Today was a great day on the bike. We had a 90 km day, with two significant climbs. The first climb was a 4.5 mile climb at an average grade of 5.1%. There were segments where the pitch was a bit stiff, but in general a great climb. I nailed my metrics to make this a very comfy climb and to save the legs for the next climb and Mt Ventoux in two days. On the 4.5 miles, I maintained an average 90 rpm spin cadence and an average heart rate of 156, carrying an average 10 mph pace. It was hard, but felt great.
The second climb offered a bit more. It was billed as a 9 km climb averaging 9% average grade. So not much longer than the first, but the pitch would be much harder. It was. The first bit offered an average grade near 11-12%, with a few bits in the 15-17% range. It was HARD. All in all, I averaged 7.3 mph on this ascent, carrying an average hear rate of 160 and a 75 rpm spin cadence. Felt great and still had legs at the end of the climb. These past few days have been a great warm up and prep for Mt Ventoux on Friday.
Unfortunately, the weather was not so cooperative. It was cloudy and threatening to rain all morning. With 2 km left in the climb, the skies opened. But, I was having such a great day on the bike, I was actually smiling a bit; at least until the descent. The descent was sketchy and the corners were slick. I managed to stay on Freddy's wheel the entire way. He wasn't pressing it too much, but I felt good about the bike handling skills and negotiating the corners.
We hitched a ride in the support van back to the hotel, showered, changed and went into the town of Chamonix for lunch. An omelet, salad, fries, coke and a couple of beers later, I was feeling GREAT. We watched the rest of the race on the TV in the restaurant bar, asking Freddy tons of questions from racing to training. Freddy is a great guy and offered a ton a great advice.
This was the last night in Chamonix. We did not make the cable car ride to Mont Blanc. The weather was simply no cooperative. We wondered into town for dinner. I ate with my biking mates; Doug, Dave and Donna. The food, once again, is awesome. I did not go after the cheese too much, but the prosciutto, parmesan salad and French onion soup hit the spot; along with about 5 baguettes. After dinner, we strolled through the center of town, an extremely quaint ski village. There, I grabbed an ice cream, couldn't pass it up. I can say, for sure, I am eating more calories than I am burning.
A not so frequently updated journal of people, events and experience encountered while riding my bike(s).
Welcome,
In the summer of 2008, I started my blogging experience. I wrote about the Epic Summer, my trip to the Tour de France. It was, for sure, a bucket list item for me. I liked blogging well enough that I thought I'd continue to blog about my cycling experiences. It will be an infrequently updated blog, but I hope the updates will be interesting. If nothing else, the exercise should prove useful to improving my rather weak writing and communication skills. Thanks for checking in and I hope you enjoy.
Take care,
Jim Dennedy
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