AMSTERDAM CYCLOCROSS - PRE-SEASON AND RACE 1

Amsterdam Cyclocross season

As the season is winding down, and I am having cross withdrawal I thought it was a good time to reflect on my first season of cyclocross racing here in Amsterdam

The local scene 

The Amsterdam cyclocross scene is a live and well, with 12 races making up the local series running from early October to mid-January. These are all within 20km of Amsterdam, and held by different local clubs and are a mixture of races in the park, around fields, through a local village to racing in a horse farm. Not the most technical racing, but good variety and great fun. Typically the fields are between 50 and 70 racers and the skill level varies from beginner to a ex-amateur world champion and a Conti-pro racer. A true mix, but this is what makes the scene. You do not need to an expert to race, and the field is a mix of cyclocross  and mountain bikes. Everything from bling carbon cross bikes to 20 year old mountain bikes, and even a city hybrid turned in to a cross bike. You do not need a cross bike to race, and you do not need to be fast to race. You just need the right can do attitude, and it is great fun.

The other great thing about the series is that you get out to all of the local cycling clubs, and they are true clubs. Most have custom build crit courses, club houses that range from stylish with expresso machines to pretty basic, but all have beer on tap, showers and changing rooms and many years of cycling history on their walls. Ex-world champions jerseys, old time photos of years bygone and even the old old timers themselves drinking beer watching cross in the corner.

The local races can be found at https://sites.google.com/site/amsterdamsecrosscompetitie/agenda

Pre-season practice and skills

Prior to this season I had raced 2 cyclocross races, both last season. For those who have followed me this year, you will know Leah and I raced two multi-day stage races and enjoyed those a lot and also played on the mountain bike a little. My cyclocross specific skills were pretty rusty prior to the start of the season, and the jumping on and off the bike needed some work. Thanks to our friend Julio Jacob, who is now back in chilly windy, Chicago, we got a few lessons before the season. I say we, as my partner Leah, and a few others from ATAC, Amsterdam Triathlon and Cycling Club, were also racing and newbies to this cross thing. The early season practices involved learning how to get on and off the bike, without doing long term bodily damage to your undercarriage; riding our cyclocross bikes around the local mountain bike trail and then also the correct method to pick up your bike and run with it over your shoulder. All important skills for the up coming cross season.

We also practiced regularly with the WTC Amstel club. They run cyclocross training every Thursday night under lights and we made the most of this. It was great to see 40-50 juniors practice before us, then another 50 or so practice a little later. No wonder cross is so strong and the fields so deep when you see how young they start to practice and build the necessary skills

Armed with our new found skills, we were ready for the first race.

19 October, 2014.  UWTC , Zwembad Nieuwveen

Cyclocross racing is sometimes called the hour of pain, although thankfully for the old over 40’s, it is only 40 minutes, but it still hurts. From the start whistle, it is all go and does not let up. The first race in the season always feels the hardest as your body is just not used to the intensity of 40 mins at your maximum and the first race was no different.

My memory of the first race is of a slow start as I was not sure how the race would go, then a hard push to get past a few people, before settling into a more steady pace. It is amazing how hard a 6 foot high bank can be if you climb up and over it every few feet (well that was how it felt), ride off camber along it, then push straight up it on the muddiest spot they could find before a 100% effort on a long straight. The course then continued on, drop down a steep little bank, hard slippery left, then a hard right and into a long bog pit, hard left, across the finish line, and into the sand pit and onwards.  After my slow slow start, then hard push I found myself towards the front of the field and eventually in second place. Ron Vroom, ex over 40 amateur world champion had got away on the first lap, and started away, and I rolled across the line in second. I am not sure who was more surprised, the locals or me as they were pretty curious as to who this ATAC rider was that had unsettled the balance of power in the local scene and was collecting flowers on the podium. Good fun.

1st - Ron in the middle, 2nd - I am second in the ATAC kit and Casper came in 3rd.

Krakow

26 October, 2014

Missed the race as Leah and I spent the weekend in Krakow. A fun weekend, although I missed a flight and arrived the best part of 24 hours late and missed the salt mines. I will have to go back as I heard from Leah, that they are very good! A fun weekend and I enjoyed getting back to Krakow as I used to go there for work.

Bart Brentjens Challenge (100km mountain bike race in the mud)

Usually after a race I write a short blog post, but on reviewing the photos I think that words cannot do the race justice, so instead I am going to post a series of photos.

By way of introduction, the Bart Brentjens Challenge is a mountain bike race that starts just south of Maastricht, which is about a 3 hour drive south of Amsterdam. If you look on a map it should be in Belgium, but it is not and often the Dutch wonder what they got besides hills, but then that is the Amsterdamer in me talking.

Bart Brentjens is a retired Dutch mountain biker who in the late 1990's was a prolific winner. He won the 1996 Gold Medal at Atlanta and the world mountain bike championships in 1995. He also won the Dutch national's 10 times between 1995 and 2007. He is a Dutch hero, and as a side note we knew his brother when we lived in Singapore. The Bart Brentjens challenge is a tribute to him.

This year was the Dutch National Marathon Championships as well as a sportive. I had intended to race the Championships with Ben Evans, my fellow ATAC'er doing the race, and I went to register found I did not have a UCI license number, so I ended up in the Sportive. Ben was racing in the big boys race. After some fast talking I managed to start in the "sponsors" area, rather in the back with the 500 sportive riders. This meant that I started 8 minutes behind the rest of the men's race field and 3 minutes behind the women's field. I was going to be doing some passing..

Now for the photos... From smiling and clean, to, well, you can see...

Happy at the start on the front row.

Going for the line into the front corner, 500m away..

Starting to get muddy..

Still pretty clean

What happened. I like this photo as you can see the globs of mud stuck to my legs. It was crazy muddy.

Focus under the mud

The finish...

Yep, it was a mud bath. In the end it took me 4hrs 48mins, which would have got me about 10th in the 40+ age group. The fastest time of the day was 3hrs 59mins.

Cleaning the bike took a full two hours, and that was just the mud on the outside. At the moment the parts that need replacing are: chain, both brake pads, headset, bottom bracket and rear wheel bearings. An expensive race.

Well that was the Bart Brentjens challenge. My expensive lesson is not to race in the Netherlands if it is pouring with rain, and it has not rained for a while......

http://www.strava.com/activities/203762348

Grand Raid Godfrey - 90km mountain bike race

I may be more Dutch than I expected, and “may” have harbored a few prejudices against our southern neighbors in Belgium, so when the opportunity came up to do a mountain bike race in “Bouillon” in “Belgium”, and living in the Netherlands, expectations were low. I had visions of a small industrial town near the French border, and nondescript country side. I could NOT have been MORE WRONG……

Bouillon, yes it is pronounced like the soup, was beautiful, and I am saying that about Belgium. Rolling tree covered countryside made a picturesque backdrop to the town that sits on a sharp curve of the Semois River, and above the town guarding it from an age long ago, is the Bouillon Castle. Bouillon has long been considered the gateway to the Ardennes, and the castle continues to guard the gate you could say. A little side note, the most famous of the Lords of Bouillon was Godfrey of Bouillon, a leader of the First Crusade, and then the first ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Who would have known that the small town of Bouillon would have such an interesting history.

Why, you may be asking am I going on about this. Well the reason my wonderful partner Leah and a couple of mates from Amsterdam, Ben Evans and Mark Stephenson and I were in Bouillon was do the Grand Raid Godfrey which is a mountain bike race. 

http://www.grandraidgodefroy.be/en/

Revived this year with a new leadership team, and a lot of energy, we were in for a treat. Besides been a beautiful small town with a picturesque backdrop, it has a lot rockingly fast mountain bike trails and a very well put on race. To be precise, a 25km 30km, 40km and 90km loops giving riders the option of a 25km, 40km, 70km, 90km, 130km and 160km race. Some pavement, but not much, a good portion of 4 wheel drive roads, and better still some striking single track. What more could we ask for, and I only wish we had gone down on Friday, rather than Saturday, so we could have explored the castle. Next time.

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The different loops

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Leah enjoying coffee and pie in Namur on the way down. Another surprisingly beautiful town in Souther Belgium that is shadowed by an even bigger and more impressive castle and citadel than Bouillon.

Driving down on Saturday my expectations were changing quickly and once we got to Bouillon, I knew we might be in for something good. Signing in was easy, and after a quick beer with the guys and Trish, (a Canadian friend of Mark’s who is over here on holiday scalping mountain bike races); Tom and Ilse Smet who are off to Australia to do the Crocodile Trophy this year, it was out to our hotel in the small town of Saint Cecile. A boutique hotel at a reasonable price with a good restaurant. If we had time it  looked like it had a great outdoor area, but not this time. After a slow, but good meal, we adjoined for the night as we needed to leave at 7am the next morning to make the 745am start.

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Leah with one side of Bouilllon in the background

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The Bouillon Castle. IMPRESSIVE and the other side of Bouillon.

RACE DAY

After a sneaky piece of positioning amongst the skinny Belgium’s, Ben, Mark, Trish and I were about a ¼ of the way back on the start grid of 150 riders. On the start line the field always looks intimidating and this start was no different. Lots of shiny “bling” mountain bikes and skinny fast looking riders.

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Mark and Ben on the start line... 

Well maybe they were not so fast, or I am on a streak, as after the gun went and we did a quick loop through town, we started to climb and I found myself near the front. Not wanting to destroy myself on the first climb, maybe age is a good thing and I have learnt from experience, I settled into a steady tempo and to my surprise crested the first hill in 3rd place and the leading 6 riders had about a minute gap on the field. How that happened I am not sure, but I it felt good. I had never managed that before. 

The first downhill was memorable for a mob of cows on the road. As we blasted down the loose gravel road, we rounded a corner to be greeting by about 50 cows walking slowly in front of us. The leading 6 of us managed to blast through them pretty quickly and easily and we were on the next climb. The group exchanged a few funny glances as we cleared the cows and we could only imagine the chaos behind us, and was no doubt creating a nice gap. 

On the second climb I was also with the first riders and passed through the first feed station and hit the first real downhill with them, then they just disappeared. I got stuck behind someone, but to tell the truth I had no show of riding the single track downhill having not ridden my mountain bike since the Croc Trophy in October last year. As I rounded the bottom of the hill, places 1-6 were GONE, and about 10km later I passed and dropped the rider I was with. 

From then on it was a great ride through the rolling hills around Bouillon. I saw and passed one other rider from my category 55km later but otherwise had the day to myself, passing a few 130km and 160km riders who were the same trails as us.

It is interesting racing like this as the demon in your head is always saying the group behind you is going to mow you down and catch you, so you have to keep pushing, harder and faster. Hard on the uphills, do not fall on the downhills, then hard on the flat and road. If there is one thing I have at the moment post the Haute Route Alps, that is power, so I am fast on the road. But still the demon is telling you to go harder and faster all the time. Look up enjoy the view, quick stops to fill water bottles, then back at it again. Maybe I will catch another rider in my race. Add to that a few cramps during the last 15km, and the mind was really going into over drive.

This was the theme for the day, and at the same time I really did enjoy it. The climbs were not too steep, the downhills once I found my hidden skills, were great fun, and the trail was a great mixture of flat, hills and some pavement to cover the distance. A fun day out.

In the end I was 6th overall, out of about 150 finishers, and 1st in the 40+ age group. 4hr 25mins. The next rider was 1:30 back, someone I passed with about 10km to go, and then there was a 8 minute gap. The demons were wrong, and I could have sat up a little more….

How did my wonderful partner Leah get on. She did a 25km trail run, as I am yet to get her onto a mountain bike, but that will come. 

How did Ben and Mark go. Ben came in about 50mins behind me, and Mark was another 20 behind Ben. Ben got lost, and his 90km ride was 94km. After his second wrong turn, he sat up and enjoyed the ride, and tried not to get lost again. He was all smilles when I saw him post finish, as he had enjoyed the technical downhills more than I had and generally had a fun day out on the trails.

Mark enjoyed the day, but did not have a great one. A flat tire on the first downhill cramped his style, then his “first” number 2 stop on during a bike race did not help either. As he said, when bending over on the bike hurts, you just gota stop, and that is what he did. A funny story post ride.

Trish, Marks friend from Canada, cleaned out the women’s race and added a Grand Raid Godfrey cycling top to her collection. Well done. See the podium picture below.

So that was the weekend. A fun weekend and a well run event, and I would recommend it. The trails were great, although you do need to look for trail markers, we will be back next year and we will enjoy more of picturesque Bouillon.

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Finished, just a bit of dirt on me.

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Ben and Trish at the finish

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Trish on podium duty.

The showers were something else. The girls end was at the other end, but to get to it Leah had to walk through the guy's changing room. I could not resist a picture but it does not communicate just how cold the water was!

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The showers were something else. The girls end was at the other end, but to get to it Leah had to walk through the guy's changing room. I could not resist a picture but it does not communicate just how cold the water was!

On last picture, compliments of the organizers

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Haute Route Alps - finished and the next day

With our flight heading out at 1935, we had an extra day in Nice. My plan, after a few wines last night was to sleep in, and maybe go for a coffee ride. Leah had other plans, and having got up all week at 445am, was WIDE awake at 445 and ready to get up. I think I told her it was "quiet time until 7am", and rolled over and went back to sleep, to be kicked awake at 701.  

After a brief breakfast we put on cycling kit, yes you read that right, and headed out to Cap Ferrat, 10km away. This was a coffee ride, and I was going to get my coffee. The legs, and body, felt pretty terrible, and flat, but the ride was beautiful as we followed the Nice coastline to Cpe. Past the Nice harbour, and outrighteous yachts to sleepy Cap Ferrat. Cap Ferrat is one of the hidden, and very expensive, areas around Nice. Almost sleepy would be how I would describe it and a perfect destination for coffee. I hate to say it, but my legs felt much better for their short ride. On the way back into Nice we stopped at the market, and Leah did a little shopping while I watched the bikes.

Cap Ferrat

The Saturday market in Nice.

Leah had carefully planned the rest of the day we had lunch with Janine and Pete at 12:30, then a massage at 2:15 before heading to the beach and finding a shady spot to enjoy some ice cream and relaxing time. A good way to spend the last few hours before our flight. 

Recovery food...

Looking back it was a tough week. Not as physically hard the Crocodile Trophy (that was 9 days of mountain biking in the Australian outback, and outback is NOT flat), but right up there. It was much harder than last year, and people suffered with 50% of the women's field and 25% of the men's field not finishing. Stage 3 in the rain was the most miserable I have been on a bike, and not something I want to repeat, especially when we climbed 4,700m in that horrible weather, and talking to others that stage really took a lot out of people. After that stage, the ride became more about survival than I remember from last year. Mt Ventoux was another highlight, and I am happy to have done it, and on no hurry to go back to it. 

12 months ago Leah did not have the confidence, nor strength, to do 3000m climbing day in-day out. We did the Tour d'Etape last year and that had 3,000m climbing for one day, and that was her biggest day ever. Then earlier this year we did the 

Viking Tour of Norway and that helped a lot as knew what to expect as well as 

what stage racing is about. This gave her the confidence boast needed going into the Haute Route, and she excelled. It was a tough week, and now she has the confidence for us to tackle the next challenge. It is likely to be another stage race but we do not know which one.

Haute Route Alps - Stage 7 into Nice

155km, and 2800m of climbing. Five climbs are between us and bubbles, a good hotel and good food in Nice. The little things in life and the reward for the past 7 days of suffering. Five named climbs with the timing finishing at the top of Col de Vence. 

How hard could it be? On fresh legs it would have been a good day, however day 8 in a row, the legs were not so fresh, the body was tired, the backside was sore and the mind was done. Pete, Leah and I were ready to be in Nice. Not getting our bikes back last night, as well as the 3.5 hour transfer from Mt Ventoux had tested our patience. Pete and I made an executive decision to enjoy the day, and not kill ourselves, or each other, going up the climbs. (Often our biggest enemy was each other as we would try and set a tempo that was just harder than the other liked). A steady, but not easy, tempo. A good call as the first climb of the day was the Col du Corobin. After a very brief 3km neutral section, if was straight up for 600m, at a steady 8%. A nasty warm up, and a lot harder than the road book, and our sticker showing the climbs for the day said. Lets just say this set the scene for the day, and a good tempo ride in the sun was enjoyed.

As we got closer to the coast the landscape as well as the scenery changed. Dry, pine covered hills broken by steep gorges and winding twisting roads were now the constant. The towns become more medieval, and one highlight was been clapped through a small village by a group of locals as they enjoyed their tea and pastries. Another lasting memory I have is of a old lady reading her newspaper in the sun, while lycra clad cyclists zipped by 6 feet away. I could have been on another planet, and she would not have known. The entire scene felt very french.

The downer of the day was seeing the number of crashes. Pete, Leah and I all finished with all of our skin, which was always the goal. The legs, body and mind is tired at this time and having seen very few crashes all week, we saw a couple of bad ones today. Pete and I stopped for 5 mins at one and did traffic control as a cyclist had fallen on a hairpin turn, and was not moving. Others were with him, and I was concerned that a high risk idiot was going to plow into him. I was impressed by the on the road support, as a motorbike was at the scene within 2 minutes and an ambulance within 5 with police motorbikes as well as other safety bikes. At this stage I continued on, and 20 minutes later Leah saw the scene and they were stabilizing him. The rumor later in the evening was that he had broken his femur. A reminder to everyone about the risks of road cycling, and Pete and I were happy to take the downhills easy with no risks.

After a few grumbles from Pete (more than a few at times), Leah and I enjoyed the day. After the timing stopped at the top of Col de Vence we cruised down the sweeping, twisting downhill into Vence where all of the riders regrouped until 3pm for the procession into Nice. We were there long enough to enjoy a small beer, and a good meal (a lot better than the burgers from the night before. Our location in Digne Les Bains left a lot to be desired..). Leah finished about 40 minutes after Pete and I and she joined us in the sun for a late lunch as well.

The Haute Ruote Alps finishes with a procession from Vence down to the Nice waetrfront, and then along the waterfront for about 15km. With safety motorbikes, police cars and motorbikes and a rolling road closure along the waterfront, it is a spectacula way to end the ride. The race village was set up right on the waterfront, and our hotel was a two minute walk away. After a few photos, and Pete saying hello to his wife Janine, it was off to the hotel to get out of smelly cycling clothes and a well deserved shower before a couple of glasses of wine on a roof top bar. A good day. Later that evening was the official closing ceremony, and then we enjoyed a very pleasant meal out.

How did we get on? 

1,000km

21,000m climbed, and the biggest day was 4,750m

Leah: 35:55:12 - 8th women overall and 2nd in her age group 

Pete: 29:44:34 - 74th overall

Hamish: 29:08:12 - 57th overall

Haute Route Alps - stage 6 Mt Ventoux

145km, 3,050m climbing

Today was the mythical Mt Ventoux. Few climbs strike the same level of fear as Ventoux, and we had as good as perfect weather and conditions as you ask for. It was not easy, and after the gentle intro, what looks flat on TV, is a 7km wall through the trees until you hit the tree line, then a short rest before the final grunt to the top. It is like a lunar landscape up top. Nothing grows, and the weather station could just as easily be a lunar station as it is very blunt and made to withstand the extreme weather. 

So how did today go for everyone. The first flat stage start of the ride created a FAST scary escape out of Digne that was littered with crashes. I started in the front group and punctured at km 25, and had to wait for the Mavic support as I needed a front wheel as my tubular punctured. First Pete zipped past me as I waited then Leah zipped by, and eventually the broom wagon and the Mavic car appeared. By this time the groups were long gone, and I had a day of playing catchup. It took me 35km to catch Leah's group, and I sat in this for some time as it was a good group. I also got to ride with Leah for a little while. Eventually it got hilly and I moved on. 

Pete meanwhile played catch up as after yesterday's bee sting as he started outside the front 75. He caught on, then rode with the front group, and saw some carnage on the road today as people rode like hell to hang on. Pete has all of his skin, and had a better day today.

In the end we all made it up Mt Ventoux and got to enjoy a sunny hot day of climbing. I enjoyed the climb, and had a one of my better climbs of the race. 

Results:

Pete: 4:57:53 and 71st for the day overall 75th

Leah: 5:59:39 256th for the day and is the 7th women overall, and 2nd in her age group

Hamish: 5:14:58 and 122nd for the day. Overall 55th, and lost 10 places and about 15mins due to my flat tire

The kicker for the day has been the disappointing logistics. Up to this point the logistics has been pretty good but today it kinda fell away once we finished. a 3 hour transfer back to the hotel, and then not know when our bikes would arrive has made some people very nervous. We now know they are back, but that is 6km away, and we have a shuttle to pick us up at 6:15am for the 7:30 start tomorrow. Separating a cyclist from their bike and not telling them when they will it again is a fundamental no-no, and after 6 long days on the bike, tempers were pretty thin once we eventually made it back to Digne tonight. Fingers crossed that the bikes will be at the start line tomorrow.

Tomorrows stage is the last. Another 3,000m and 160km day into Nice. 5 named climbs then a long neutralized parade down out of the mountains to finish with a parade along the Nice waterfront.

A few pics from today:

Leah all smiles when I was riding with her

Pete and Hamish at the top

It looks like it should be on the moon

Maybe it is the moon

Tomorrow's stage

Haute Route Alps - stage 5 (Pete's bad day made worse by a bee sting in the mouth!)

Stage 5 from Bourg D'Osians to Digne-les-Bains was the longest stage the Haute Route has ever done at 187km, and it still has 3,000m climbing. The 187km does NOT included the downhill ride from Alp D'Heuz where we stayed last night, so overall, it was over 200km.

Pete, well, he had a BAD day. He has not been his usual climbing self of late, and has been suffering more than he should, as I know he can really climb. Anyway I think the only way he could have had a worse day would be if he broke his bike. What was his bad day?

Vomiting at 3.5km, eat at top of hill, vomit again. Make it to the top of the hill, struggling badly with no power in the legs, on the downhill get sting by a bee on the tongue. 

Tongue swells up.........jaw goes numb....... lips stop responding.... he stops as by this time he is having trouble breathing.....

This is serious. Medical help is needed......

45 minutes later the medical motorbike turns up. Eventually, though hand signals i guess, (and the doc did not speak any english anyway) they work out what is wrong. EPI pen in the arm, and he starts to feel better, then 2 "blue pills" they push him on his. A tough day out on the longest day of this year. For next 100km he felt like crap, then the "blue pills" kicked in, and he took out his anger at hsi fellow riders as rode away from them over 10km of punchy rollers. They chased, and all they saw was the back of him.

A tough day, and we are having a good laugh about it now.

The other crazy thing we did today, as descent Alp d'Huez in the dark. Yes, all 21 switchbacks in the dark. With a 7am start at the bottom of the hill, we left the village at 6am in the cold, and Leah and I took our time going down. By the time i was at the bottom, i was one giant shiver. Not keen to repeat that again.

Otherwise, Leah had another strong day and is sitting in 2nd for her age group. I had a good day after yesterdays climb, and had some fun today. I made it over the climbs with the third group on the road, then during the last 10km we managed to break the group of 35, and 10 of us got away, after 15 people had been taking it easy at the back. A good result today for me, and I now move up to 43rd overall.

Tomorrow, we face Mt Ventoux. The monster that is famous in cyclng. 1,596m gain over 21km. A climb that has featured in numerous Tour de France stages, and is equally as famous for it's horrendous weather. Venteux means wind in French, and I have heard stories of riders been blown off their bikes, people been unable to hold onto their bikes at the top, and general crazy conditions. The wind bloes at 90+ km/h, 240 days per year.  Tomorrow, we are in for a good day, as the weather looks good, and about as still as it gets. 

Pete at the top of Alpe d'Huez ysterday.

Tomorrows stage profile

Today at the feed station, at the start of a untimed section. Untimed = no hurry.

One last Alpe d'Heuz pic.

Haute Route - Alps stage 4 - done

The shortest stage of this years race at a meer 14.5km, but it was an uphill time trail up the legendary Alp D'Heuz. Few climbs in cycling are as legendary as Alp D'Heuz. Grand tours have been decided on it's 21 hairpins, and legends made. 1,100m of climbing over 14.5km from Bourg d'Osians up to L'Alpe d"huez, averaging 8%, with the bottom section hitting a steady 10%. Just what the legs felt like after yesterdays monster stage in the rain. At least the sun was out, and it was a beautiful day for a time trail.

The record is set by Marco Pantini in a time of 36:40 set in the good old days of 1995. In the new era of cycling the record is 39:48 set by Nairo Quintana in 2013. Today was not a day to set records for Pete, Leah or myself. The goal for an ametuer cyclists is sub 1 hour, and Pete and I came close, but not quite, as the legs just were not up to it today. The fastest time was 44mins and he passed me on his way up, and he started nearly 20 mins after me. Not the best day out for the climbing legs today, and we all suffered.

Leah did 1:25, and suffered and is now asleep on the couch. Pete did 1:01:05 for 94th on the day and I did 1:01:55 for 109th on the day, well below my 45th placing overall. Although I had a slow time trail my overall placing has not changed, and the strategy (I like to think of it as a strategy, but really I did not have a choice), of taking the middle easy was correct for me. Pete and Leah also had similar strategies, as we all felt yesterday, and are thinking about tomorrow.

Tomorrow. 187km from the bottom of the hill below us, where we started today all the way to Digne-les-Bains. 4 climbs, and the nasty one is the second. Lets see, but everyone is expecting a long day, and an early start at 7am rolling at the bottom of the hill which means a 6:10am roll out of Alp d'Heuz, in the dark.

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Leah enjoying the day

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Done and happy to at the top with Pete.

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View from hotel room

And a reminder of what yesterday was like!

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Tomorrow...

Haute Route Alps - stage 3. A monster day in the RAIN

The monster day of climbing and continuous RAIN!!!. 133km, 4700m climbing. Col de la Madeleine then Col Du Glandon, and finally Alp D'Heuz. That is a lot of climbing, on a very wet day, and for about 15-20% of the field it was too much as they were pulled from the race on the road.

The forecast was for rain, and it rained. After a very nice hotel and evening in Courchevel 1650 where we stayed last night, today was a shock. Dropping down to the start 5km down the road was the only time it did not rain.  The first 25km were neutralized, so slow, and raining, then the climbing began, in the rain.

Col de la Madeleine. 1,500m climbing up, up and more up. Pete got away from me here, and to tell you the truth I was happy to set my own pace up this monster. It goes on forever, and the real kicker came in the last km as i battled by myself a hell of a head wind. I could see the other up the road, but it would have been a real effort to get across to them. Thinking that the timing had stopped, I stopped, had something to eat, as well as put on my jacket. The timing was not off, but my strategy paid off later in the day, as I was well fed and felt better compared to others. 

Pete's day started to turn bad here as he broke the zip on his windbreaker, first time he had worn it. 20km downhill in pouring rain, and about 5 degrees C, set him up for a monster bonk (cycling term for running out of energy), later in the day. 

Down off the tops and back into the trees, shivering for all I was worth, before starting the next climb, the Col du Glandon. We could not see much of this as it was raining, or the clouds came in, and it was foggy. Off and on we saw high mountains and alpine meadows, with the odd cheese maker as well. If we had been cycle touring, not racing, our bags would be full of cheese. This time, all I could do was think how warm and dry it would have been inside. Leah did not even see the cheese places!

The worst part of the climb was the last 3km, where i am sure it kicked up to over 10%. High above the tree line, into a headwind, we all groveled to the top, and it could not come fast enough in the cold rain. 

The biggest savior of the day came in the form of a plastic poncho the organizers gave out for the downhill. Pete finished just in front of me, and we has shivering and looking bad, so bad that on the un-timed downhill we stopped in hot tea and soup. I was worried he was going to fall off his bike, or his hands were going to freeze up and not be able to brake. My goal was to get him to the base of the Alp D'Heuz climb, and then I knew he would be stubborn enough to grovel up, which he did, but he suffered. I had a better climb.

Leah is the rock star of the day coming in 7th women, when ½ the women's field got cut on the road. She is now 3rd in her age group and is looking strong. She was all smiles when i first saw her at the finish, and is a little tired now, but pretty happy with the world at the moment. Long may it last.

Leah's quote for the day. I want a fucken derailer that works, and it was really hard. 

Results
Leah: 6:45:56 for 7th on the road and 

Pete: 5:25:38 for 63rd and 49th overall.

Hamish: 5:19:57 for 53rd. Now 45th overall.

Tomorrow, an uphill time trail up the legendary Alp D'Heuz! More tomorrow, and the weather looks better..

Sorry no photos, as it was too wet!

Haute Route Alps - stage 2 short update

Haute Route Alps - stage 2 short update

#hauteroute

This is short, as I have had technical issues and i want to go to sleep. More tomorrow, I promise.

Stage 2 133km, 3900m climbing

Megeve to Courchevel, via the Col du Roselend, then up to Courchevel. It was hard and long, and steep.

Pete got away from me on the last climb, and took just under 2 minutes out of me. Given we are both in survival mode it does not make much difference.

Leah had a good day and was all smiles at the finish, although she did get some toe cramps (old problems), and her feet were unhappy for the last hour.

Pete: 4:33:54. Overall now 50th

Hamish 4:35:37 Overall now 55th, i think.

Leah: 5:59:59. All smiles, and well inside the cutoff time.

Tomorrow is really hard with 4900m climbing. I have never done that much in one day, so we will see. It is also forecast for rain and cool, so it will be a long hard day.

More on that tomorrow.

Haute Route Alps - stage 2 (long update)

Haute Route Alps - Stage 2

#hauteroute

With 10km to go, the day felt long, and i still had 10km to go, and it was all up hill. At 5km to go, I was wondering if I could walk faster, but thought better of it pretty quickly, as it was steep, but I was still moving. A tough day out, as some of you have seen in the photos. On the positive side, everyone thought it was a tough day, so at least I was not alone.  The killer was the climb to Courchevel, a little more on that later.

133km, 3900m climbing. Now that is a lot, only we have MORE tomorrow.

The profile for the day. 

The first climb seemed to go well, and the Col du Comet de Roselend was long. Maybe I rode the first climb and the bottom half of the Col de Roselend a little harder than planned, and then so did everyone else. The kicker on the Col De Roselend comes at the top. There is a small flat section beside a picturesque lake, and then it climbs again. It felt like the lake stole my power, as Pete rode away from me here, and I did not see him again until I was about ¾ down the otherside. It was a good fast downhill. ON the positive side the climb was picturesque. Through small villages, up through the trees, past coes with bells, and then into the high alpine land. We did this climb last year, and it came back to me, including one 10%+ stretch through a small village. I would have taken photos, but today that just was not happening!

Photo from Manu Photos, offical Haute Route photographer, and the picturesque lake. I cannot remember seeing the church...

Down onto the valley and before we knew it we were on the Courchevel climb. 1370m of climbing over 25km. It does not sound so bad, but it sure felt bad. Pete dropped me after about a ¼ of the way up and then stayed away. i pushed my own pace, and in the last 5 km i was in my own world. I did not care if anyone passed me, all i cared about was finishing. Luckily everyone was in the hurt zone today so no one passed me in the last 5km, and I actually had a pretty good ride for me. It still hurt a lot! The record for the climb was set by Alberto Contador, who climbed it in 42:30. I am not sure where the official start is, but either way that is amazing. Maybe the hardest part of the climb, is that you think you are at the top, or near the top, as you can see a village and condos, only to round a corner and it is one of the preliminary Courchevel villages. Courchevel 1500, 1650.... Anyway another day done. Pete got me by about 2 minutes in the end, so not so bad.

Leah is still talking to me, and was even smiling when she crossed the line. Yesterday the line was "I so owe her a holiday", whereas today it was I was going well for about 5 ½ hours then my toes cramped (old problem), and people started to pass me. She had a pretty good day, and is happier than me tonight.

Pete's legs were not so ugly today, and I think he is riding myself into some form, well that is what he is saying.

Pete  4:33:54 On the stage 52nd  Overall 50th

Hamish 4:35:37 On the stage 55th Overall 54th

Leah 5:59:59 and all smiles!

Sent from my iPad

Haute Route Alps - Stage 1 complete

130km - 3100m climbing. An easier day...

Well the first real stage is complete, and Leah and I have our feet up and Leah is reading, and still talking to me so that is a bonus. I think I am part way in the dog box, and expect to be fully in the dog box after stage 3, then I may crawl out a little, well that is the plan. Her quote of the day is from someone else as they say "and he has taken off on you", or "you are doing this on your own", as I am up the road, and have left Leah to fend for herself. (To tell the truth, I know she can fend for herself very well, and is an expert at drafting, and if she cannot find a good draft, is a good teacher as she is all about efficiency on the bike!)

Today we went from Geneva to Megeve, via couple of good long climbs. It was like a welcome back to the Alps, as we passed smallpicturesque villages, long climbs to just above the tree line, and of course cows with bells ringing as they wandered around the high alpine pastures. Overlay that with spectacular mountain views, and some sunshine, but not to hot, and it was a good day to be riding our bikes.     

Leaving Geneva, the weather was kind to us, and we were treated to a pretty, but cool, sunrise beside the lake before heading out in a neutralized convey to France. As Pete and I are in the top 75, we started in the gated off area. The convey is broken up into groups, and motobikes very clearly split the groups keeping the riders outside of the top 75 out. It made for safer riding for Pete and I while Leah was further back.

Leah pre-start, all smiles.

The peleton heading out, before the fun.

The hurt started on the Col da la Colomiere, a 1,110m climb over 15km. I was with the front group for the first 200m, then thought better of it. Pete stayed with them for longer, and also thought better of it, sitting up and riding his own tempo. A long climb, with a kick at the top would be the best description. Next was the Col da la Croix Fry, followed by a short down hill before the final climb of the day. By now I was climbing with Pete, and he set a steady tempo, meaning i could stay on his wheel. He was not having a good day, and that meant i was able to stay with him.

Top of the last climb, in a neutralized section. We took a 30min break, and caught up with one of Pete's mates, Adam, who now lives nearby. It is a small world.

From here it was a long sweeping downhill to the start of the timing again, and a 10km drag race up to Megeve. The profile showed it was flat, but instead it kicked up to start with before a false flat all the way to Megeve, and the finish line.

Final results for the day

Hamish 3:42:01. 53rd overall. Pete leads me by 4 seconds when the Prologue and stage 1 are added.

Pete 3:42:10. 55th overall

Leah  4:43:55 317 overall, and 5th in her age group.

On the final sweeping downhill

View from the hotel room.

Tomorrow, more climbing and famous cols as we make our way to Courchevel.

Haute Route Alps - Prologue DONE. Leah lies 2nd in her age group!

Prologue done. Leah lies second in her age group, and 6th women overall!! More on that later.

A short 9km prologue was the order of the day today. Just under 13mins of pain would be the best description. More on that later.

Yesterday was a lazy day. A couple of hours easy riding into France and a couple of small efforts to stretch legs to make sure they knew what was coming was on tap. Enjoyable riding on quiet country roads.

Last night we caught up with Leslie Mittendorf and Tracy Ross, who Leah and i knew from our US days.  They are over here riding at the moment and were in Annecy. After a couple of FB messages we managed to work out that we were nearby, and had a great catch up and meal last night at Cafe Papon. Good food, fun company and plenty of stories. A fun evening.

I am sure the nice hotel had not bargained on this!

Leah enjoying the sunshine and an easy leg spin in France.

Today was a different story. A little more serious as it was registration, bike inspection, drop off bike bag as it goes straight ot Nice, and then pick up the offical bags. One big duffel that goes from hotel to hotel, and a smaller day bag that will be at the finish line waiting for us, and finally the prologue.

The prologue was a short out and back course along CLOSED roads along the Lake Geneva waterfront. We felt like pros as we biked out and pre-road the course on the closed roads. Yesterday we biked out this way and it was heavy traffic. Today it was OURS, and the side streets were crazy. We enjoyed it while we could.

Leah was first off, then 20 seconds later Peter and I was last 20 seconds after that. After some cheap sledging directed at Peter, saying I was going to mow him down, and eat him for lunch, that was the last I saw of him as he first caught Leah then disappeared into the distance. At the turnaround point he had me by 10 seconds and in gained another 4 seconds on me to come in 14 secs fatser at 12:26. I did a 12:40 and Leah did 14:08. 

The best place in their age groups is Leah who is 2nd in her age group. Pete is 8th in his agre group and 24th overall and I am 20th in my age group and 51st overall. The 40+ age group is fast and competitive that is for sure.

Fastest overall was a time of 11:35! Now that is fast. First women was Emma Pooley, 2 seconds faster than Pete.

Tomorrow the real race begins. From Geneva to Megeve. After a 25km neutral section out of Geneva, the timing begins, and the climbing starts 25km later. On the menu for tomorrow at Col de la Colombiere, Col de la Croix Fry and other smaller climbs for 130km and 3,100m climbing.

Leah is still smiling and talking to me and fingers crossed she will be doing the same this time tomorrow, ("but is not likely", from Leah). Until tomorrow..........

Before the start. All smiles.

In the start chute. Pete has his race face on.

That looks like rabbit food!

Claud The Butler is following the race and offering some special packages. I do not think Leah is feeling well, as she declined the Gold Package.

The Haute Route Alps 2014 - Geneva pre start

Geneva - 2 days before the start.

Here we come and what have Leah (my wonderful, long suffering partner), Peter Hope (a friend of ours from Amsterdam who i convinced this was a good idea, so he joined us) and myself got ourselves in for. Last year I did this event with the Guadalupanos team from Mexico, and it was great fun. Last year this was also my first 7 day stage race, so it was all about survival, and taking it easy, and i rode the back half of the event a lot harder than the front half. This year, I will be riding a little harder, although day 3 has everyone concerned, and enjoying it with Leah.

What does Leah think? Coming out of the 7 day Viking Tour of Norway, all i have managed to get is "and we did this on holiday" or "we are paid someone for this...". There were other comments as well, and they usually included liberal usage of 4 letter words and they are usually directed at me, so we will not worry so much about them. Fortunately, she has not studied the road book very closely (it was emailed to her and sometimes she does not check these things as i do), as i am not sure she would have got on the plane with me. Little does she know....

What is the Haute Route-Alps? It is a 7 stage + a prologue road cycling stage, from Geneva to Nice over the Alps. Beautiful, brutal, challenging and a holiday. It is one of three Haute Route sportives. Haute Route-Dolomites, Haute Route-Alps and Haute Route-Pyrenees. Each one hunts out the hardest, steepest and nastiest climbs in Italy, France and Spain, then strings them together into a 7 stage road cycling race/sportive. Each stage is timed, and the back markers may get cut if they do not finish in time. More on the logistics later in the week.

A few stats:

• 910km, and 21,000m climbing
• The "easy" day is uphill time trail up Alpe D'Heuz. For the non cyclists out there, Alpe D'Heuz is a legendary climb that strikes fear into cyclists, and has featured numerous times in the Tour d' France. The only thing in thr area that is worse than the Alpe D'Heuz is Mt Ventoux, and we do that 2 days later.
• About 500 cyclists
• The longest day is 187km
• The biggest climbing day, stage 3, has 4,900m climbing, and goes over Col de la Madeleine, then Col Du Glandon before finishing with a climb of Alpe D'Heuz all in 135km. Looking at the profile there is NO flat. You are either going up, or down...

You may ask why we are doing it. A challenge, a seasonal goal, and I get to ride my bike each day is what I say. I will ask Leah this question before during and after the race, and I am sure it will add some color to my writings.

Each day I will try and get a post out of how we all got on plus any stories from the road, as I am sure there will be.

Tomorrow we build our bikes up, and go for a short ride to wake up the legs after traveling and taking it easy this week. Saturday we have the prologue, and more to come after that.

Until then, I will leave you with the map of where we are going, the saw profile of the 7 days, and a couple of pictures of Leah and Peter. 

There is NO flat riding this year, and it would be hard to put more climbing into a 7 day block.

Leah displaying some serious attitude from pre-season training in Spain.

Pete enjoying a boost of Red Bull during the Liege-Bastogne-Liege sportive.

Amsterdam airport, ready to fly.

Cycle Touring: Amsterdam to Zeeland. July 2014

From Amsterdam we headed south past the airport and onto Noordwijk for the first night. From here we continued around the coastline until we hit the Hook of Holland and headed into Zeeland staying at Oude Tonge. The final day we cross Zeeland via Weere and around the coast line to Middelburg.

A fun 3 day tour out of Amsterdam, and our friend, Ben Evans, first cycle tour.

Photos
Day 1: Amsterdam to Noordwijk
46.5km
http://www.strava.com/activities/174955363

Heading out of Amsterdam early on a sunny Friday evening always feels good, and tonight was no exception as we were on our touring bikes heading south.

Joining Leah and I was Ben Evans, a fellow Amsterdam Triathlon and Cycling club member, and good friend, who was on his first cycle touring adventure.

Getting out of the city always takes longer than expected, and eventually we hit the Amsterdam Bos and then the airport before following the Leimuiderdijk south for some way, passing the Westerinderplassen lake on the way. Eventually we cut out towards the coast and the destination for the night, Noordwijk.

Noordwijk is a Dutch seaside tour. Not really knowing what to expect from both the beach and the town, we were surprised to see a sandy beach, and a seaside town that had more class than expected. Our expectations were pretty low!

The highlight of the day was a good meal, then a glass of wine tucked away out of the wind at one of the seaside cafes. 

Day 2: Noordwijk to Oude Tonge
124km
http://www.strava.com/activities/174958280

Today we will follow the coast all the way to the Hook of Holland, before heading into Zeeland proper and staying on one of the large Zeeland islands.

The coastal route was pretty as we headed down following the dunes all the way south

until we hit the Hook Of Holland and unfortunately we missed the opportunity of seeing the town of Monster. The Hook of Holland is at the start of the Rotterdam harbour and also the gates that can be closed to stop the Rotterdam and Zeeland areas flooding. This area flooded very badly in 1953, and after this a large scale gate and lock system was built to stop this repeating. If there is one thing the Dutch do well, it is manage water! 

After a quick coffee in the Hook of Holland, there is not much there, it was on to Rozenburg via a ferry and then to Brielle for lunch. Brielle is another old walled city, with a star moot around it. We did a quick explore of the city, but it was not looking it’s best as it was festival time, and the main square area was covered in tacky festival rides. Across the causeway an onto the island where we would be spending the night and eventually to Oude Tonge.

There is not much in Oude Tonge, but it had everything we needed. A small guest house and restaurant, a shop and a picturesque harbour for us to wander around.

Day 3: Oude Tonge to Middelburg
99km
http://www.strava.com/activities/175795447

Today we hopped across the islands on our way to Middelburg, where we trained home.

First up was the causeway/ islands on our way to Zierikee for coffee. A very pretty small town and served a good coffee, as we a head we had a 6km causeway, and if going by past experiences, we expected headwinds all the way. Luckily Leah had a strong coffee and she dragged us across the causeway, with Ben and tucked in tight behind her. No complaints at all. From here we headed across Kamperland, yes that is way the town is called, and it felt that way as well. There must be 50 camp grounds in the area, and it was crazy. Our destination was aferry that we needed to catch to Weere. Arriving with 45 mins to spare we got another coffee.

Weere is very pretty, but was also very busy. It felt like everyone from Kamperland was here, and there were bikes and people everywhere. We found a table and had some lunch, but did not feel like exploring too much. A shame as it is another walled village, and very picturesque. I also got a flat tire here, so we had an extra stop for me to make a quick change.

From Weere we headed out to the coast and the dunes as we had planned on going the long way to Middelburg. This was very busy, with 1,000’s of people going to and from the beach on the twisting bike path. We passed straight through Domburg and kept going as I have never seen so many bikes. Domburg was on our list of places we were meant to stop at. Onward to Middelburg.

In Middeleburg it would have been good to explore a little but there was also a festival on here, so we hightailed it to a Hema store for snacks, then onto the train back to Amsterdam.

Viking Tour of Norway - Stage 7

Stage 7: Stryn – Vagamo

160km – 1,970m vert

The final day, and I am still in 2nd place in my age group going into the day. Very happy with the rest so far, as had not expected to be in this position.

The day is a little cooler and is overcast, and has a threatening look to it. Sure enough as soon as we rool out of town, through the neutral section, the whistle goes for the start, and it starts to rain. Not just a little but a lot. The threatened downpour has hit, and it is wet. Very wet for the first 30km, and now I have more sympathy for the tour riders as we roll up the valley towards the first climb of the day, in very heavy rain. Glasses on or off, it does not make much difference as you cannot see much either way. It is all about staying up right, safe and near the front of the bunch to avoid anything that should happen. Luckily we make the sprint at the 30km point safely, and then it starts to go up hill.

The legs felt good, and were good for the first 6km of the 15km climb, then they were not so good. Spat out of the front group I slide back and settle into the climb at my own slower than planned pace. The climb was what we rolled down after the stage 2 days ago. Climbing up from sea level, through the tree line again up towards the glaciers and waterfalls. The last 5 km is through a rocky ex-glacial area and is barren and looks a lot higher than we are at just under 1000m.

Rolling over the top, I see the feed station, and 3 riders behind me and a couple in front. A head is 15km of smooth, but slippery gravel that is fast and slightly downhill, before another 85km of gentle down hill to the final climb. The smooth gravel was more like Paris-Roubaix than planned as 1 person in the group flatted, and another lost both their water bottles. It was also fast and it flew by as we pushed over it at close to 50km/hr. A little more on the edge than I would have liked. For the 85km of gentle downhill we formed into a group of 5, and essentially did 1 minute intervals every 5 mins for 2 hours. The km disappeared fast and before we knew it we were back in Vagamo, at the base of the last 5km climb. Not a pretty climb, and I was happy to see the finish line as my legs were cooked by this time.

Overall I finished 2nd in the age group. The guy who won, won by a long way, over an hour, and I think came in the top 3 overall. He was a machine.

The rest of the day was spent eating ice cream, drinking coke, and hanging out for a bit for Leah to come in, then eating some more once Leah finished.

Leah had a longer day as she missed the early split in the peleton as we rolled out of Stryn. She had a good day, and trained a lot of people how to ride in a base line across the flat. A lot of self interest there, but at the same time people even said riding in a group was fun as they did their 2 minutes on the front and rolled around to the back again. She was not so happy to see me eating ice cream prior to the start of the last hill, and I got abused again for that, but much happier once she had finished. She was even planning on what to do in 2015… First up is the Haute Route at the end of August.

The final prize giving was in the evening, and it was pleasantly cool after the heavy thunderstorm eariler in the day. As we broke our bikes down in the hall, it poured down. Thunder lightening, wind and no power for a bit, it all happened.

And that was the Viking Tour of Norway. All wrapped up with an easy bus trip back to Oslo, not 6 hours, but 3 ¾ as planned and a short hop back to Amsterdam and home.

Viking Tour of Norway - Stage 6

Race is on.

A hard 30km to the sprint, surges and the peleton is too big. A lesson in position and the importance of it to avoid the rubber band as well as not too close to the front so as not to do any work. Also rolling short climbs to get the legs going

Sprint over, and then yet another climb. 600m, over 7.5km. 8% again.Today I was dropped by the lead group again and then rode over the top at my pace by myself. A good training ride in the heat! Down the otherside and then 40km of flat fast riding in a group that caught me to the finish.

Today I won the group sprint in sprint form, as one of the guys tried to jump me, and I took him in a true sprint.

Back to the hotel, 1km away, thank goodness, and baked in the heat.

It only got hotter and after watching the Tour de France and seeing Nibali destroy the field again I fell asleep, but boy is it hot. 30 degrees outside at 7pm, and now is it 11pm and still 25 degrees. Not what we expected.

Hot , hot, hot

Tomorrow, 1000m. a gentle false flat for the first 30km, then a 5km ramp before a 10km steep climb. A lot of it at over 10%. It will be a hot climb.

Viking Tour of Norway - Stage 5

Stage 5. Stranda – Geiranger - Stryn

111km – 1,980m vert

Neutral 35km – 890m vert

Today we have the Eagle Panoramic road to look forward to, but first up is yet another ferry, then 10km of tunnels. The Eagle Panoramic road, and down into Geireger was a

highlight. After catching a ferry we climbed up through a big valley to pop out beside a lake in a glacial formed valley. From there we enjoyed mountains and distant glaciers as we climbed slowly to the head of the valley, and eventually the overlook to Geireger. 500m straight below us, is Geireger floyd surrounded by high mountains. The most spectacular view of the trip.


After a quick coffee, it was race time.

After the shortest neutral section yet, 200m, we were off on the 1500m climb, over 21km, with the last 4 km at 10%. Sea level, up through the village, up again through the trees at 600m, then onward and up. It hurt, and it seems a blur around this point, as it was hurting too much. Eventually the 4km to go turn happened and it got really hard again as it kicked up for the last 400m vert over 4km. switch backs, and wind blown granite rock was the landscape under baking sun.


At the top, I did not even get a chance to see the view and it was off down

Down the steep part, yes we did the out and back on the steep part for the shake of it, then we had 40km of what looked like flat in the road book. Looks can be deceiving, as the scale was huge. What we had was 40km of rolling with the last 15km on gravel, that climbed at a nice steady 4% to the finish. Luckily I was in the group for the gentle downhill, then false flat and climb up on the gravel, otherwise it would have been a long day. I won the group sprint from our group as I went early, with 1.5km to go, and just went hard. Some satisfaction for the day after been dropped by the leaders early in the climb.

The finish was up the top of Strynefjell, a ski resort where we could see glaciers in the distance and splattering of snow still on the group. There was also a glacial lake to top off the scenery and after a quick leg bath I started the down hill to Stryn where we will spend two nights.

Little did we know we had a 1000m downhill, which we will climb in 2 days time, then a 30km gentle downhill all the way into the village. A long way at the end of a long day.  I was able to latch onto some fellow Dutchies and we drag raced to the coffee and cake stop, before drag racing all the way into town. The drag race was to get to a bike shop, as one of the other guys had broken his derailer today, and my rear wheel was delaminating.

His dereailer fixed, my rear wheel will wait until I am home, and I have borrowed someones spare wheel for the couple of days.

A long day 160km, and a lot of climbing. Into the hotel, and it is HOT.

Styrn – on a river, which we followed from the start, and at sea level. The biggest town we have stayed in so far, and it even has a restaurant. Shock and horror, but we still demolished the hotel buffet as it was a good one.

Off to bed, and pretty shattered. Another day tomorrow.

Viking Tour of Norway - Stage 4

Stage 4. Stranda – Sykkylven – Stranda

60km – 1,166m

Today was the easy day, well it was meant to be in the road book. A shorter 60km stage with 1100m of climbing. Up out of Stranda to the Stranda ski station, down the otherside to Sykkylven, turn around, then head back up the ski station. All sounds pretty easy, but the devil is always in the details and the execution.

Normally I am able to just hang with the front group, and get across the top in about 15th place. The whistle went to start us, and the group went, I went, then it did not happen today. After the first 2.5km up out of town, I was dropped off the back of the group, and they disappeared into the distance. This was a little earlier than planned today, and I settled into a steady pace that my legs would let me do. A little slower than normal, but not that much slower. The climb up the ski hill was another 9-10% steady climb. I do not know what it is, but the Norwegians like their steep climbs. Up from sea level to the base of the gondola at 450m, and the tree line, then up a little more to the top, and in the baking sun now. By this time the second group had managed to catch me, and we worked well down the otherside to the turn around point and back to the base of the mountain.

When I was not looking at the wheel just in front of me the scenery again was spectacular. Deep valleys, with glaciers high above the tree line in the distance. The valley floor is lush and green, and a clear indication that the last few days of baking weather we have had is unusual. This is everything I imagined Norway to be, and some with the hills been bigger and steeper than planned.

The ride back up to the ski station was a bit of a grovel. I will not go into it much except to say I was happy once it was over. The legs were not happy with me, and I paid for my efforts yesterday. Since it was a perfectly sunny day, I waited for Leah to arrive before heading back down to the hotel in Stranda.

Leah has been having a lot of trouble with her feet, so that has slowed her down some. Today she stopped in the feed station and took off her shoes to wiggle her toes, then she stopped again half way up the last climb to try changing her foot beds. Her feet have been cramping badly, so she is not happy about that, otherwise she is enjoying herself. Her first stage race, so a lot of learnings.

The rest of the day was spent resting, doing laundry, eating, resting, watching the Tour de France, resting some more, and eating again. A good afternoon spent recovering, and hopefully tomorrow goes better.

Tomorrow we have 2 ferries, then we cross the Eagle Panoramic road before dropping down to Gelranger for the offical start. The start tomorrow will be another tough one as it goes straight up for 1500m over 17km. The race itself is only 65km, 17km straight up then we drop down 500m vert and ride a kinda flat route for the next 50km to the end of the timed section. Then we feed, and head down to the Stryn where we will spend 2 nights.

Viking Tour of Norway - Stage 3

Stage 3. Andalsnes to Stranda

107km – 2,283m vert

Another perfectly sunny day. Not a cloud in the sky, and hard to believe. I had to put that in at the start, as it is very unusual we are been told.

After the first real stage yesterday, today started with a long neutral start, as we had a 6km tunnel to go through. The organizers had told us that we needed lights, and they were not kidding. 6km on the bike in a tunnel at 25km/hr is quite some time, and we were all happy to see daylight at the end, and the start of racing, and more tunnels.

One could say the theme of today was tunnels, as we did about 15km of the 110km underground. I was in the main peleton for most of the day, until the last ½ of the last climb, and they went for it in the tunnels. Pacelines with 15 riders in semi black, going downhill at 50-60km hr is not for the faint hearted and I was more than happy to get out of that one.


The stage was mostly flat, with a few short rollers early on to sort things out a bit before the first gradual climb at 60km, then more rollers and a kicker at the end. Once again my plan was to stay with the front and then let them go and play on the last climb and it went to plan. 

Overall a good day on the bike as I came in about 13th overall and put 2 mins into the next rival in my age group, and am still sitting second, and I really went on the last hill so good training for later in the season.

The destination for today is Stranda. After the finish at the top of the last climb, we dropped down to a ferry, and had more great views of the floyd of Norway. They are huge, and I looked on a map, and the floyd we are on is not even so big. Mountains straight out of the sea, going up to 1000m, 360 degrees around us makes it pretty impressive. The day was topped off by a 15min ferry ride across to Stranda, where we were able to enjoy the views from the middle of the floyd.Amazing.

There is not much in Stranda, which is surprising as it looks to be one of the bigger towns in the area. We are staying in the Stranda hotel, and Leah and I are enjoying the hotel luxury rather than the basic facilities of the local school gym where a lot of others are staying. After a verty short explore of the town, we went to the only restaurant that was open for a late lunch, before a sitting in the shade and doing laundry and just generally hanging out. My legs are tired, I am tired, and tomorrow may be a tough day.