The all important numbers!
Below are data about each day's ride from my Garmin. Day 2 is missing the first section from Lurbe St Christau to Gourette due to damp from the previous day causing it to malfunction!
2011-06-16
2011-06-13
Cerbere
End of the journey!
Cyclists ahoy!
Margot the Marmot
Made it!
Port Vendres ...waiting for a spare wheel!
Oranginas in Argeles
Ready for the run to the coast
2011-06-11
Mosette (on descent of Col de Jau)
Mark, descending towards Prades
Col de Jau : first view of the Med
setting off from Massat
Day 5: Prades to Cerbere
We made it!
A fine sunny morning greeted us as we set off for the final stage. "Nice and steady" everyone agreed, before we got on the nice fast downhill road with a tailwind and the fast boys at the front set an infernal pace, howling along at well over 35 km/h, looking pretty swift in our matching Marmot Tours jerseys. At a roundabout, the peloton engulfed a couple of serious-looking locals out for a Saturday morning spin. They sat just back from the front for quite a while, until the front boys got fed up and peeled off to let them do some work on the front. Big mistake! They drove the pace up even higher (obviously time to teach Les Anglais a lesson!) but eventually turned off and sanity was restored.
After a welcome "convenience stop", we split into 3 groups to make it a bit easier along the busy road. In my group, Bob (who had had to abandon the challenge due to a bad knee on day 2, but was determined to ride to the finish today) was obviously back in good form and the pace soon rose again. Yet again I found myself hanging off the back, but when we stopped at a cafe in Argeles sur Mer I found that my back wheel had developed quite a wobble and was rubbing the brake as I rode. I slackened off the brake and we continued, but the twisting ups and downs of the coastal road soon took their toll and it got worse. At Port Vendres I stopped and found it had pulled a spoke through the rim and was now wobbling enough to rub against the frame. There wasn't much else to do but call for James in the support van and ask for a wheel change. Luckily, he was only about 10 minutes away and we quickly swapped the wheel and got going again. I still wasn't quite able to hold the pace, so dropped off the back and enjoyed the last few km on my own, soaking up the sunshine. Before I knew it I rounded the last corner into Cerbere and saw the sea-front bar of the hotel where the others were waiting.
We had made it! James handed me a glass of champagne and we waited for the other groups to appear before the celebrations began including the obligatory feet-in-the-sea photo to match the one in the Atlantic back in Hendaye.
(...photos to follow!)
2011-06-10
Day 4 : Massat to Prades
What a day! I started off feeling distinctly dodgy, most likely something I ate yesterday. Didn't sleep much either: not the best preparation for a big day with 5 cols.
First up was the Col de Port, a relatively gentle climb up through some trees in the rain, but I soon realised I wasn't firing on all cylinders. I met Dan and Chris at the top, and rode with them for the descent to Tarascon, followed by a long and unpleasantly busy drag up to Ax-les-Thermes. I struggled even to stay on their wheels, let alone contribute at the front. By the time we reached Ax I was shattered, and more than a little worried about the 4 cols ahead. The others went on but Craig & Mark were buying sarnies so I sat and had a coffee with them, had some snacks from the van then bought a truly enormous sandwich to stash in the van for lunch at the top of the first col.
The Col de Pailheres rises from Ax at 720 m to a mighty 2001 m : almost as big as the Tourmalet, so I set off with some trepidation. I chatted to Mark on the way up at a slow pace, and as we got higher it started raining again. I found this really hard going and it seemed to go on for ever, but eventually we reached Alan with his ever-present support van, where I knew my sandwich was waiting! It was pretty cold and wet, so I quickly donned some extra layers, then Mark and I sat in the cab of the van, silently devouring our beloved sandwiches.
The descent was narrow and full of tight hairpin bends so required a lot of concentration, but the wind chill made it extremely cold. At about two-thirds the way down we stopped at a cafe at Mijanes for a hot choc to warm up, and met some others including Thierry who had ground to a halt while climbing and fallen off, badly cutting his elbow.
We carried on, keen to get this one out of the way and warm up, but of course that only meant more climbing. By now we were into very remote landscapes, with what seemed like a deserted village lining the bottom of a gorge. The only way was up, in our case the Col des Moulis, followed by a small descent then up again to the Col de Garavel ...both fairly non-descript and a bit disappointing ...you can tell I was having a bad day. However I started to feel better as we moved down the valley to the base of the Col de Jau, where a tactical banana seemed to reconnect the power to my legs and suddenly I felt able to climb "properly" again. I'd been careful to keep eating & drinking all morning, but to no avail. Now, it seemed, I'd "ridden out" whatever problem I had.
Motivated by the knowledge that this was the last Col of the trip, I charged onwards and even managed a big-ring spurt on the final plateau at the top. Greeted by Alan and some others, I could now actually see the Mediterranean sea in the distance for the first time.
The landscape changed dramatically on the descent, to Mediterranean villages, old castles and a pleasant warm feeling in the air as we hurtled towards Prades and found the hotel. It's great to know that all the hard work is done now: just 100 km tomorrow with a downhill followed by rolling coastal roads to the finish in Cerbere. And rumour has it the weather might actually be nice!
(photos to follow tomorrow when there's some more WiFi)
First up was the Col de Port, a relatively gentle climb up through some trees in the rain, but I soon realised I wasn't firing on all cylinders. I met Dan and Chris at the top, and rode with them for the descent to Tarascon, followed by a long and unpleasantly busy drag up to Ax-les-Thermes. I struggled even to stay on their wheels, let alone contribute at the front. By the time we reached Ax I was shattered, and more than a little worried about the 4 cols ahead. The others went on but Craig & Mark were buying sarnies so I sat and had a coffee with them, had some snacks from the van then bought a truly enormous sandwich to stash in the van for lunch at the top of the first col.
The Col de Pailheres rises from Ax at 720 m to a mighty 2001 m : almost as big as the Tourmalet, so I set off with some trepidation. I chatted to Mark on the way up at a slow pace, and as we got higher it started raining again. I found this really hard going and it seemed to go on for ever, but eventually we reached Alan with his ever-present support van, where I knew my sandwich was waiting! It was pretty cold and wet, so I quickly donned some extra layers, then Mark and I sat in the cab of the van, silently devouring our beloved sandwiches.
The descent was narrow and full of tight hairpin bends so required a lot of concentration, but the wind chill made it extremely cold. At about two-thirds the way down we stopped at a cafe at Mijanes for a hot choc to warm up, and met some others including Thierry who had ground to a halt while climbing and fallen off, badly cutting his elbow.
We carried on, keen to get this one out of the way and warm up, but of course that only meant more climbing. By now we were into very remote landscapes, with what seemed like a deserted village lining the bottom of a gorge. The only way was up, in our case the Col des Moulis, followed by a small descent then up again to the Col de Garavel ...both fairly non-descript and a bit disappointing ...you can tell I was having a bad day. However I started to feel better as we moved down the valley to the base of the Col de Jau, where a tactical banana seemed to reconnect the power to my legs and suddenly I felt able to climb "properly" again. I'd been careful to keep eating & drinking all morning, but to no avail. Now, it seemed, I'd "ridden out" whatever problem I had.
Motivated by the knowledge that this was the last Col of the trip, I charged onwards and even managed a big-ring spurt on the final plateau at the top. Greeted by Alan and some others, I could now actually see the Mediterranean sea in the distance for the first time.
The landscape changed dramatically on the descent, to Mediterranean villages, old castles and a pleasant warm feeling in the air as we hurtled towards Prades and found the hotel. It's great to know that all the hard work is done now: just 100 km tomorrow with a downhill followed by rolling coastal roads to the finish in Cerbere. And rumour has it the weather might actually be nice!
(photos to follow tomorrow when there's some more WiFi)
2011-06-09
Cafe at the Aubisque summit
Col d'Aubisque
At start of Aubisque
Start of the Col d'Aubisque
Drying room
...can't properly convey the smell!
Celebratory beers at Massat
Cresting the Col de Portet d'Aspet
Fabio Casartelli memorial
On the way up the Col de Portet d'Aspet
Col de Peyresourde. Lunchtime!
I can recommend the omlette & chips!
Between Aspin and Peyresourde
Col d'Aspin
Day 3 : Campan to Massat
A monster 170 km roller-coaster of a day, but all of it on dry roads : yippee!
Before setting off from Campan, I had to change my brake blocks, having got through a set already with all the braking in the wet on the previous 2 days. In the rush to get going, I think I failed to slacken off the brake cables enough for the new blocks, ...or at least that's what I'd convinced myself was the reason I found the Col d'Aspin harder than I remembered from last August. Probably psychological but either way things felt better after a quick fix at the top.
I was now into new territory, having never been further east than the Aspin before, and the descent was pure bliss. It was market day in the pretty town of Arreau, but I didn't stop as I was keen to catch up with the group for some shelter along the valley floor. Soon after catching them, however, Alan appeared with the van & the all important food, for a quick refuel before the Col de Peyresourde. I climbed with Dan, maintaining a steady pace in the hot sun, reaching the top at about 11:45 - time for an early lunch. James' recommendation of omlette & chips did not disappoint.
The descent off the Peyresourde is probably one of the best I've done, not too steep, with sweeping corners and hardly any traffic ...road cycling doesn't get much better than this! I caught & passed a few guys on the way down, looking for a group to join, thinking it'd flatten out soon, but the descent kept on going even past the town of Luchon: fantastic. Eventually I caught up with Dan and we worked together to bridge the gap to a big group which would see us through the valley, although the pace got a bit crazy as we took turns on the front towards the base of the Col des Ares.
This was a relatively small climb of a few hundred metres, but it split the group and I found myself at the back, climbing with Dan again, with Chris slightly ahead of us. A quick van stop at the top fuelled us up for the next section, with a lovely descent followed by the smaller climb of the Col de Buret. We barrelled along as a three into the Ariege, a bit of France I'd never visited: the lonely, tree-covered and slightly lower mountains completely different from the Hautes Pyrenees landscapes we'd left only this morning.
Soon, the dreaded Col de Portet d'Aspet was upon us: with slopes of up to 14% this was a really hard one, although we broke the climb early on to visit the monument to Olympic road race champion Fabio Casartelli, who died in a crash on the descent in the 1995 Tour de France.
The climb was pretty tough, but finished sooner than we'd expected, so rewarded ourselves with a drink at the summit cafe.
This was the last big climb of the day, but we still had over 60 km still to cover, so we made the most of the descent and the gentle downhill afterwards to keep the pace up towards St Girons. Here, we called in at Oxygene Cycles for our stamp, greeted by the owner, former pro and Tour de France rider Frederic Moncassin!
Some of the other groups had stopped for another cafe stop in town, but Chris, Dan and I decided to press on as we were flagging a bit by now and just wanted to get to the hotel. The road dragged slightly uphill all the way for about 15 km to the end, where we collapsed onto chairs in front of the hotel for a really well-earned beer!
Before setting off from Campan, I had to change my brake blocks, having got through a set already with all the braking in the wet on the previous 2 days. In the rush to get going, I think I failed to slacken off the brake cables enough for the new blocks, ...or at least that's what I'd convinced myself was the reason I found the Col d'Aspin harder than I remembered from last August. Probably psychological but either way things felt better after a quick fix at the top.
I was now into new territory, having never been further east than the Aspin before, and the descent was pure bliss. It was market day in the pretty town of Arreau, but I didn't stop as I was keen to catch up with the group for some shelter along the valley floor. Soon after catching them, however, Alan appeared with the van & the all important food, for a quick refuel before the Col de Peyresourde. I climbed with Dan, maintaining a steady pace in the hot sun, reaching the top at about 11:45 - time for an early lunch. James' recommendation of omlette & chips did not disappoint.
The descent off the Peyresourde is probably one of the best I've done, not too steep, with sweeping corners and hardly any traffic ...road cycling doesn't get much better than this! I caught & passed a few guys on the way down, looking for a group to join, thinking it'd flatten out soon, but the descent kept on going even past the town of Luchon: fantastic. Eventually I caught up with Dan and we worked together to bridge the gap to a big group which would see us through the valley, although the pace got a bit crazy as we took turns on the front towards the base of the Col des Ares.
This was a relatively small climb of a few hundred metres, but it split the group and I found myself at the back, climbing with Dan again, with Chris slightly ahead of us. A quick van stop at the top fuelled us up for the next section, with a lovely descent followed by the smaller climb of the Col de Buret. We barrelled along as a three into the Ariege, a bit of France I'd never visited: the lonely, tree-covered and slightly lower mountains completely different from the Hautes Pyrenees landscapes we'd left only this morning.
Soon, the dreaded Col de Portet d'Aspet was upon us: with slopes of up to 14% this was a really hard one, although we broke the climb early on to visit the monument to Olympic road race champion Fabio Casartelli, who died in a crash on the descent in the 1995 Tour de France.
The climb was pretty tough, but finished sooner than we'd expected, so rewarded ourselves with a drink at the summit cafe.
This was the last big climb of the day, but we still had over 60 km still to cover, so we made the most of the descent and the gentle downhill afterwards to keep the pace up towards St Girons. Here, we called in at Oxygene Cycles for our stamp, greeted by the owner, former pro and Tour de France rider Frederic Moncassin!
Some of the other groups had stopped for another cafe stop in town, but Chris, Dan and I decided to press on as we were flagging a bit by now and just wanted to get to the hotel. The road dragged slightly uphill all the way for about 15 km to the end, where we collapsed onto chairs in front of the hotel for a really well-earned beer!
Col du Tourmalet : conquered
Above Bareges on the Tourmalet
Above Bareges on the Tourmalet
Luz St Sauveur : start of the Tourmalet
Lunch in Argeles Gazost
Between Aubisque & Soulor
Between Aubisque & Soulor
Between Aubisque & Soulor
2011-06-08
Day 2: Lurbe St Christau to Campan
A tough but enjoyable day today, with the classic Tour de France giants of the Col d'Aubisque and the Col du Tourmalet (plus the Col de Soulor, which is just a pimple on the side of the Aubisque).
I set off from the hotel in a group of 4, with what could have been a leisurely warm up through a forest towards Arudy, but it was a bit swift for my liking (particularly when we slipstreamed a tractor for 2 km at 40 kph ...don't try this at home, kids!). At the base of the Col d'Aubisque, the group fragmented and I rode with Thierry from Belgium up the steady 6-8% inclines towards the Victorian spa town of Eaux-Bonnes, then up into the clouds as we approached Gourette, 4 km from the top. Here, James was waiting with a van full of snacks, perfectly timed for the last push to the summit. Thierry was suffering a bit now so we slowed the pace a bit but reached the top. Quickly on with some extra layers from the ever present support van, it was straight in to the summit cafe for hot choc and yet more cake. I set off alone on the descent as it's pretty tricky in the wet & cold, plus this section has the spectacular but ever-so-slightly scary Corniche du Litor, a section of road built in to a rock face above a 1000-ft drop. Added to that are two unlit rock tunnels on bends (so there's initially no light at the end to aim for) plus the occasional kamikaze sheep, cow or mountain goat ...just to keep you on your toes!
The Soulor was a nice chance to warm up again, and by now the road had dried, so the descent & valley floor through Arrens to Argeles Gazost was a dream.
Here, I met Thierry again and we polished off a quick Spag bol for lunch before starting the long but beautiful haul up the Gorges de Luz. Helped by a tailwind, and with patches of blue sky appearing, we reached Luz St Sauveur at about 14:45, but Thierry was clearly struggling a bit now and a bit concerned about the 18 km / 1400 m climb of the Tourmalet ahead. I did my best to pace him up to Bareges, but he waved me on and so I continued alone, enjoying what is still one of my favourite climbs. I can't do it quickly, I just enjoy doing it.
At Super-Bareges, there's now the option of taking the old road (closed to motor traffic) up to Pont de la Gaubie, or taking the new road lower down. I opted for the former, and enjoyed some great views before entering the clouds at about 1800 m. I was careful to keep stoking the engine with food at this point, and it paid off as I passed some other guys from our party in the brutal final 2 km feeling surprisingly fresh. It was bitterly cold at the top, so again it was on with the layers and in to the cafe for hot choc & cake. Lots of interesting bike memorabilia adorned the walls of the cafe, but once refuelled I didn't hang around long before setting off on the massive descent down to Ste Marie de Campan. I was expecting this to be dry once I dropped (literally) out of the clouds, but the road stayed wet and then it started to rain. I concentrated hard on keeping a good line through the corners, conscious that my thin racing tyres presented hardly any contact area with the wet road, but aware of the need to drop down to the warmer valley below. I nearly lost it when a dog jumped out at me at 50 kph from behind a van in La Mongie, but made it safely down to Ste Marie, turned left and then time-trialled the final 10 k to Campan in an effort to warm up! Another hotel, another monster meal. And I was soon on the way to recovery.
Lots of smaller cols and 170 k tomorrow: the church bell outside my window is chiming midnight, so it's time I turned in.
I set off from the hotel in a group of 4, with what could have been a leisurely warm up through a forest towards Arudy, but it was a bit swift for my liking (particularly when we slipstreamed a tractor for 2 km at 40 kph ...don't try this at home, kids!). At the base of the Col d'Aubisque, the group fragmented and I rode with Thierry from Belgium up the steady 6-8% inclines towards the Victorian spa town of Eaux-Bonnes, then up into the clouds as we approached Gourette, 4 km from the top. Here, James was waiting with a van full of snacks, perfectly timed for the last push to the summit. Thierry was suffering a bit now so we slowed the pace a bit but reached the top. Quickly on with some extra layers from the ever present support van, it was straight in to the summit cafe for hot choc and yet more cake. I set off alone on the descent as it's pretty tricky in the wet & cold, plus this section has the spectacular but ever-so-slightly scary Corniche du Litor, a section of road built in to a rock face above a 1000-ft drop. Added to that are two unlit rock tunnels on bends (so there's initially no light at the end to aim for) plus the occasional kamikaze sheep, cow or mountain goat ...just to keep you on your toes!
The Soulor was a nice chance to warm up again, and by now the road had dried, so the descent & valley floor through Arrens to Argeles Gazost was a dream.
Here, I met Thierry again and we polished off a quick Spag bol for lunch before starting the long but beautiful haul up the Gorges de Luz. Helped by a tailwind, and with patches of blue sky appearing, we reached Luz St Sauveur at about 14:45, but Thierry was clearly struggling a bit now and a bit concerned about the 18 km / 1400 m climb of the Tourmalet ahead. I did my best to pace him up to Bareges, but he waved me on and so I continued alone, enjoying what is still one of my favourite climbs. I can't do it quickly, I just enjoy doing it.
At Super-Bareges, there's now the option of taking the old road (closed to motor traffic) up to Pont de la Gaubie, or taking the new road lower down. I opted for the former, and enjoyed some great views before entering the clouds at about 1800 m. I was careful to keep stoking the engine with food at this point, and it paid off as I passed some other guys from our party in the brutal final 2 km feeling surprisingly fresh. It was bitterly cold at the top, so again it was on with the layers and in to the cafe for hot choc & cake. Lots of interesting bike memorabilia adorned the walls of the cafe, but once refuelled I didn't hang around long before setting off on the massive descent down to Ste Marie de Campan. I was expecting this to be dry once I dropped (literally) out of the clouds, but the road stayed wet and then it started to rain. I concentrated hard on keeping a good line through the corners, conscious that my thin racing tyres presented hardly any contact area with the wet road, but aware of the need to drop down to the warmer valley below. I nearly lost it when a dog jumped out at me at 50 kph from behind a van in La Mongie, but made it safely down to Ste Marie, turned left and then time-trialled the final 10 k to Campan in an effort to warm up! Another hotel, another monster meal. And I was soon on the way to recovery.
Lots of smaller cols and 170 k tomorrow: the church bell outside my window is chiming midnight, so it's time I turned in.
2011-06-07
Day 1: Hendaye to Lurbe St Christau
Well having seen the forecast yesterday, we knew what was coming, but didn't think it'd actually rain from start to finish, but it did!
We partook in the traditional ritual of wetting or feet in the Atlantic, hopefully to be followed by the same in the Med on Saturday. Waved off by our ever-chirpy tour guides, we set off up the coast road and soon settled into groups of similar pace. The first mini-climb of the Col de St Ignace didn't seem to bad, although the descent was less than relaxing due to the slippery wet road. The guides yo-yo'd past us in the vans, making sure all were ok and gesticulating madly at appropriate points on tricky juctions.
A coffee stop at Espelette provided the first opportunity to get our Carnets stamped (a record that we have completed the route), by a very understanding cafe owner, who didn't seem to mind 20 drenched and smelly cyclists (literally) inundating his establishment, nor the crates of snack food brought in by the tour guides from the support van.
We charged on into the foothills, reaching St Jean Pied de Port for lunch, but the extended stop sitting I'm wet gear meant we left again shivering and keen to warm up again.
The only significant climb left was the Col d'Osquich, which was ok taken at a steady pace (a very steady pace in my case!), but again the wet roads rather spoiled what would have been a great descent.
The Hotel Au Bon Coin in Lurbe provided a hearty meal to finish off the day. Overall, a bit of a soaking but the legs didn't feel too bad. However by the time I sat down to write this the forecast suggested snowfalls above 1800 m tomorrow. And the highpoint of tomorrow's ride is the mighty Col du Tourmalet at 2115 m. I'm off to bed...
We partook in the traditional ritual of wetting or feet in the Atlantic, hopefully to be followed by the same in the Med on Saturday. Waved off by our ever-chirpy tour guides, we set off up the coast road and soon settled into groups of similar pace. The first mini-climb of the Col de St Ignace didn't seem to bad, although the descent was less than relaxing due to the slippery wet road. The guides yo-yo'd past us in the vans, making sure all were ok and gesticulating madly at appropriate points on tricky juctions.
A coffee stop at Espelette provided the first opportunity to get our Carnets stamped (a record that we have completed the route), by a very understanding cafe owner, who didn't seem to mind 20 drenched and smelly cyclists (literally) inundating his establishment, nor the crates of snack food brought in by the tour guides from the support van.
We charged on into the foothills, reaching St Jean Pied de Port for lunch, but the extended stop sitting I'm wet gear meant we left again shivering and keen to warm up again.
The only significant climb left was the Col d'Osquich, which was ok taken at a steady pace (a very steady pace in my case!), but again the wet roads rather spoiled what would have been a great descent.
The Hotel Au Bon Coin in Lurbe provided a hearty meal to finish off the day. Overall, a bit of a soaking but the legs didn't feel too bad. However by the time I sat down to write this the forecast suggested snowfalls above 1800 m tomorrow. And the highpoint of tomorrow's ride is the mighty Col du Tourmalet at 2115 m. I'm off to bed...
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