Tour de France, Day 3 – Alpe d’Huez and TDF Stage 19

Day 3: Col du Lauteret to Alpe d’Huez to Freney d’Oisans. 48 miles. Total ascent: 5,448 ft

For many of us, the highlight of the 5-day trip was the promise of a climb up Alpe d’Huez. This legendary climb with 21 switchbacks has long been associated with drama and skill at the Tour, and is often a definitive stage in determining the winner. We had all seen the mountain on TV, lined with spectators cheering on the racers. Today it would be our turn.

We would be riding a few hours ahead of the peloton. Stages in the Tour generally begin in the afternoon, a surprising discovery for those of us used to doing summer events early in the morning to beat the heat. We had been warned that the police would start pulling cyclists from the road at 11am. An “average cyclist” should be able to make it up in less than two hours. Therefore, our goal was to reach the base of Alpe d’Huez by 9am. This meant a 7am departure, and a cold start. As usual it was necessary to use layers to balance out the chilly descents and the warm climbs. Today I used the old trick of putting a newspaper under my jersey for the downhill to block the wind. It worked rather well.

The ride began with a 24 mile descent. I don’t think I have ever experienced such a long downhill on a ride, and that was an event in itself. We went from our hotel on the top of Col du Lauteret down through La Grave, joining the route that the peloton would take later. As always, magnificent mountain views were on display as we went down. We also saw rivers and stone bridges. As descents go this was fun and easy, but one tunnel was very unnerving. The guides warned us that a section of it was unlit; our blinky lights would keep us visible but without traffic we wouldn’t be able to see. This was true. For a short section it was completely dark. I could not see anything, including the ground. Nothing to do but keep going. It’s hard to imagine 50 riders coming through here at once, yet that’s what the pros do.

Soon enough, we were at the base of Alpe d’Huez. The steepest section is at the bottom. There were a large number of cyclists, and some of them got into trouble early. Unlike the country roads we’d been on, which were populated with lean and fast riders, this event had clearly attracted a number of amateurs. One of the challenges was avoiding collisions with other riders who showed little hesitation in stopping, or passing on either side without warning.

Spectators had come to stake out their spots early. Alpe d’Huez has 21 switchbacks, and each one was decorated. The road was painted with names of racers and flags from different countries. Some of the artwork was quite elaborate. Other groups had set up barbecues, stands, and loud music.

The Dutch are famous for their Alpe d’Huez parties, wearing orange and having a good time. Had I not been riding, it would have been tempting to stop and get a beer. As it was, I just took a picture:

I’d been warned that people would “help” get me up the mountain, but in truth no one bothered me — just got some cheers and thumbs up. When I went by the Rapha van, the fellow there gave me a good solid push up the hill. (I always did like their clothing.)

Near the top of the mountain it got more crowded. The course was lined with metal barriers for the last few kilometers. There were also some trucks and buses moving around. Several times I had to get off the bike to move through. At the end I turned off and reached the Trek viewing area.

Alpe d’Huez is 13.8km (8.6 miles) long, with an average grade of 8%. It may disappoint everyone for me to say this, but it isn’t all that hard. Of course, I did not come anywhere near Lance’s time of 37 minutes, nor was I forced to race up it after biking 100 miles against the pros. Yet it is certainly possible for an amateur to complete the course with reasonable training and body size.

We all came in well before the 11am cutoff. Our day bags had been sent up the day before, so we were able to change into fresh clothes. Some snacks and drinks were available right away. At noon, we sat down at the hotel terrace for a great lunch.

The stage had not yet started, and we had a few more hours before the first riders were due to appear. After lunch in the warm sun, I suddenly felt tired, and plopped down for a nap in a nearby chaise. Trek had set up TVs inside and outside for us to watch the stage and it was very comfortable. There was more food from the lunch available, and free (non-alcoholic) drinks. There were some celebrities around our area too; racers and high-powered executives.

The TV coverage was from a French station, and as such, was very focused on Thomas Voeckler, destined to lose the yellow jersey today. You might not know anything else about the stage, but you always knew where Voeckler was.

As nice as it was, the viewing area had one drawback compared to yesterday’s. It was not on the course. It made little sense for me to watch the race on TV when I was on the mountain, so as the racers neared the finish, I wandered down to the town to see what I could. Most of the others didn’t bother. I was not very optimistic; I figured the good spots would all be taken. However, I was able to squeeze in right next to the news photographers a few dozen feet past the finish line. I had to contort myself a fair bit but it was an outstanding view.

There was a jumbotron for us to watch, with live, loud commentary by a local announcer. It was all in French and impossible to understand. The camera spent a lot of time on Alberto Contador and I thought he was in the lead. So I was surprised to see a fellow in green come across the finish first. I had no idea who this was. I had to ask the fellow next to me who had won; with a look of disbelief, he answered: “Pierre Rolland.” His next comment: “Francais.” (French.) Even a fool like me needed to made aware that a Frenchman had won the stage! Sammy Sanchez followed, then Alberto Contador. Cadel Evans and Andy Schleck were in the front of the next group. They treated it like a sprint — thrusting their bikes forward over the finish line, trying to gain any advantage.

I was perfectly positioned to see the handlers come up and grab the bikes as each man finished. Generally they looked exhausted, unable to unclip from their bikes. One man who was close to the front and looked surprisingly fresh was Levi Leipheimer. Radio Shack had no chance for glory this time, so I guess he figured he could relax.

I am embarrassed to say I didn’t take any pictures of the celebrities. I just enjoyed the experience. I was next to the news cameras so they captured everything on far better equipment. This one shot shows how close I was.

This would be a good place to end the story. But, we still had to get back to the hotel. For those of us who had ridden up, that meant riding our bikes back down. One other woman had ridden up Alpe d’Huez, but she pleaded for a spot on the helicopter on the way back because she was afraid of the descent. The rest of us changed into fresh kit from our day bags and started out. It was 6:30pm by the time we began. The guides told us that there would be “a bit of a climb” with “rollers”.

The mountain was completely jammed with party goers. I spent 10 minutes fighting my way through the crowd on this Luxembourg celebration (the Schleck brothers are from Luxembourg):

We went down to turn 15. The crowds made this a bit tricky, as did the hairpins. I went into the drops, pumped my brakes and didn’t run into too many problems. I learned later that some folks managed to melt part of their rims or had trouble squeezing the brakes for so long. Trek didn’t ensure that people knew what they were doing on these descents. Fortunately no one was hurt.

The turnoff on turn 15 was well hidden. There is a church there with some shops, but I would never have spotted the road without prompting. At first, this was rather beautiful, a hidden wooded route. Then it opened up into an even better view of the valley below. However, the climb had begun. We quickly discovered that it had been undersold. I couldn’t believe how slowly we were moving, and grabbed the Garmin. The grade was 9%, and getting steeper. We hadn’t eaten for 7 hours, and didn’t know how long this would be. Grumbling began. In the event, it was 6 miles of steady climbing, not a roller. I always have a squeeze bottle of Hammer gel with me, so I used that and didn’t bonk. Not in the mood to eat gel but it worked. Dinner was looking pretty attractive right now.

After the climb we did get to enjoy more miles of descent. We went to the pickup point, then had a 40-minute van ride back. By the time we had dinner, it was 10pm. This was a foolish failure on Trek’s part; we could easily have eaten more food before leaving the mountain.

Overall, it was a fantastic day and a great experience. The energy of the race and the challenge of the mountain came through loud and clear.

Tags: tour de france