.
Stage 8A 40 km individual time trial on a winding course through the municipality of Mansfield's downtown. A ten kilometre section leaves the city and includes the stage's only non-flat section, a short three kilometre section of small rolling hills. Although the time trial is an important part of the Tour for the general classification riders, it also serves as a sort of half-rest day for the sprinters and domestiques who simply want to survive the mountains.
Stage 9Leaving Mansfield behind, the peloton travels 43 km before reaching the
Hors catégorie Mt. Hogan, which is a 15.3 km climb with an average grade of 7.39%. The Category 1 Mt. Prynce serves as the finish for the stage. 7.58% grades are average over the 9.2 km climb, with a 700 m stretch of the climb just before the final kilometre having a grade of 15%. The total length of the stage is 124 km, making it the shortest of the three mountain stages.
Stage 10The final stage covers a grueling 196 km course. The first 36 kilometres are slightly downhill, allowing riders to coast to the final intermediate sprint of the Tour and the last chance for riders to change the standings in the Points classification. After that the race resumes its uphill trend, slowly climbing over a 100 km stretch before reaching Mt. Ulterak, the last
Hors catégorie climb of the Tour. At 18.1 km, Mt. Ulterak is the longest of the Tour's climbs and grades average 7.08%. Following the descent of Mt. Ulterak, the riders continue on to the finish in Padomera, up the Category 2 Mt. Ewsin. The 4.9 km climb with an average grade of 6.8% might not sound like much, but the final kilometre has the steepest grades of the whole Tour, with an 800 meter stretch at 16% and the final 200 meters climbing at an 18% grade. After a challenging week and a half of riding, all but the best of climbers struggle to complete the final 1000 meters.
RecordsMost Stage Wins (by Rider) Most Stage Wins (by Nation)
2 Scott Perry (DAR) 3 Mytannion (MYT)
1 Eight different riders 2 Darmen (DAR)
1 Five different nations