ETAPE du TOUR 2007

Dawn arrived in Foix on 16^th July – as several thousand cyclists waited to set out on an amazing ride – 122 miles over the Pyrenees, climbing 4000 metres – approaching half the height of Mount Everest! It is the sort of thing that Tour de France riders do every day – and among us was Greg Lemond, three times tour de France champion! However most of us were ordinary cyclists, out to face the challenge of a lifetime.

As we sat in our starting pens at 6 am surrounded by cyclists of all nations, we were delighted to see a light covering of cloud – on the previous day the temperature had reached 34 degrees! Rather hot, we thought, for climbing over 12,000 feet in one day! A predicted thunder storm in the afternoon was more worrying! Riders grew more tense as the moment for departure approached – then at 7 am we were off! Well at least the people at the front were!

The long wait was over at last as we rolled out under the starting arch and we were off on the 2007 Etape du Tour!

After an unexpected diversion and a couple of hills we reached the dual carriageway with enjoying a 25 mile per hour ride, anxious to put as much road as possible between ourselves and the broom wagon!

The fast section ended after the right hand turn near Tarascon, as we reached the foot hills of Col de Port. This was a pleasant section, with climbs of 6%, and even a short descent!

After another 5 miles the real climb of Col de Port started, the gradient rising from 6% to 8%, then tailing off at the top. It was hard enough to feel like a climb, but not too exhausting.

Finally our first col was conquered!

The next 25 miles to St Girons were wonderful – starting with over 7 miles of fast, easy descent, and then continuing to descend more gently. I found myself trying to make up time here by overtaking on a descent which I knew held no nasty surprises. The initial descent was the sort you could do at 24 mph with little effort and no worries – faster if you were daring.

I was delighted to reach the first elimination point at St Girons with 50 minutes to spare! This year, Life had got in the way of training to such an extent that I had wondered if I would even get to the first elimination point in time! After enjoying some orange slices and cheese and ham sandwiches, and topping up my water supply, I continued on my way.

After St Girons, the road followed the course of a river. The cloud was clearing, so the sight of the cool river water was reassuring, as the sun beat down and the temperature rose from its early morning 16 degrees towards the 30’s

Amazingly, it was over 60 miles from the start before any real climbing began again. Half the distance had been achieved – though unfortunately a lot less than half the climbing! Like Col de Port, Col de Aspet was a reasonable climb – until we reached the village of St Lary! It was good to be cheered on by enthusiastic spectators.

Then, after the village of Portet-d’Aspet the gradient rose again to a challenging 8.5% to 9.5% for the last two km of the climb.

We were there! Two cols conquered! I might even arrive at this rate!

By now temperatures were in the 30s, and riders were finding shade whenever possible!  The descent of Aspet is one of the most challenging of the whole Etape. It was here that Casartelli met his end – and it was easy to see why with gradients of 17%, and a series of concrete blocks at the roadside! To my surprise, in this short 5km descent I saw 4 people with punctures – more than in the previous 65 miles! Presumably the punctures were caused by rims overheating due to fierce braking. Fortunately I did not see any accidents on this stretch.

After a sharp left turn we hit the foot hills of the Col de Mente. The road climbed, descended then climbed again – it was quite a playful stretch before the serious grind began. Finally we tackled the real climb with a reasonable degree of confidence, secretly knowing that the really steep sections were not long, and not much time would be lost if we had to walk these sections!

The heat was dreadful; my thermometer read 34 degrees by the time we emerged from the woodland to the more open section. How wonderful the slightest breeze felt! There were times when I felt that I would much rather be doing something else!

Finally we arrived, overheated and relieved, at the feeding station at the summit of Col de Mente, knowing that an even worse climb lay ahead!

The descent of Menthe started with a spectacular series of real hairpins, and was fast and fun. As we descended, the straight stretches became longer, punctuated by exhilarating bends

The descent gave way to a flat section before the second elimination point at Estenos. I was delighted to reach this with 20 minutes to spare. It looked as though I would have to cycle the rest of the 122.5 miles after all!

The next, rather unexpected challenge was the wind! After a relatively headwind free ride we found ourselves cycling straight into the famous mistral which had suddenly sprung up. I had tucked in to the back of a peloton, but it was for ever changing speed like a yo-yo, and I somehow found myself at the front – I felt rather heroic, but it was a bit exhausting!

Then Bales. 22km to the top the sign said. About as long as Ventoux. Not a welcome thought! After as initial undulating section the struggle began.

The heat was too much for some. Despite the signs, the gradient varied between 2% and 15% with long tough stretches of 9%. Temperatures reached 34 degrees and stayed there! It was tough. Very tough.

Painfully slow progress – I tried to encourage myself when my altimeter reached 1000 meters – until remembered that there were another 770 meters of climbing to go! The metres ticked by – until 3km from the top I heard the broom wagon not very far behind!

Finally with a last desperate effort I beat the broom wagon to the top with 1 minute 30 seconds to spare! After quickly grabbing some orange slices and water I was off, haring down the mountain as fast as I dared – though still overtaken by faster, even more desperate riders!

Straight on to Peyresourde, then desperately pedalling up the other side I was finally caught 3 km up the slope.

Simon’s view of climbing Peyresourde was that it should have been rated Hors category!

According to Gavin, it was a fantastic event - crossing over the top of the Peyresourde and swooping down into Loudenvielle was a truly magical feeling. I believe him! 

Half of our team of 6 in the gite finished. Neil was the fastest, finishing in 10 hours. Simon was next, finishing in 10.5 hours. Of the 5 etapes he has done he rated this the hardest. Rocco finished in a creditable 11 hours.

Personally I was not too disappointed, having climbed nearly 4000 metres and having ridden 120 miles by the time I cycled to the hotel where we met our minibus.

The fastest man, Nicolas Fritsh, finished in 6 hours 41 minutes, and the fastest lady, Katherine Saysset, finished in 7 hours, 33 minutes – performances worthy of the professional Tour de France riders.  Previous tour de France winner Greg Lemond finished in 701^st place in a time of 8 hours 41 minutes.

The view of the French sporting newspaper L’Equipe was that this Etape was “hard, very hard” – I think we all agreed! Of the 12 etapes I have entered, this was certainly one of the hardest!