The first true day in the mountains was not the best way to enjoy wearing the maillot rojo at the Vuelta a España.
Wearing a leader’s jersey of a stage race — let alone a Grand Tour — is a special thing. For Torstein Træen, it was nice to show up in the red jersey but it was hardly a walk in un parque.
Vuelta leader Torstein Træen held firm on the final climb to Cerler. He ensured he kept the red jersey for another day. The Bahrain Victorious rider briefly had a moment when João Almeida accelerated but quickly regained contact, crossing the line with the same time as the main contenders.
For the 28-year-old Norwegian, the stage was both demanding and unfamiliar. He told Eurosport that riding in the leader’s jersey brought a different kind of pressure, adding that he leaned heavily on the support around him. “On the last climb, my only job was to stick with the strongest riders — that in itself felt new to me,” he said.
Despite surviving the first mountain test, Træen admitted that the stress of protecting red overshadowed any enjoyment. He said he spent most of the stage on edge, focused on not slipping out of the jersey, but suggested he might be able to savour it more during Friday’s flatter run.
For Ayuso, it was definitely a better day than Thursday, when he fell off the back towards the end. UAE entered the race with two co-leaders for GC. Now, clearly, there is one. However, the Spanish rider can still go for more stage wins while his Portuguese teammate tries to topple the Dane in the overall standings.
As far as the day’s events, even when the favourites briefly surged clear, Træen said he was confident his overall lead was safe. With 2:33 in hand over Jonas Vingegaard, he will start Stage 8 still in command of the race.
Saturday’s stage is a relatively (uh, relatively) easy day, which may have a breakaway or sprint. Perhaps the Norwegian can enjoy his very special jersey during the event. It’s Monzón Templario › Zaragoza (163.5 km).
For all the linguist fans of Canadian Cycling Magazine: Træen in Norwegian means “tree.” So let’s leaf it to him to enjoy the day (and I am so sorry, that is a terrible joke).
Happy Friday. Our Vuelta coverage resumes tomorrow. You can watch it on FloBikes.com and check in with Canadian Cycling Magazine afterward for a full report.