Rasmussen says possible rider protest against Crostis-Zoncolan stage

There may be a team and rider protest against stage 14 of the Giro d'Italia, which includes the descent of the Monte Crostis on its way to the steep mountaintop finish of the Zoncolan. Alex Rasmussen of HTC-Highroad said the Crostis descent on narrow, steep gravel roads was very dangerous.

“We have seen pictures of it and it is not fun,” Rasmussen told Ekstra Bladet. “There are several hundred meters of hillside, where there is no shielding of any sort. And the road leaning the wrong way.

“Racing is so dangerous. There is not just one or two but ten men that could ride off the edge there,” he said. “They're constantly working to make the Giro as hard and extreme as possible. But this is a little too extreme.”

The peloton has reacted with deep sorrow and anguish to the tragic accident that took the life of Wouter Weylandt on stage three last Monday. Saxo Bank-SunGard's Alberto Contador also admitted that he was afraid of the Crostis descent and that he was hoping for snowfall to cancel the stage. “If Contador says that, then there is something to it. That part of the stage is to his advantage."

At this point, there is no decision as to a protest against the stage, and it is also questionable whether the race organisers would pay attention to one. “I doubt it. But if all riders are united, then surely they would have to,” said Rasmussen.