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By Barry Boyce,
CyclingRevealed Historian
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A Classic Spanish Duel
The eight edition of the Vuelta a Espana marked a classic battle between two talented Spanish riders. An ‘up and coming' rider named Bernardo Ruiz matched his skill against 1946 Vuelta champion Dalmacio Langarica. The resulting race provided excitement from start to finish.
Tremendous heat greeted the riders on Stage 3 as the race got to the Mediterranean coast. After trading the race lead over the first 5 stages Dalmacio Langarica used the first major climb, the Puerto de la Carrasqueta, to launch the winning attack. With the 1 minute "stage win" bonus Langarica took back the White jersey.
Record high temperatures continued on Stage 10 from Lerida to Zaragoza. The excessive heat slowed the pace of the race and no fans turned out to cheer the riders along the route. Race officials were forced to shorten the stage when the 22 km/h pace and rider safety became an issue. After nearly 7 hours of riding Jean Lesage (Bel) sprinted to the stage win. Langarica retained the White race leader's jersey.
The racing action intensified on the Stage 12 ascent of the Urkiola. Dalmacio Langarica attacked and gained 3'42” on Ruiz over the summit of the first climb. In full control the Basques climber met with misfortune on the climb of the Barazar. As Langarica struggled with mechanical problems and crashes Bernardo Ruiz in the company of talented climber Emilio Rodriguez passed the race leader and gained 1'20” over the summit. At the finish in Bilboa Ruiz gained the stage win and the 1 minute time bonus. Ruiz claimed the White jersey and a 3'52” lead in the General Classification.
Relentlessly Langarica tried to gain back time on the race leader. He launched more than 20 serious attacks in the final 7 stages, but only misfortune followed. A heavy crash on Stage 17 was the final blow as Langarica lost 13'38” and fell to 4th in the GC.
Bernardo Ruiz answered every challenge over the next three stages and rode into Madrid to claim the 1948 Vuelta a Espana victory.
| Stage and Distance |
Stage Winner |
Race Leader |
Stage 1 Madrid-Madrid, 14 km ITT |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Berrendero (Spa) & Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 2 Madrid-Valdepenas, 198 km |
Frans Gielen (Bel) |
Frans Gielen (Bel) |
Stage 3 Valdepenas-Granada, 232 km |
Dalmacio Langarica (Spa) |
Dalmacio Langarica (Spa) |
Stage 4 Granada-Murcia, 285 km |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 5 Murcia-Alicante, 230 km |
Roberto Vercellone (Ita) |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 6 Alicante-Valencia, 163 km |
Dalmacio Langarica (Spa) |
Dalmacio Langarica (Spa) |
Stage 7 Valencia-Tortosa, 201 km |
Jose Perez (Spa) |
Dalmacio Langarica (Spa) |
Stage 8 Tortosa-Barcelona, 209 km |
Senen Mesa (Spa) |
Dalmacio Langarica (Spa) |
Stage 9 Barcelona-Lerida, 203 km |
Miguel Gual (Spa) |
Dalmacio Langarica (Spa) |
Stage 10 Lerida-Zaragoza, 144 km |
Jean Lesage (Bel) |
Dalmacio Langarica (Spa) |
Stage 11 Zaragoza-San Sebastian, 276 km |
Dalmacio Langarica (Spa) |
Dalmacio Langarica (Spa) |
Stage 12 San Sebastian-Bilbao, 259 km |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 13 Bilbao-Santander, 212 km |
Senen Mesa (Spa) |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 14 Santander-Gijon, 225 km |
Senen Mesa (Spa) |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 15 Gijon-Ribadeo, 200 km |
Jean Lesage (Bel) |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 16 Ribadeo-La Coruna, 156 km |
Miguel Gual (Spa) |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 17 La Coruna-Orense, 156 km |
Miguel Gual (Spa) |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 18 Orense-Leon, 276 km |
Jean Lesage (Bel) |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 19 Leon-Segovia, 269 km |
Miguel Gual (Spa) |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
Stage 20 Segovia-Madrid, 100 km |
Vittorio Ruiz (Spa) |
 Bernardo Ruiz (Spa)
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Mountain Prize |
Bernardo Ruiz (Spa) |
| VaE June 13 - July 4, 1948 |
| 4.008 Km |
1.
Bernardo RUIZ (Spa) 155h06'30" |
2.
Emilio Rodriguez (Spa) +9'07" |
3.
Bernardo Capo (Spa) +20'45" |
Starters: 54 |
| Finishers: 26 |
Average Speed: 26.358 km/h |
VaE 1947
VaE 1950
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8th Vuelta a Espana 1948
