Trains, Travels

I had my first solid night’s sleep of camp, only waking when the alarm sounded at 6:30. I appreciate the rest, but unfortunately it was a sign of the level of fatigue I’ve reached. My legs felt dead and my motivation was waning. Still I traipsed down to the lobby and met the other guys for the morning swim.

I’ve never moved my arms so slowly in the water. Each stroke and each recovery took their time and I wasn’t willing to push myself, just complete the 45 minutes required for camp completion. Previous swims had left me feeling refreshed, this time I felt no better and just wanted to get to breakfast as quickly as possible. I hoped that once I was on the bike my legs would pick up and I’d be going well.

We started with the easiest riding of camp – taking the bike path along the side of the lake. Having to weave our way through other cyclists kept the pace necessarily low; I just span out my legs and didn’t complain. Once we’d cleared town and the path emptied Steven joined me up front and we pushed things along. Going harder on the flat didn’t feel too bad, perhaps the day would be good.

The first small (400m) hill put that idea to rest as I dawdled up it in a low gear. Mind and body were unwilling to work above a certain level. Given the next two climbs were significantly harder my optimism vanished. It wasn’t long before we reached the Col du Pre, the first major climb of the day, Steven had driven the pace hard to get us there and it had stung my legs. Once we headed up I dropped back and rode all the way with Douglas; we chatted and enjoyed the views, it was a pleasant way to spend a climb.

A brief stop at the top for drinks and to admire the beautiful lake and it was straight into a fast and eventful descent. Being at the back for the descent I came across a group of the guys and learned that Scott had had a close encounter with the back of an Audi. Both he and the bike had faired remarkably well considering; once he was sure the forks were fine he was straight back on it. It wasn’t long after that we reached the foot of our second climb to Les Saisies.

Not quite as brutal as the Col du Pre, but long enough. Douglas moved away early as I settled into my single climbing pace, it looked like I was going to be along. I soon caught back up and when I went past he didn’t follow; I was alone, just not near the back. I made steady progress up the hill again never pushing the intensity. My mind was focussed on conserving energy, as Scott put it – looking for fuel efficiency.

The views on the climbs were classically Alpine and spectacular. My legs hurt, but I paid more attention to the scenery around me and what life must be like living halfway up a mountain.

After lunch in Les Saisies we descended as a group and rejoined the bike path back to Annecy. I’d been warming my legs up on the descent, trying to feel if they had anything for the flats. Once we’d reached the path I moved to the front and tested them properly. The worked and I pushed the next 15K at a solid pace, the only frustration being the occasional gate slowing us down.

Things got a little more heated when we left the path and took the road down the other side of the lake. The pace picked up with Steven and Clas putting in some solid efforts on the front. I hung in there till we hit a steep little hill and the group fragmented. For those final 10k we were split by traffic on the busy roads. A tough day, but I’d survived and achieved something in the final hour or two home.

It wasn’t over though, camp completion required a run; Paul had been the only one smart enough to get it done early. Begrudgingly I changed and plodded out on the cycle paths of Annecy. With perfect hot weather for sunbathing the city was heaving and half the challenge was dodging pedestrians. It was a slow run for fifty minutes, but I was surprised that my legs worked reasonably well. That was it for the day training done.

After seven days of hard training I’m reaching my limit. Day eight is the return to Lyon – a long ride with a brutal climb in the middle of it. There is no other training required for camp completion and I’ve no intention of doing anything extra. Aside from a swim I’ve not tacked on this time and I’m not about a start. I just need to survive another 190km of cycling and the job is done.

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After five hard days of training, a chance to kick back and relax; at least after Epic Camp’s easy training is done. There was no lie in, not that I’d slept much in our hot hotel room; window open, the noise of Annecy kept me awake, peaking with a 5am brawl outside our hotel. Tired from my restless night I joined the others in the lobby for a quick coffee. Then we made our way to the lake for the pre-breakfast Aquathon.

I wasn’t enthused and neither was my roommate Douglas. Both of us would have preferred to sleep a few more hours and perhaps recover before the final big days. We made our excuses and set expectations low, but once the race started I don’t think either of us held back. I sat on Douglas’s feet for the entire swim, though I was polite enough not to tap his toes. I crawled through transition whilst he shot off onto the run.

The chase was on and I spent the next 5K trying to run him down. I closed the gap, but with only a kilometre to go he held me off and ran strongly. I had nothing more and there was no way I could take him.

Being an easy day we had a leisurely breakfast, over two hours before the next piece of camp training. Traditionally Epic Camp easy days have allowed some gentle riding, but things change – there was a hill for KOM points. Not a trivial bump, but 16km of climbing to an altitude over 1600m. I was not looking forward to this.

When we rolled out of the hotel most thoughts were on the prospect of an afternoon off. A chance to relax and take a break from training. At the bottom of the hill these thoughts vanished, I tried to stick with some of the initial surges, but was soon off the back of the lead group. Too strong for me, too early in the climb. Accepting that they were gone I settled into a rhythm.

Over my shoulder I saw Douglas in the green jersey, not far off, but this time I was going to stay ahead. Midway through the climb the road flattens and I pushed the pace to open the gap; it seemed to work as soon he was out of sight. As the road pitched back up to 9% I settled. A short while later I spotted a rider in dark kit one hairpin back. It took me a minute to realise it was Scott closing in on me.

Motivation! I was determined to hold him off and upped my effort. I spent more time out of the saddle doing all I could to drop him. The gap didn’t open, he seemed to be closing, but I kept pushing. There was at least 6km to go and I felt close to my limit, my only hope was he was too. I dug in. The next twenty minutes were some of the toughest riding on the camp as I kept pushing myself until the gap opened.

I had to be sure, I couldn’t let up, and perhaps with enough effort I could bridge up to Steven and Ian who were within site. I really was on the edge though and each new pitch took my legs closer to the limit; corner after corner the top was never in site and Scott was always somewhere behind. I never quite bridged up to Steven, I came close, but mercifully the summit arrived.

Being an easy day the whole camp stopped at the summit cafe for lunch, ice creams and a moment to chill. After a relaxed lunch I just swung my leg back over the bike and rolled down the hill. An easy descent, no effort, spinning the legs out to the hotel.

With the rest of the day free a few of us headed into town to take in some of the sights and find ice cream. I didn’t take up the buy five scoops get one free offer, sticking at a more reasonable two (plus two Magnums spread throughout the day). Tomorrow it’s back to training with another 100 mile plus ride and a few cols thrown in on route.

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I was hoping that a massage, sleeping with compression on and raising the foot of my bed would be enough to keep my legs in working order for the fifth day of camp. A group of us started day five with a run up the hills of Briancon to the old town, a medieval castle; combining hill work with tourism. Despite the height gain my legs didn’t feel so bad, perhaps the day would go well.

When I swung my leg over the bike it was a different matter, they were definitely feeling the previous few days. It didn’t stop me going to the front once we were clear of Briancon and working with Steven to keep the pace high. Having formed a breakaway the day before I knew Steven was keen for more KOM points so I suggested if he was strong he breaks from the front and I’d hold a steady pace. Hopefully no one would go.

Eight kilometres from the summit of the Col de Lautaret he made his move and I held a steady power, trying not to obviously slow down. Clas and Zach flew pact and got on Steven’s wheel, the rest were slow to respond, but when John jumped round and everyone followed I had nothing. I worked hard the rest of the Lautaret to maintain the gap, but I couldn’t bridge. When we hit the Galibier I was gone and put in my weakest climb of camp. Frankly I was glad when it was over. The plan had worked and Steven had taken third.

At over 2600m the Galibier was the highest point of the day and the next eighty kilometres were all down hill. After a fantastic descent interrupted briefly by the Col de Telegraphe we hit a 50km highway section. Still slightly downhill, but with a headwind in our face I decided it was time to make up for the previous lacklustre performance and hit the front. Working with Rob and with a little help from Steven, Douglas and Chrissie we pushed all the way to lunch.

I was shattered by the effort and struggled to eat. The heat had built up and I took in as much fluids as I could to battle dehydration. I honestly wondered how I’d get over the final couple of Cols before we reached Annecy. On the first climb my legs came back to life and whilst I was roasted and thirsty by the top I picked up on the descent and hammered my way to the lead group. Fuelled a little by frustration that I’d been left behind at that point.

I kept the workload on for the rest of the ride, pushing hard up the final Col and enjoying the descent the other side. I cruised down to Annecy where I was joined by Douglas as we navigated the town to find our hotel. Overall i was satisfied with the ride, I’d have liked to have been up to more on the Galibier, but had to take satisfaction that I could push myself later in the day.

We rounded training off with a 30 minute swim in the lake. I’m not sure many were enthusiastic, but it left me feeling refreshed. Tomorrow is the ‘easy’ day. A pre-breakfast Aquathon, and then a late morning hill time trial. Once that’s done the rest of the day is ours. I’m not chasing yellow so I’m not going for any extra points. I’ll use the time to catch up on email, work and this blog.

Once again I end the day feeling tired, wasted and hoping my body can hold together a little bit longer.

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