The Crazy Bet

Thirty thousand feet. The number haunts me. I have accepted a dare from the cycling-apparel company Rapha to go to France this July to do two bike races—on consecutive days—that will involve 30,000 feet of climbing. I'm pretty sure that's more climbing than I've ever done in two weeks, let alone one weekend. And I ride a lot.

Here's another measure: The easier of the two races will be the Etape du Tour, which follows the same route as Stage 10 of this year's Tour de France. It will involve about 100 miles and some 13,000 feet of climbing in the Pyrenees, over the legendary Tourmalet and Hautacam climbs. The previous day, I'll be in the Alps, racing in La Marmotte and trying to get myself up about 17,000 feet of climbing, over the Croix de Fer, Galibier, and the mythical Alpe d'Huez.

Yes, I'm training my ass off. Literally. At last check I'd lost six pounds, down to 149. That's the same I weighed when I graduated high school 19 years ago. Luckily for me, Outside is based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, at an altitude of 7,000 feet and right at the base of some 12,000-foot peaks. It's an ideal training ground: mountainous, at high altitude, and close enough that I can easily ride before work or during lunch hours.

I've begun working with Allen Lim, PhD., trainer for Slipstream/Chipotle, the American pro cycling team that just earned its first invitation to the Tour de France. I'll be blogging here regularly about my training, races, nutrition, and gear—and by the way, how I'm balancing all this with my June 7 wedding.

On the gear front, I've already been measured for a custom Independent Fabrications XS. And Rapha and IF have agreed to give one away to whomever comes closest to guessing my total time for the two days (even more pressure for me not to quit). You can enter here.

I'll also be uploading the training data from my PowerTap 2.4 power meter and the route profiles from my Garmin Edge 705 GPS unit, so everyone can see exactly how much I'm suffering and where.

Check back next week to see how I did in this weekend's La Tierra Torture mountain-bike race. (I'm guessing poorly).

—John Bradley

Comments

[Philippe Crist]

Hey John,

The descents are a real number if you haven't spent a lot of time descending in the French Alps - but the Galibier shouldn't be too bad since by then, the peleton (or what remains of it) is usually completely spread out.

The first technical decent to be aware of is the un-named descent on the way up the Glandon. In order to make up for a washed-out road, about halfway up the Glandon (just past the village of Le Rivier d'Allemond) the road makes a steep series of switchbacks down the mountain before kicking back up the mountain with some truly fearsome grades. The switchbacks down are steep, tight and a prime spot for over-zealous dutch riders to overcook their corners and end up in the scenery ... happens every time!

The 1st 5 km downhill off the Glandon is also very technical and narrow -- and still crowded so watch it here, esp. as there is traffic coming uphill. The first 2 km are a succession of tight turns.

Coming off the Galibier is a bit easier as you have much better lines of sight even though the road is narrow. Watch the blind corners as you turn right on the way down to the Lautaret. The Lautaret down to Bourg d'Oisans is a motorway (figuratively speaking) and has a bit of dodgy pavement. As there is often an up-valley headwind blowing, you need to get in a group ASAP for this part of the Marmotte. No heroics here, any distance you spend riding alone is just going to translate into lost power on the Alpe d'Huez. Catch up to the group ahead or allow the group behind to catch up to you and then spend this section drinking and eating in prep. for the Alpe.

If you have never ridden the Alpe d'Huez, keep in mind that the first 6 switchbacks are the steepest of the climb. drop it into your easiest gear and take your time on this section up to the first hamlet of la Garde. From there it gets easier and you will find yourself dropping a few cogs as you go up if you haven't burnt all your matches on the first 6 ramps. Focus on one corner at a time and you will find yourself at the top (which is 1 km after the village entrance) in no time!

The Tourmalet is a long slog. The steepest pitches are just inside and after the Avalanche shelters before La Mongie. The top is very exposed to wind which can be a bear s well. Hautacam is just plain hard.

[John Bradley]

Hi, Philippe,

Thanks for the note. It's reassuring to know that someone else has done this double (though also humbling to know that someone rides this much more than I do). I know the climbs will be a lot of work, but I'm curious about the descents. How are they? The prospect of thousands of amateurs bombing down the Galibier en masse sounds a little dodgy.

Best,
John

[Philippe Crist]

John - I wish you the best with your double-header. Having done the Marmotte-Etape back-to-back (with one day of travel in between)in 2006, I can assure you that it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be! In fact, I found the second time up the Alpe d'Huez (during the Etape) to be somewhat easier than the first time up during the Marmotte. It helps to know the course(courses) pretty well and having done the Marmotte a few times beforehand certainly helped - especialy in setting a good sustainable pace up the Telegraph/Glandon. Logistically, the Marmotte-Etape posed little challenge in 2006 as they were both in the Alpes and finished atop the Alpe d'Huez. This year it will be a bit more complicated as I am sure you are well aware ... but having a jet at your disposal should help! Last year we did the Marmotte-Etape again but we had a week of riding in between. Here is a link to a ride report from the 2006: http://forums.roadbikereview.com/showthread.php?t=106490 and, just for grins, a report from last year's trip: http://forums.roadbikereview.com/showthread.php?t=120074

I've ridden the Etape the past 7 years and have ridden the Marmotte a half-dozen times. I've also ridden the Tourmalet and Hautacam several times each. Should you have any questions re. the Marmotte or the Etape, feel free to ask!

Cheers,

Philippe