The Dash King Green Jersey was not an honor a climber could hope to claim.
Of course, such an honor—winning all three jerseys—was just icing on the cake. Achieving it wasn't a definitive measure of a rider's ability.
So, after a moment's thought, Huang Chong let it go.
'Some things are best left to chance.'
After Ineos took control at the front, the overall pace of the race quickened noticeably.
The third climb of the stage began at the 73.5-kilometer mark. It was a Second Category climb: the Karakol Pass (Alto del Caracol).
It was 10.7 kilometers long with an average gradient of 5.5%, with its steepest sections reaching 9.3%.
However, this climb wasn't a continuous ascent. Between the three and four-kilometer marks, there was a full kilometer of descent at a -6.6% gradient, making it an undulating section.
