Moments in Time

The comment of Christian Prudhomme

It is custom in France to hope for French fireworks at the finish line on Bastille Day, a hope that is evidently not shared by the rest of the pack… After the start from Chambéry, which also hosts the Classique des Alpes Juniors every year, the Laffrey climb and the Noyer mountain pass will be the two major hurdles on the race programme before the stage finish in Gap, the county town of Hautes-Alpes.

To see an interactive map and explore the stage with Google Street View click here.

Very limited data from today's ride due to the usual problems with this useless Garmin software, it just seems to do something different every day.

Tonight's posting will be short because after the epic ride today I'm tired and I want to get off to sleep. The day, as the major Alpine stage, was always going to be difficult but to be honest I thought things were going pretty well for me, until I hit the Col de la Madeleine that is, all thirty odd kilometres of it.

The weather had been threatening for some time and a huge thunderstorm finally broke when I was about 3-4km from the summit. Under normal circumstances I would have stopped ascending ages earlier as it was obvious what was going to happen but these are not ordinary circumstances so I had to press on.

Finally made it to the summit, it was freezing and hail was coming down and there were huge crashes of thunder and forked lightening, it was like a scene from hell, or what I imagine hell to be like anyway. The descent was awful and I just took my time and stayed safe and finally arrived at the bottom, frozen stiff.

The main thing is that my tour is still on track but I'm a bit concerned about exactly how much today will have taken out of me, I guess I'll find out tomorrow. For the moment it's on with the SKINS C400 recovery gear, some sleep, and hope for the best tomorrow.

Thanks to everyone for the messages of support both on here and on Twitter. I read them all as they are delivered to my phone via email and they really mean a lot. Unfortunately due to restricted time and a lack of Internet access I can't reply very often.

Photographs from Today:

Dropping into Cluses this morning.

En route to the Col de la Colombiere

Two road signs at a junction. To the left the torture of the Col de la Madeleine, to the right a charming village I'm sure. I showed my age here and turned left towards the Col de la Madeleine ;-)

Today's Weather:

Hot and humid early on but then clouded over. Huge storm hit the Col de la Madeleine whilst I was on the top of it. Thunder, lightening, hail and driving rain. The descent from the col was truly ghastly.

Ride Time: 12:10 hh:mm

Ride Distance: 126 miles

Elevation Gain: Approximately 15,000 feet

Average Speed - True: 10.36mph

The comment of Christian Prudhomme

With four climbs on the programme, this will be the major alpine stage, following the first rest day. The stage will start in Haute-Savoie then, after a climb to the Colombière mountain pass, cross the border into Savoie and the Aravis pass, followed by the Saisies pass. The final and most gruelling challenge will be the Madeleine pass that lies thirty kilometres from the finish in Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne.

To see an interactive map and explore the stage with Google Street View click here.

Today is the first rest day of the tour, I'll try to keep you updated on how things are going during the day.

A long hot struggle today with tired legs and two category one climbs at the end of the stage, this was tough. At the mid point of the stage I really felt the need for a break and some proper food rather than the constant energy bars and gels and sweet drinks.

I stopped at a roadside café and had a large baguette with ham and cheese followed by a magnum ice cream, all washed down with cold drinks. I then sat and watched the world go by for maybe an hour, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, I shall do this again.

The climb of the Col de la Ramaz was pretty challenging and there were numerous points which I thought were the top but in fact they weren't, just false summits, that was pretty dispiriting. The descent to le Praz-de-Lys was very bumpy and there a couple of very nasty drains which I really hope are attended to before the race comes through or there will be trouble for the peloton.

Finally arrived in Morzine to commence the category 1 climb to Avoriaz which though not steep was no fun by this stage in the day. It had been so hot that there was melted tar on the road in many places, very much to be avoided when descending.

So, another hard stage done and time at last for the first rest day, I'm going to have a lie-in tomorrow :-)

Photographs from Today:

Superb welcome to The Tour hilltop sculpture.

Lovely sunflower field.

The campervans are arriving on the mountainsides, and the folk sometimes clap when I go past!

Today's Weather:

Very hot again, around 33 degrees this afternoon, little wind.

Ride Time: 11:24 hh:mm

Work Done: 4550 kJ

Training Stress Score: 335

Intensity Factor: 0.592

Normalised Power: 180W

Variability Index: 1.37

Ride Distance: 115.2 miles

Elevation Gain: 11633 feet

Maximum Power: 517W

Average Power: 132W

Average Heart Rate: 113bpm

Average Speed - True: 10.1mph

Acute Training Load: 202.4

Chronic Training Load: 119.5

Training Stress Balance: -71.6

The comment of Christian Prudhomme

From the Jura to the Alps… From the start, and on the previous day in particular, the pack has encountered some steep challenges, but this is the first real contact with high mountain peaks. Rarely climbed - twice only - the Ramaz pass sits forty kilometres from the high altitude finish in Avoriaz, which was last visited by the Tour sixteen years ago.

To see an interactive map and explore the stage with Google Street View click here.

Tough day today and no mistake. A lot of climbing which was also very broken up rather than just one or 2 very long climbs, and once again it was very very hot, I'd estimate around 34 degrees.

Anyhow, seemed to have recovered well and to be able to maintain steady and sure progress which has always been my objective and there were a couple of super descents which I enjoyed though I always rode well within my limits remaining well on the side of caution.

Nothing major to report, planning to try out a couple of different SKINS products tomorrow so more on that then but in the meantime the gear I have been using continues to perform extremely well, wearing the RY400 tights as I type, all ready for sleeping :-)

Another tough day tomorrow, they all are now, and then I have the first rest day which I am really looking forward to. Hoping to catch up on quite a few things including a load of laundry which is not quite so much fun! Tomorrow is going to be another plugging away day and my objective remains to reach the end of the stage safely, no heroics for me, life is too precious.

Photographs from Today:

The Tour is coming, long live The Tour!

Fabulous views along the route.

Col de la Croix de la Serra

A fine greeting in Les Rousses

Today's Weather:

Very hot and sunny again, too hot for 11,000+ feet of ascent.

Ride Time: 09:23hh:mm

Work Done: 4340kJ

Training Stress Score: 327

Intensity Factor: 0.625

Normalised Power: 191W

Variability Index: 1.33

Ride Distance: 103.3 miles

Elevation Gain: 11,833 feet

Maximum Power: 563W

Average Power: 144W

Average Heart Rate: 119bpm

Average Speed - True: 11.0mph

Acute Training Load: 185.8

Chronic Training Load: 114.3

Training Stress Balance: -59

The comment of Christian Prudhomme

This is a major first for Tournus and Les Rousses that have never before played host to the Tour. After a forty kilometre flat ride, the going gets tough with an unrelenting and rising succession of mountain climbs, and notably the ascension of the southern slopes of La Croix de la Serra (1,049 m). A final 14 kilometre climb will lead to the summit finish in Les Rousses.

To see an interactive map and explore the stage with Google Street View click here.

This was a biggie, the longest stage of the 2010 Tour de France and it went well, I felt great and seemed to be feeling stronger as the day went on though I'm not sure how I will feel in the morning! Knee now seems to have settled down pretty much completely which is great, I can't possibly explain how relieved I am about this.

Continuing with my use of the SKINS RY400 recovery gear, no way I'm going to change what seems to be a winning approach to recovery. For the last couple of days I've been wearing the long sleeved C400 jersey in white because of the heat and it's been amazingly comfortable. I guess it reflects the heat, allows very rapid evaporation of sweat to aid cooling, and also provides UV50 protection. I actually found the long sleeved jersey more comfortable in the heat than having the sun directly on my skin, I've never tried that before.

Rolling countryside all day so not easy but the hydration, nutrition, and recovery all seem to be working out well. Great to see the countryside all being prepared for the arrival of what for me is undoubtedly the greatest show on Earth.

Met up with a nice American guy called Ron who rode along with us for a while which was great, he's booked in at the same hotel now so I'm not sure if I'll be seeing him tomorrow but we shall see.

Tomorrow sees the first real test in the hills with the ascent over a number of very significant climbs up to Station de Rousses, if that goes well it will give me a lot of confidence for what lies ahead and if it goes badly I'll just have to shut up and get on with it anyway!

Delighted to see tonight that I'm now being followed on Twitter by the BMC Pro Racing Team :-) I think it's unlikely that they are trying to recruit a somewhat overweight 51 year old to ride for them but hey guys thanks for getting in touch and good luck in The Tour!

Limited data from today's ride because of another Garmin download failure, hopeless, but the ride isn't about data, it's about the ride, the journey, and the experience.

Photographs from Today:

Another lovely French town, another market on the Tour de France route :-)

Lovely church in Varzy.

The country getting ready for the arrival of The Tour.

Today's riding countryside.

Today's Weather:

Hot and sunny again, very hot this afternoon rising to around 30 degrees. Light wind which was sometimes actually helpful!

Ride Time: 09:59 hh:mm

Ride Distance: 143.6 miles

Average Power: 134W

Average Heart Rate: 115bpm

Average Speed - True: 14.38mph

Acute Training Load: 168.5

Chronic Training Load: 109.2

Training Stress Balance: -43.5

The comment of Christian Prudhomme

This will be the longest stage in the 2010 Tour: 225 kilometres, from Loiret to Saône-et-Loire, from the Centre region to southern Bourgogne. A flat stage, with a few inclines in the landscape from time to time: a ride that should inspire fans of lengthy forays on the road to Gueugnon, a new town on the Tour.

To see an interactive map and explore the stage with Google Street View click here.