Epic France Day 1
Pau to Arrens-Marsous
Swim ~ 2000 race in lake
Bike 150 k
3 climbs:
1. Col d` Ichere 7 k
2. Col d` Marie Blanc 10k
3. Col d` Aubisque 17k
Run 10k
Great way to start the camp...it was raining and overcast to start the day, but the lake was reasonably warm. We did a 3 loop swim in the lake as a race. Some things never change as Jonathon & I brought the rear end finishing around 9 & 10th. The sad part is that if Jonathon could swim even sort of straight he would have beaten me by several minutes…
Molina led out the swim the whole way followed by Monica. By dinner he was complaining that no points were given out…thank goodness for small favors. Fortunately this race was for pride only.
The bike fulfilled all of the reasons I made the trip. The countryside was spectacular and the scenery is every bit as beautiful as it appears during the TDF. The group stayed together reasonably well until we hit the first climb, although it was reasonably friendly and we all were back together by the end of the descent thanks to Gordo and his tri bike set up. Needless to say, only he and Monica were on their tri bikes. Kudos to her as this climbs were difficult enough on a road bike.
The second climb was a bit different as the guys headed up the road pretty quickly. Having learned my lesson at EC NZ, I decided to hang back and cruise up in a more manageable fashion for me. (Although I have to admit there wasn’t a lot of decision making …I couldn’t have really made it any faster.) JK and enjoyed the scenery –he did ask why all of the cows and sheep have bells around their necks. It became evident on the next limb when the sheep and cows were scattered all over the road and the fog was thick. If it weren’t for the bells alerting you of their location, an accident was bound to happen. The two things I learned today were that I’m a poor descender (kind of knew that already) and that Cows don’t yield on the road, regardless which way your going and the lane of road they happen to be on.
The Col d` Aubisque was outstanding 17k and 1700 meters of ascent. It was really cool to ride over all of the names spray painted on the road…Armstrong, Basso, Ullrich etc. Created a really cool atmosphere climbing. Mike Montgomery picked up the KOM points…Gordo, Scott were shortly thereafter. Mike is definitely the frontrunner for both the polka dot and yellow jersey. The Col d` Aubisque took me around 1:30 minutes.
We finished the day with around 10,000 feet of climbing and arrived at our home for a few days, the Chalet Du Solour. Great accommodations-Mike Peters, however, was yearning for the Pelican Sheep Farm in Goulborn in Australia. I was happy to be here, though the story is certainly great fun telling now.
We knocked off the day with a 10k run on a cross country ski course. Very nice.
Clas…if you happen to read, the standards are a little loose. Molina wanted credit for a 150k ride when he was short a few k. Very disappointing. Mike Peters led the way and we rode back up to the top to get the last few k in your memory.
The support crew, though few in numbers, did an outstanding job. Johnno is joined by Ian (brit who now lives in France and runs a bike tour company –Pyrenees Multisport) and John (a Kiwi) aka the evil bastard, our masseuse. John is relishing in the fact that he has the opportunity to inflict as much pain on us as the mountains do. I’ve taken a liking to his nickname.
There is a strong Winston-Salem and North Carolina contingent here. Myself and Jonathon Kelly are joined by Ken (Wake Forest Undergrad) and Mike Peters (Duke undergrad).
The only thing that could have been better about today would have been to have a little moral support alongside on a Vespa…maybe next year! Heck, maybe I should have a Vespa for this trip-now that’s an idea!!
SRM not working today..will hopefully have data tomorrow.
J
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