Vuelta 2016 live stream: Time, TV schedule and how to watch Stage 8 online with NBC Sports Gold

Until now, riders at the 2016 Vuelta a Espana have had to contend with searing heat and rolling climbs, but little more. On Saturday, the real mountains begin and hits them hard. Stage 8 is a steady false-flat climb until the final 10 kilometers, when gradient ramps up recklessly for mountain top finish at La Camperona.

The 181.5-kilometer stage will begin in Villalpando at 7:08 a.m. ET (1:08 p.m. local time). The stage will be shown live from 7-9 a.m. on Universal HD, then streamed through NBC Sports Gold from 9 a.m. to the Stage 8’s conclusion.

Colombian rider Darwin Atapuma is still in the red jersey as the Vuelta’s leader on the general classification. That should change after Saturday’s final, brutal climb. Podium Cafe’s Chris Fontecchio called it “inhuman,” with several stretches above a 20 percent gradient (by comparison, the worst climbs of this year’s Tour de France topped a little over 10 percent). Expect the general classification to look very different this time Sunday.

Worth watching is whether Spanish cycling legend Alberto Contador makes the start. He was involved in a crash late in Stage 7, and though he finished the stage he crossed the line with several serious scrapes along his left side, not unlike his crash early during the Tour de France. As during the Tour, Contador may ride but still struggle to maintain his typically strong form.

Profile map courtesy the Vuelta’s official site.

Start time: 7:08 a.m. ET

Route: 181.5 kilometers from Villalpando to La Camperona

TV: Universal HD, from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m.

Streaming: NBC Sports Gold (subscription required), starting at 9 a.m.