July 2003 Diary
July 5th - Finally Sunshine for the Marmotte
Looking back, my 2002 Marmotte was both the worst and best day that I'd probably ever had on the bike. The weather had been unbearably bad on descent of the Col du Galibier. Just over an hour later, I had climbed the Alpe d'Huez as well as I'd climbed any mountain in my life and the previous three climbs were forgotton. What a contrast of cycling!
This would be the fourth time riding the Marmotte event, and I wasn't sure how I would go and if my legs would hold out. My gold standard time had thankfully increased to eight hours 49 minutes as I'd now turned 30, but a serious lack of quality kilometres meant I was worried about reaching that time this year. 2003 was the year that I had become a father, moved house, and with all the visitors I had spent a lot less time on the bike.
I was woken by the alarm at 5:30am, and peered out into the dawn to see mountains and no clouds. I was staying in Alpe d'Huez and following a hearty breakfast, I had a fresh 14 kilometre descent down to the valley floor. Bourg d'Oisans was alive with cyclists finding their way to the start and setting up their bikes.
I joined the front group in Bourg d'Oisans at about 6:30am and found myself about ten rows from the front. There was a real mixture of nationalities but it was Dutch voices that filled the air with their relaxed laughing and joking. A record number of cyclists had signed up to the 2003 event with the local paper reporting over 6,000 taking the start. I was lined up in the first 100, and behind me were a huge number of riders ready for the start at 07:15am.
The start was given and I stayed near the front of the group as we rolled along at around 42 kilometres an hour towards Allemont. It was certainly a brisk start and I found myself riding next to two guys dressing in Rabobank kit, who were wearing all the gear and even riding nice looking Colnago bikes. I presumed that they were big fans of the team, and it was only later that I found out that they really were from the Rabobank team. One of them would win the Marmotte event today.
The first rise in the road came at dam that sits above Allemont and I cycled hard to stay with the front group, but as soon as we hit the lower slopes of the Col de la Croix de Fer, I went straight for the 26 sprocket and went off the back of the group. I didn't have the kilometres to even think about riding the whole event at anything faster than a very steady pace.
Cyclists passed me for the majority of the climb of the Col de la Croix de Fer, and it was only in the last third of the climb that I started to find my legs and cycle the same speed as the people around me. The mountains looked great, with clear views all around. At certain points I could see down onto the road below which was full of riders climbing up the road I had just ridden.
I stopped at the 2067 metre Col de la Croix de Fer to fill my bottle and grabbed something to snack on before the long descent down towards St Jean de Maurienne. The jagged peaks of the Aguilles des Arves stood proudly on the skyline, and checking the watch, I had taken around one hour 50 minutes to this point which was a pleasing time and similar to last year. What a difference dry roads were already making.
I was suprised how split up the event was on the descent. There were relatively few riders around me so I rode hard to try and stay around them as I knew it would be easier for the gradual valley riding to St-Michel-de-Maurienne. The final kilometres were incredibly fast with a friend clocking over 100 kilometres an hour on this stretch.
At the bottom of the descent, I found myself in a group of ten riders and I sat at the back eating and drinking. There was a larger group just a few hundred metres ahead and when three riders jumped off from our group, I jumped as well. We spent the next eleven kilometres chasing but never caught the group in front. The group we had left didn't work together and they couldn't been seen behind.
I taken three hours to get to the bottom of the Col du Telegraphe. My group disintergrated in the first kilometre of the climb and I rode my pace for the 12 kilometres. I stayed in the 39-26 for the whole climb and I was in a group of eight riders as we made the Col, an hour after I had started the climb.
I finished off my bottle on the short descent to Valloire and then stocked up at the feed station just outside the town. I had lost all interest in bananas and stodgy food, and took four small ham sandwiches which now seemed a lot more appealing. I knew that there would be a feed station at the Col du Galibier, so I had to take enough food and liquid for the next 17 kilometres of climbing.
The sky was still clear and there were perfect cycling conditions. There was no real wind pushing us around the Col, and the higher I climbed, the better I felt.
As I rode into the final five kilometres to the Galibier, a rider climbed into the Belgian van that had driven too close to me on the Col de Telegraphe. I, and the cyclists around me shook our heads in disbelief. Two kilometres later, the same rider climbed out of the van with his bike. There was some justice though, as the rider fell into the ditch when he tried to click into his pedals before setting off.
;) |
| Riding
the last kilometre of the Col du Galibier in the 2003 Marmotte |
The view from the Galibier was as good as I'd ever seen it. The glaciers glistened under the sun, and the highest peaks of the mountains stood imposing on the skyline. I stopped briefly to pick up some food at the feed station, and joined a French club mate on the descent towards the Col du Lautaret. He'd passed me on Croix de Fer, and I caught him on the last 500 metres of Galibier.
It was certainly fresh as I started the descent but the dry roads gave me the confidence to chase the riders in front of me. I knew that there would be a headwind from the Lautaret and there would be safetly in numbers at this point.
The Col du Lautaret was busy with tourists and with the police who were supervising the Marmotte. Sure enough the road turned into the strong headwind and I spent the first kilometre after the Col chasing the rider in front of me. The road surface was bad this point and I regretted that I'd started to try and eat the food that I'd put in my pockets at the Galibier.
The tunnels felt cool compared to the air outside, and eleven kilometres after the Lautaret, I rode through the village of La Grave. From there, the gradients eased slightly and a group gradually formed. We passed the roads to Deux Alpes and La Berarde before four kilometres of flat riding to the bottom of Alpe d'Huez. I used the hour to eat and drink, and shelter behind other riders. In previous years, I'd had the legs to ride more but this year I was saving all the energy I had.
As we turned onto the road to Alpe d'Huez, hundreds of spectators shouted encouragement at our group. All I wanted to do was to ride the first six hairpins, and see how I felt from there. As on all the other climbs, I sat down and span my legs in 39-26.
I stopped for water at hairpin 16 and was already feeling tired, and the lack of kilometres were starting to show. I looked up to the church on the mountainside above me, and set that as the next goal, telling myself the climb became a little easier now. Four kilometres later and halfway to the church, the legs were feeling heavy and I was starting to feel tired. I was aware that I was starting to weave on the road. It wasn't bad, bad weaving but it was enough to tell me I really needed to get to the finish.
I stopped for water again just before Huez and would have been quite happy to stay there and watch the passing cyclists. I hadn't looked at the time since the Col de Telegraphe so I had no idea what the time was.
After the final steeper section after hairpin four, I kept the legs turning at a comfortable tempo and was able to sit down for the final kilometres. It felt great to roll into the village onto the flat section before the final kilometre began. There was one cyclist a hundred metres in front of me, and I raised my level enough to be able to catch him. He started to sprint when I was on his wheel, and I was able to find enough legs to go around him for 313th position.
I finished with a time of seven hours and 44 minutes, which was only three minutes slower than last years time. What a difference a dry road makes. Well done to Lori, Tom, Damon and Bob who were riding with me the week before and all made it around the course.
The first placed rider was the 23 year old Dutchman, Laurens Ten Dam, who was riding for the Rabobank team. Laurens rode a new record time, finishing the 174 kilometre course in a little over six hours and seven minutes, and one of only three riders to average over 28 kilometres an hour. Last year's winner, Bert Dekker, rode to fourth place.
http://home.hccnet.nl/oege.hiddema/fotos.html - Some photos from the day from the website of second placed Oege Hiddema, and also information on the preparation Oege does to ride to second place.
