La Vaujany Master 2014

The cracks of thunder and heavy rain at 2:30am did nothing to ease my apprehension the night before my attempt at La Vaujany Sportive's 173km of hilly French Alpe roads. I had come out woefully ill prepared for bad weather, as well as being tired from lack of sleep and house moving the previous week. For some reason, I had also thought it a good idea to accompany my London Dynamo cycling friends on a pre-breakfast assault on the 21 famous bends of Alpe D'Huez before breakfast the previous day (just over 56 minutes - not too shabby). Basically, I was shattered, and my legs were even having trouble climbing the four flights of stairs at our accommodation.

Tim from my my cycling club had organized everything, and we had taken over the whole of Chateau d'Oz in the town of Oz En Oisans. At the early breakfast, it became obvious that a lot of people were wisely going to drop out, or ride the shorter Vaujany Senior route at 109km. I am far too stubborn, and have an unblemished record with no DNS (did not start), or indeed DNF (did not finish) markers to my name. This wasn't going to be the day.

Breakfast  banana, small coffee, porridge, bread and cheese, scrambled egg. I should be OK after having lots of pasta the previous day.

I got scared by talk of freezing conditions and decided to wear everything I'd brought, even borrowing Anna's leggings. Neither of us had overshoes so I was going to have wet feet. I had a jersey, sleeveless gilet, sleeved gilet, warm jacket. Nothing rainproof. We cycled down to the start in light drizzle, reaching the line just after 7am and got good positions near the front. The rain stopped. It felt quite warm. I spent nearly 10 minutes faffing around with my jackets, eventually pocketing the sleeveless gilet and warm jacket, which I carried around with me for the next 174km.

The start was frenetic. 20km of fast descent on good roads. However the rain started again, and the spray in my face was constant. I was completely drenched to the skin within five minutes. I got dropped by the Dynamos who raced ahead, and got overtaken a lot by the other riders. But I did find some groups doing my pace and we helped each other to the bottom of the first climb. I kept well within my aerobic threshold. My plan was to never get out of breath, and to not get carried away on flats and descents where it is tempting to push the pace to catch up from lost average pace on hills. I was so tired and badly prepared that I knew I also couldn't attack on hills either, like I usually want to.

Smiling on the inside

Col De La Mort was about 14k of climbing and took me just under one hour. I overtook a couple of Dynamos and said 'hi' as I went past, but when I caught Stephen he decided he wanted company and wouldn't let me get away. So we climbed nearly the whole way together. I don't usually climb with anyone, but it was a good distraction. At an average of 7% gradient it was possible to talk and ride, and the time passed quickly. We were under trees most of the way, with big drops of water falling from leaves. I got rain and sweat in my eye which stung a lot for a while and I was worried about my contact lenses, but I managed to dry it a little and it was OK.

Descents today weren't much fun. As I was wet, it felt chilly, especially my hands in fingerless gloves. The road surfaces were treacherous so cornering needed extra care. My fingers were sore from braking by the end of the day. I never actually felt as cold as I expected though; never close enough to want to put on the jacket I was carrying.

Stephen and I lost each other on the descent, but he found a fast group on the flat and raced ahead with them. I stopped at 60k for some food, but struggled to find much I wanted. I neglected to put some powerbars in my pocket, and they didn't have any at the next and final food stop, so that was a mistake. Hardly anyone was stopping, and not for long. The Wiggle Dragon Ride in Wales was completely different, almost a party atmosphere at food stops. Perhaps they do things differently in France and that's why the stall was so poorly stocked.

Col d'Ornon (c)Tim Pygott

After a bit of flat, the climb to Col d'Ornon started. Not steep and 9-14k depending on where you think it actually starts climbing. I chatted with another Dynamo rider here, also called Stephen (are they all Steves?). Half way up the climb our paces gradually separated us I found myself at the front of a group of about seven chasing down another group, how did that happen? We caught that group and I thought we'd stay together, but everyone pulled away from me again and I climbed the rest of the way alone. Then another descent which was the coldest of the day for me. The gentle drizzle was giving way by now and I was drying a bit.

At the bottom of the Alpe d'Huez (alternate route) climb the road split for riders to go left for the 109km finish, or right to go up the hill for the full 173km. This wasn't an option for me unfortunately. After only 5 minutes, I saw Stephen #1 and another Dynamo racing down the hill in the opposite direction. Discovered later that they had both decided to go short, but had missed the turn off point. I was very envious.

Descending in the wet

I soon came across another Dynamo, Alex and overtook him. The gradient was steeper on this climb, going up to 14% in places, and we were both suffering.  My poor planning meant I expected to be climbing for about an hour. That time came and went and I was still going. After maybe 90 minutes I reached the second and final food stop in Huez. I had a bit of most things (ham baguette, coke, jelly sweets, banana) but the orange segments and dried apricots didn't appeal).

Cruelly, when I left the stop, I was still climbing, which was annoying. There was a small descent, then I looked up and saw the Col de Sarenne climb clearly ahead stretching up to the clouds. This 8% gradient ascent was probably my darkest time during the day (the final climb at Vaujany was harder, but I knew it was the finish so it didn't hurt me mentally in the same way). I felt a bit light headed on this one, and had to slow to practically walking pace. Some people were actually walking. Looking back it may have been the altitude getting to me. It only took just over 15 minutes, but if you include the food stop time, I'd been climbing for just about two hours by the top and I was as close to cracking and just sitting at the side of the road as I ever have been on a ride.

Anna Ternheim sings a song called "To be Gone", the main refrain being "I just wanna be, wanna be gone".  She is Swedish, so I think she is talking about suicide. I wasn't suicidal, but I'd had this line running through my head all day long and never more clearly than now. Why was I here? This wasn't fun.  The sun started to come out just after this, but I was still wet, especially my socks and legs. I just wanted to be gone.

Approaching the final climb in Vaujany

I had ridden 130km now, and had 40km of descending in front of me before the final 5k ascent to the finish line in Vaujany, which I was dreading. My legs were dead and I cycled slowly, apprehension building. Vaujany has a steady 9% gradient. I wasn't sure I could make it. So I didn't even enjoy the best section of the day - fairly dry conditions, sunshine, descending.

When I finally reached the bottom I met my last Dynamo of the day, Mark, who was looking a lot happier than me. He climbed confidently ahead of me, and I just churned out this last section. Stand up on the pedals for as long as I can, sit down and push for as long as I can, stand up, sit down, repeat. Hot sunshine now but I can't take off my light jacket as I have nowhere to put it. I ride into what shadow there is under trees, behind buildings, slowing even more so that I'm out of the sun for longer. I do find enough strength to go over the finish line with a bit of speed and a smile on my face. Done.

My final time was 7:43:12  - I wasn't too far down the field at 102nd of 268 finishers. I'm pleased I did it, but it was a very hard day and I wouldn't want to repeat the experience. More rest and sleep in the days before a long, hilly ride are definitely needed, and being prepared for the conditions wouldn't hurt either. I had a brilliant weekend overall however, met some great people and did some awesome cycling in the sunshine on the other days of my trip - maybe I should have written about that instead.

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Wiggle Dragon Ride 2014

I told myself that I wouldn't ride this if it was pouring with rain. I'm not really a fair weather cyclist, but the idea of sitting on a cold wet bike for over eight hours, only to end up with a slower time than last year, just didn't appeal. However the forecast improved at the last minute, and it was dry and sunny in the morning, so I was hopeful. Port Talbot cruelly punished me however, but more of that later.

Woke up at 5:30, ate a banana, and went downstairs in my hotel for continental breakfast of coffee, toast with honey, and crunchy nut cornflakes. Anna helped me with my faffing around to get ready, and trying to decide what to wear. Settled on bib-shorts, jersey, arm warmers, with a sleeveless waterproof gilet in my back pocket. There was a big London Dynamo contingent present, and I don't know many of them, so I wore their colours to get me recognised. I know my Evolution Triathlon Club friends well enough.

Arriving at Margam Park was a struggle this year as all the traffic trying to get in was competing with cyclists heading out on the extra long (300km) Devil route. So the best laid plans for meeting up with the first Dynamo group fell through. I did find a smaller group so it was nice not to be alone for the first few kilometres.

At the start, me on the left :)

Had a caffeine gel, and we were off at 8:22am. For the record, I carried 750ml + 500ml energy drink, 2* Nutrigrain bar, Isogel+, 2 spare tubes and a set of patches, along with mobile phone and wallet.

We made good time out along the dual carriageways, but when we reached some some less even tarmac in a tight group, suddenly someone hit a pothole, someone else braked, I hit the pothole too, and I found myself careering into the pavement. Years of cycling with cleats meant that my left foot was out instantly, I hit it quite hard against the kerb, and I managed to come to a stop without falling off. I'd even lifted the front of the bike at the last minute, so didn't damage my wheel. The group were gone, but I slowly gained on them, and then we were climbing the first real hill of the day, Bwlch.

I liked Bwlch, it had a nice even gradient and the views were spectacular the higher we got. It was amazing to look back at the other riders snaking up the hill behind as I neared the top. I had dropped the Dynamo guys, but found myself keeping pace with another rider, we had a chat as we jockeyed for position - hi James, I don't remember your number.

Down the other side, and then straight into the second big climb, Rhigos. Legs still quite fresh, so this wasn't a problem. The first food stop provided Jaffa cakes, some pretzels, a banana and power bar for my pocket, and a little water to top up my 500 ml bottle. I wanted to make the stops shorter this year, so really rushed.

Everything went well, and I was feeling good. My average speed looked OK in the 27-8 km/h range. I was mostly cycling alone, occasionally drafting, occasionally being drafted, feeling good that no one was passing me on the ascents, and only letting a few overtake descending. It seemed like there is very little flat riding - just slow climbing, then breakneck descents.

The hairpin at Devil's Elbow

Then the steepest climb - The Devils Elbow (Sarn Helen). This is a timed 'King of the Mountain' race to win a prize, but I wasn't interested in that. If you overstretch yourself, you can kill your legs and never recover. Today for me was all about finishing strong and happy. I had a hard time here last year, but it wasn't an issue today. I got to the top looking forward to the nice fast descent I remembered, only to be met with a strong headwind. The road was quite crowded with cyclists so got some protection and tucked in :)

Food Stop 2, nearly half way. Another 500 ml fill-up on my bottles, and some salty boiled potatoes which I'd been looking forward to, and back out quickly. Caught up to Steve from Evolution who told me another friend Matthew was up ahead. so the chase was on. I enjoyed the climb on open road up past the Cray reservoir and finally caught Matthew about five miles from the 3rd food stop. An ambulance that had recently overtaken me was there, and a rider was lying on a stretcher - hope he was OK.

We stopped at the same place last year - going in the opposite direction. I got so much clay in my cleats that I couldn't ride, and the same thing happened today, but I was ready and cleaned them before I set off. Lost a couple of minutes though. I got another banana, and Powerbars, ate some cakes and potatoes, and filled my bottles. This was my last stop. I knew from experience that this would be more than enough to get me to the finish and I'd save 5 minutes not going into food stop 4.

I rode with Nick (1820) for a while, someone I'd met earlier. I pulled away from him and thought I'd lost him, but then he came flying past drafting a strong rider and told me to get on the back, which I did for a fun 5-10 minutes. The most beautiful stretch of road was this bit, under some dense trees that had sunlight shining through, and a babbling stream on our left hand side.

I knew there was one big climb before the end, and suddenly we'd started it - Black Mountain. It had been so much fun descending this last year, but the reverse route meant we were climbing now. There is almost 6 miles of constant ascent, and it took me around half an hour. I passed a lot of people which made me happy and kept looking behind to make sure no one was gaining on me. The views became more stunning the higher we went, but the wind decided it also wanted my attention. So at the steepest section, I wanted to stand up to pedal, but the wind tried to blow me back, so I sat down, but it was too hard to pedal, so I stood up. And repeat.

Over the top, and as with Rhigos, the descent was a disappointment. I pedalled hard and only reached 40km/h downhill into the wind. This was not helping my average speed much at all after the thirty minutes of slow climbing had battered it. At the bottom I got stopped at some traffic lights where an impromptu group of about seven or eight of us formed. There were a couple of guys who wanted to be in the lead, and kept overtaking each other, pushing the pace. The rest of us hung on, and occasionally took a turn when the traffic and the other cyclists caused holdups. There were a few annoying temporary traffic lights on this section, which were always red. I hit the front on the ascents, and formed a breakaway of one on a longer hill, but as I was riding into the wind alone after that the peleton eventually caught me.

Going out of Neath, I saw a '20km To Go' sign, at the  bottom of a 2k climb, not a long one, and the last of the day. My temporary friends (though interestingly none of us had actually acknowledged the others) dropped behind me, and this time the hill was long enough that I decided I could make enough space between us that maybe they wouldn't catch me. The terrain was undulating now, and I made good speed. I didn't feel tired, had plenty of food and fluids and was feeling happy. My knees were complaining a little, but not enough to worry me.

Suddenly the sky started to look ominous. I pedalled faster. Out onto the dual carriageway and I knew I was close to home. I caught a big group, maybe ten riders and thought I might get a rest behind them, but they were riding at 28km/h against my 31, so I overtook. Spots of water on my sunglasses. More spots. Less than 5km to go and after over eight hours riding I was not going to escape the deluge. Within seconds, the heavens opened, rain lashing so hard into my face I couldn't see where I was going. I glanced behind me, and was surprised to see the group I'd passed. I had assumed they were long gone, but they had grabbed my back wheel and I'd been pulling them for a few minutes, not hearing them over the sound of the headwind. Well done guys!

I completed last year's ride in 8:18, and knew from my Garmin that I was really close to beating this. It was a different longer course, but I still wanted to do it. Wet already, and chasing a time, I left my gilet in my back pocket and ploughed on faster, losing my new followers in the process. This was horrible. The road got steeper. There was another roundabout I didn't remember. I kept having to wipe my eyes to see through the rain. I had to swerve a few times to avoid slower cyclists who I only saw at the last minute. And I realised I probably wasn't going to beat my time after all.

I was glad to finally reach the park entrance, and raced to the line, though not too fast, this would be a stupid time to skid on the wet road. I finished to cheering fans (not really) with a time of 8:19:42 - only a minute off 2013's result. There was an extra 15k riding so I'm very happy to have ridden faster and finished less tired. I still had loads of food in my pockets and one litre of energy drink so I got that right too. The rain stopped, but I was still very wet, and started to get cold, so went to the tent for my pasta and to wait for Anna. We'd planned to meet at 5pm, and I was a bit early.

Hank, Matthew,Paul, Alan, Lars, Stuart, Rob, Robert

Matthew came in next, and Anna bought us a beer to celebrate, which went down very quickly. I went to the car and changed into dry clothes, but came back and watched the rest of Evolution club finish. Lars, Emily, Paul, Hank, Stuart, Rob and Alan all finished and we got together for a group photo before making our tired way home. Lars said he really enjoyed his 300 km, so I wonder if I should try the Devil next year?




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