5: Galibier – Alpe d’Huez (59.5k)

I zip up my jersey and push off down the descent, I hit lap again – 6h11 – just ahead of schedule. The top few turns are fast & tight, and the road surface is bumpy. I can feel a strain on my forearmsholding myself in the drops and constantly breaking hard into the tight switchbacks.  The few minutes breather at the top have given me a boost and, I am keen to make a good headway.

After the Col d’Lautaret the route joins onto the main highway to Bourg and the road is generally wider and straighter.  There is a headwind coming up the valley and I keep in the drops to try and keep my speed at its maximum.  After a while I start to look out for any groups forming ahead; I know from last year that the gradient is going to lessen soon and that I will need the help of others to keep my speed up, over a couple of bumps and along the final few k’s to Bourg. I can see a bunch ahead but there is afternoon traffic not keen on being overtaken by some bloke on a bike and this is making it a little difficult to get across. I manage to get past a few cars and on one of the slightly steeper parts catch up the group, I have used a little energy to bridge but can now hold onto the back of twelve or so others.  The pack powers on down to the dam and then only when we reach the flat does the pace slow at all, no one really wanting to take a big turn in the final few kilometres to the bottom of the Alpe.

At Bourg the group mostly turns into the feed, but I decide to push on.  I have a full bottle and don’t need to stop. I pass the line demarking the start of the climb, cross the timing mats and hit lap one last time – 7h26 – I have made up some time on the way down, and am now seven minutes up on schedule. Game on. The climb gets steep real fast. The leg up to the first bend is brutal, it‘s long and steep and my pace is immediately down to slow crawl, round the first bend and it doesn‘t let up.  I am struggling to keep it above 8 or 9 kph.  This is going to take a while. The next few bends come round fairly quickly. I count them down.  At 10k to go I check my bike comp, about an hour left, it is still on - but I need to up the pace.  I reach the church and the first water stop, I grab two cups of water and keep on going. It is so hot. I struggle on, turn-by-turn. But I now have little left. I make it to Huez and the water station. I need water.  I stop to fill my bottles and pour water over my head, it provides a brief moment but welcome of relief. There’s 5k to go, I fear gold has slipped away now but I want to push on and finish strongly.

The next three kilometres are incredibly tough, I had felt some cramp twinges in my legs on  the last descent, but it is not until now that I really start cramping. I continue, stretching or standing whenever I can.  At last I reach turn one, the village is ahead, a few more pushes on the pedals and I pass the point where my Marmotte ended last year.  I feel a sense of relief that I have got further, but there's still a little over a k to go.  My right leg is still cramping but this is no time to stop. The road bends left under the bridge, I ignore the cramps, climb up towards the final right turn and on towards the finish. I cross the line and hit stop – 8h54 – it’s been a hard climb, I have lost time and I’ve missed out on Gold by 5minutes. But I am exhausted, I feel like I left everything out there on the climb and I am proud to have made it.



YouTube Link: The Finish