Report by Tom D
For my 40th birthday I wanted to set myself a big cycling challenge. The Marmotte certainly provided that challenge. It is a beast of ride covering 180km & 5,000m of climbing over 4 cols along with about 7,000 other cyclists.
Starting in Bourg d’Oisans (a beautiful little commune at the base of Alpe d’Huez) the gran depart takes a fast 15km lead into the first climb - Col du Glandon (30km @ 4%). All suggestions I’ve previously heard said don’t go too hard at the start. 45km/h on the flat is probably faster than I should have gone but being swept along seemed too good an opportunity to resist but I trusted / hoped I would back off the watts as the first climb commenced. The first col led into the first feed stop, the type of which I was not expecting. I had mapped out a careful eating & hydration strategy & was ready to load up on carbs only to be welcomed by a very French spread. Bread rolls, saussison & Brie was not the nutrition I was expecting. I’ve a strong stomach but how anyone would chomp on Brie & saussison at each feed station was beyond me.
The first descent of the day was neutralised possibly because there are a number of tight corners, not ideal road surfaces, slightly off camber. Nonetheless, it was a lovely descent & very well marshalled. My disc brakes were screaming but I was flying. Flying past some riders & admiring those flying past me. Stop watch back on & I was into a long(ish) ride through the valley.
Despite being in a big group the head wind was brutal & very sapping. It was at this point my power meter died (through which I put at least 75% of my riding effort focus) so I was living off heart rate alone.
The second climb, the Col du Telegraphe leading into the Col de Doix de Fer was stunning. With a huge lake at about 1,200m along with other amazing spectacles I was loving every metre of elevation gained. Like most of the days climbing the gradient was a moderate 5-8% so very manageable & possible to absorb the views & atmosphere around you.
The second climb leads immediately into the third - the Col du Galibier, albeit after the briefest 5km descent. This is where the day really got tough. Topping out at 2,500m the views are, again, stunning. The hail, brutal head winds & single digit temperatures however were not. The only respite being turning a corner & having a tail wind. When combining both climbs I was consistently pushing pedals for about 2.5 hours.
Possibly the most uncomfortable part of the day was the descent off the Galibier. With the core temperature dropping, the layer of sweat / rain & descending at 60-80 km/h I got extremely cold & was just waiting for the surface to level off so I could start pushing the pedals again. The main benefit of 35km of descending is its gives your body a bit of time to replenish depleted glycogen so I felt ready to approach out fourth & final climb of the day.
Last up is the iconic Alpe d’Huez with its 21 hairpins over c. 12km at 8%. Controversially I was not overly impressed with the climb & it certainly wasn’t my favourite of the day. Having driven up it the day before I knew it was going to be a long slog. I was greeted with a welcome surprise of my partner & other friends on the 11th corner cheering me on to then pass me in the car - I was not going to accept a sticky bottle! It would still be a while for them to wait for me at the top! While not Tour de France numbers, the crowds increased nearing the summit. With great relief & building emotion I finished my first major climbing event positioning 1072/7000.
It was a fantastic experience offering exactly what I was expecting. I will definitely do it again but perhaps when I’m about 10kg lighter!
Big challenge ticked… what’s next?
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