The major difficulties are in the first half of the stage, but there is still a potential headwind and enough terrain to make for another hard day. The 11.3km, 610m (2,000ft) San Marcos Pass ascent will provide an excellent springboard for a well-motivated breakaway group. Descending the south side, the race enters the Santa Ynez Valley wine region, setting for the film Sideways.
The riders will next pass through Los Olivos, the site of Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch. Heading north up Foxen Canyon Road the race will cross through Santa Maria and then head to Guadalupe through this agricultural area’s fields of broccoli, carrots, melons and other produce. Expect another field sprint at the finish in Avila Beach. The contenders for the overall might want to avail themselves of the town’s hot springs as the next two days will be crucial in the race for the leader’s jersey.
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La Vuelta Femenina GC standings – Who is leading the race after stage 1?
General classification standings in the first Grand Tour of 2026 -
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Attacks from Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe diffused by World Champion as Florian Lipowitz and Primož Roglič round out stage 5 podium -
'I landed in a ditch' – Marianne Vos forced into desperate chase after late crash in hectic Vuelta Femenina run-in
Visma-Lease a Bike rider goes down on slippery descent inside 10km from the finish -
As it happened: Swiss star delivers explosive victory after hectic run-in on stage 1 of La Vuelta Femenina
The opening day of racing at La Vuelta Femenina featured a 113km route from Maín to Salvaterra de Miño.
