King of the Mountains Blog

Positively positive

2012-02-21T13:22:00.006-08:00

This winter the cold and snow have wreaked more havoc than usual; frozen diesel, frozen pipes, frozen earlobes (badly fitting hat whilst cross country skiing plus windchill = frost nip and very red, puffy ear lobes for 2 days!). Even one of the local snowploughs ran off the road and got stuck on the Col d'Ornon, not something you see every day (photo right)!

After a couple of weeks of very cold temperatures here (daytime averages of about -15'C and as low as -23'C here in the village), the thermometer has finally crept into the positive zone. So far we have topped out at an impressive +10'C this week.

The sun was shining yesterday and the forecast in Grenoble was for highs of 5'C+. Time to get the bike out then! Sounds chilly but we have become a bit hardy this last fortnight! So, well wrapped up and sporting my new 'lobster' gloves (which have been a welcome revelation to my poor old digits), I set off with a neighbour on the cycle path.

Grenoble cycle path follows the Isere river for roughly 37km and it's pretty pan-flat save a few bridges, ideal for breaking yourself in gently. So, my riding account is now open with a 53km ride and 100m height gain, a nice, easy start.

Our regular cross country skiing this winter meant that the comeback was not nearly as tough as it has been in the past. It really has been great for staying bike fit; leg strength and cardiovascular fitness all pretty good, better than expected. When I come back to the bike after winter I usually get really sore shoulders and neck for the first few outings, I had none of that yesterday as the skiing and action of poling has even kept my upper body in reasonable strength too. Unfortunately, the painful bottom from 2 hours on the saddle has not been avoided though!

Helyn

Hitch hikers guide to the Lignarre Valley...

2012-02-06T13:18:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, despite all the preparation in the world, things just don't go to plan. Sunday was one of those days. Sometimes though this is not always a bad thing...

I was due to take part in a cross country ski race close to Gap. A 10am start on a 30km course, fairly hilly and technical, one of my favourite events of the year.

Temperatures have plummeted here this last week so the night before Guy kindly waxed my skis for cold snow conditions, good thing too, when I left the house at 7am it was -19'C. I had prepared a bag full of post-race clothes; fleeces, hats, scarves, gloves, woolly socks, the works. I had a flask of tea and a packet of biscuits too, I'd even put a neoprene sleeve on the tube of my Camelback in the hope of stopping it turning into a solid lump.

Around 11km into my trip I arrived in Le Perier, a wide, bowl-like part of the valley, a trap for cold air and consequently a few degrees cooler than at home, -22'C in fact. The minibus ground to a halt as the diesel froze up. I was able to start it up again and get to the next village, Entraigues, where I was hoping that a small uphill section would be enough to warm the engine up. Unfortunately it was still too cold. The point at which the ghost was finally given up was pretty precarious - just after a blind bend in the road. I was however able to make progress in reverse gear so re-traced my steps for about 600m to a car park where I knew the sun would reach later in the day (the plan worked as we recovered the van after midday and thankfully the diesel had thawed!).

Next thing was to put on every stitch of clothing that I had with me; the things I already had on plus my post-race kit; 2 pairs of socks, 2 pairs of trousers, 2 thermal base layers, one fleece, one down jacket, 2 woolly hats, 2 scarves... after donning this lot I emerged from the van looking every bit like Michelin Man. The Camelback pouch of isotonic drink was ditched in favour of making space for the flask and biscuits. Time to hitch a lift home. Trouble with being a Sunday + early morning + rural area + freezing cold day = not much traffic.

Finally, salvation came in the shape of a white transit van and a very chirpy driver. To my surprise there was no seat for passengers but I was happy to sit in the back on the boarded floor. Even happier when I realised that I had just hitched a lift with a 'boulanger' on his delivery round to the local villages. The inside of the van had an amazing aroma of freshly cooked bread, which it was - the driver/baker had got up at 3am himself to make it all. My perch was only a few feet away from some delicious looking cakes and pastries, the wobble of the custard slices had me in a trance all the way up the valley, I was in cake heaven!

It really was one of the most sociable and pleasant mornings I've spent in years. At each village the driver would sound his klaxon (not quite 'The Dukes of Hazard' but close!) and from the depths of each little hamlet people bundled in warm clothes would emerge for their Sunday treats. I realised that it's not just in England where the weather can be the first, and sometimes only, topic of conversation on brief meetings. On Sunday every single customer greeted us with a number that corresponded to the lowest temperature that they had registered on the garden thermometer - one lady even had thermometer in hand as proof! -26'C was the record and I can believe it.

So, as I waved goodbye to the baker in his van just a short stroll from home, I did so with a real spring in my step and smile on my face. I had had a smashing morning and met some really lovely people who live in our valley and it was only 9:45am, the cross country ski race had not even started yet!

Mind you, come lunch time I did feel a bit stupid when I realised that we had no bread for our sandwiches!

Different but the same

2012-02-03T01:00:00.000-08:00

Ever wondered what the roads around here look like in the dead of winter, when the painting from The Tour is hidden beneath snow and ice and is being slowly eroded away by salt and constant grating of the snowploughs?

Here are a few telling images taken during the last week or so. The first is the road at Brunissard, that leads towards the Col de l'Izoard - where the climb really starts. At present it is pisted for snow shoe walkers and cross country skiers. Last Sunday I ventured a few hundred metres up the slope on my cross country skis but was not bold enough to take on the full extent of the climb to the Casse Deserte and on to the summit. The trouble with the skis is you don't have as many gears as you do on a bike! Maybe another day....

This next photo (right) is the Alpe d'Huez Tour finish. As you can see, a wall of snow on the pavements and all of the hotels full of skiers; a much livelier, if colder, place in the winter.

Finally, the Col du Lautaret (bottom right). Well, you can just about see it in the background there behind Guy. I took this on Tuesday afternoon from the warmth and comfort of our minibus. We were travelling home and this was the quickest route, though the highest at 2058m. Guy had to get out to de-ice the wipers en-route as the snow was freezing to the windscreen in a blizzard and foggy white-out.

The Alps are a different beast in winter in comparison to the summer months. It always amazes me that after such harsh and extreme conditions, the landscape, flora and fauna can recover so quickly and give us the brightly coloured, sunny scenes that us cyclists are more used to experiencing on these mountain roads.

La Traversée du Queyras

2012-02-01T08:16:00.000-08:00

We popped over to the Queyras region for the weekend - just the other side of the col d'Izoard for you cycling fans - and I took part in a curtailed edition of the annual XC ski race there; it was 21km over a couple of loops near Arvieux (the hard bit on the Izoard on a bike). The full event is usually 50km so I got off lightly....maybe next year Helyn might want to do it? She is quite a bit tougher than me....

We were in the area to celebrate Helyn's birthday and, despite some patchy weather, we all enjoyed it - even little Alice. I skied with her for about 100m in my arms - and I think she liked it. I also thinks she likes watching bike races on TV and being held upside down, but that may just be fatherly wishful thinking....

Guy

It made us laugh...

2012-01-23T14:34:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMCkuqL9IcM&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Hope you enjoy it too.

Helyn & Guy

Foulée Blanche 2012 - un jour sans

2012-01-23T03:59:00.000-08:00

The French use "un jour sans" - quite literally, "a day without" to describe a day when things don't quite go your way. Yesterday, for me, (Guy, that is) that was what happened.

The Foulée Blanche is the biggest cross country ski event in this part of the country - a week of races in all disciplines, attracting thousands of skiers to a beautiful part of the world - the Vercors. To those that don't know it, it is an elevated plateau sitting to the west and south of Grenoble and it is a delight to cyclists in summer and skiers (Alpine and Nordic) in winter.

My preparation had gone well - lots of long ski sessions on the col d'Ornon, at Chamrousse, even over at Superdevoluy. Add to that a bed for the night 10 minutes from the start with our friends Ed & Sandrine (as well as the invaluable advice of the super-experienced ski racer Ed) and I should have been set for a great day. The long course is 42km, starting on the plateau at Autrans before climbing to Geve and then swooping back down to the finish.

After glorious weather in the week preceding, heavy rain fell in the night and race day was damp and gloomy, with low cloud. No probs - same for everyone. I ate a leisurely breakfast then drove via the back road to the start, 100m from the action. That's when things started to unravel. I parked the van onto a hidden roadside drain hole and beached it. No probs - worry about that after the race Guy.

Race started; feeling good. All well. Until 13km in when my ski pole inexplicable snapped in two. Hmmm. I carried on ski-ing uphill to the Geve ski area (one-armed) where I felt sure someone might lend me a pole. No luck. So, I bailed out. I ski-ed back to the van; all downhill BUT I was forced to ski some unprepared tracks to avoid the head of the race, which I was keen not to disrupt! CRASH! I fell in deep, weat and heavy snow and landed with all my weight on top of my thumb. Hmmm. Painful. And wet. And cold.

Back to the van, changed into dry clothes and embarked on getting the van pulled out. 1 & 1/2 hours of wandering the streets, garages and farms of Autrans later, bombarded by shrugs, "je ne sais pas"s, "bof"s and similar, I finally found Johan, a pisteur with a pick-up truck and a length of cable. 10 mins later, I was out.

The day got better after that; I found a quiche to eat, I got a warm shower and a coffee back at Sandrine's and went to Grenoble airport to collect Helyn & Alice, who had popped back to the UK for the weekend. They were all smiles (Alice went mad, to be honest) and we drove off back to KOM towers for dinner and catch-up. All's well that ends well. Oh, I've got new poles now too - thanks Ed - and I'll be off to do the Traversee du Queyras next weekend to make up - in what has become our favourite little bit of la Belle France.

Thanks for reading.
Guy

More cross country - with cake!

2012-01-15T13:41:00.000-08:00

Today I took part in my first cross country ski race of the season.

A little under trained for the distance, I needed a helping hand which I took in the form of calories yesterday afternoon in Alpe d'Huez (see picture). A coffee cake and hot chocolate (whose 2 sole ingredients are creme fraiche and melted Swiss chocolate). If you look very closely at the dark chocolate disk on the cake top, you can see a Marmotte image as used in the race. This particular Marmotte was a lot more short lived!

So, up at 4:45 this morning which was the first shock to my system, second shock was to find that it was -7'C outside. I then had a 2 hour drive towards Gap (heater blasting!) to a cross country ski centre, Champoleon, which is situated up a small but quite open valley. It was still pitch black when I arrived in an icy race car park at 7:30.

The format of the race (now in its second year) is unusual in that it is a straight line (of 42km) rather than a circuit. Also unusual is that most of the route covers ground that is not normally pisted for skiers. Given the logistics, coaches were provided to take us to the start point in another cross country ski area called Ancelle, for us to then ski back to our cars. As the sun came up around 7:45am, we got a tantalising view of the finish area that we would see some hours later (photo below). Coaches left the car park at 8:30am. A funny 'It's A Knockout' style running on an icy car park in ski shoes ensued at 8:29 when a large group of us realised we were waiting next to the wrong coach, a random one nothing to do with the race at all!

Once at the start area we had lost a few degrees of temperature and it was now down to -11'C. With a bit of time to kill before the off, this lead to some 200 skiers searching for somewhere warm to shelter. I soon found myself in a heated wooden hut (normally used as a indoor picnic area for visiting school parties), huddled and squished amongst the other competitors, not unlike penguins! Not since commuting on the tube have I been in that position.

The course was not particularly hilly which was very welcome. However, wherever there were rises, they normally gave way to stunning, far reaching views back towards the white mountains near Gap. There were road crossings where cheerful marshalls stopped traffic and shovelled snow over the tarmac for us to skate over, there were forested areas, areas with scary drop-offs and lovely flat sections that followed rivers with icicle-clad trees on the borders. All in all, a lovely route and unique to be able to ski there.

As you can tell from my observations, I had time to look about me. I don't tend to push myself too hard at these things, I aim just to finish without blowing up. Today I managed for the first time to find myself a pace that I could sustain and was very pleased not to have to stop at all (except for at feed stations of course!). That was until just after I had passed the '1km to go' sign. Whether it was psychological or whether I should really have eaten 2 of those coffee cakes yesterday, I suddenly felt empty and completely bonked.

I very slowly made my way up a gentle, wooded climb of about 400m in length and then realised to my horror that the final 600m of the course snaked around a field/finish area to give the spectators a good show of the finish/finishers. Hardly any excitement for them at this stage in the race yet they were very kindly all still watching and cheering encouragement. I was out there on the circuit pretty much alone save someones dog and just 9 other 'racers' behind me! Just as I wanted to lazily plod back, ashen faced and with a thousand yard stare, this 'arena' set up made me feel compelled to adopt the 'exhibition ski stroke' and put on a weak smile. By the time I crossed the line, some 3hrs 30mins had passed and I was utterly empty.

More 'It's A Knockout' in the icy car park trying not to cramp up whilst walking on ice in ski boots! I was so done in that I could not even muster the energy to walk 400m and stand in a queue to claim my post-race meal, I just got changed and drove home - OK, so I did have a stash of emergency Christmas cake as a back stop in the glove compartment!

Helyn

Marathon de Bessans 2012 - ski de fond season opener

2012-01-10T02:58:00.000-08:00

I (Guy) headed to Bessans at the head of the Maurienne valley on Sunday,via an Alan Partridge style budget hotel and a mighty impressive lorry fire on the motorway. Bessans is a huge cross country ski and biathlon area; indeed ahead of this recent Alpine snow deluge, it was the only ski site in France with any snow at all - the French national team were camped out up there for a little while. It is also only 20km from the col d'Iseran, which towers above Val d'Isere in the Haute Tarentaise. I digress. I was there for the Marathon de Bessans - the cross country ski equivalent of a sportive ride on bikes i.e. a proper race at the front; a ton of weekend warriors like me at the back....2 laps of 21km on perfect pistes. Conditions were gorgeous; my condition was a bit patchier, but I got round with a smile. Helyn & I have a few of these races in the calendar this winter, so it was nice to open the account. Proving what a great complement to cycling theis sport is, Jérôme Coppel, formerly of FDJ and now at Saur-Sojasun, came in 13th! An amazing result...

Bit of a blizzard

2011-12-30T13:30:00.000-08:00

Here's the village this afternoon. This followed a day of heavy snow and northerly winds - a day to stay indoors!

The deed is done...partially!

2011-12-28T15:57:00.000-08:00

Well, I am now the tiniest step closer to riding The 'Ronde van Vlaanderen', Tour of Flanders sportive. That is to say that my entry has now been made. The tip of a very big iceberg! There are 3 distance options; 75km, 140km and 240km. In a fit of over enthusiasm, I have signed up for the 240km option.

Time to do some serious training now thought the cobbles may be a little hard to recreate on the turbo!

Helyn

Seasons Greetings!

2011-12-23T23:03:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone has a great time over the holiday period.

We will be having a white Christmas here in the village. The baking has been done and the mulled wine made.....

All the best for Christmas and New Year,

Guy & Helyn

Crafty dog...

2011-12-20T06:39:00.000-08:00

We have had loads of snow here over the last two days. No doubt about it now, it's going to be a white Christmas here at King of the Mountains. Here's a photo of our decking under a good few centimetres yesterday - there's now around a foot balanced on top of the fence and bird table.

This is great news for us as the local ski pistes on the Col d'Ornon are now open. We have already been up for a couple of cross country ski sessions and conditions are great (even if ours isn't). Out of curiosity I popped the Garmin into my back pocket today to see how long the black run was and how much height gain there is in a loop. 6km with 300 metres + height gain. I have to say it felt further and higher!

Incidentally, hanging from the bird table in the photo is one of those fat/seed balls for birds. One went missing yesterday morning and shortly after this picture was taken, this one did too. I thought the blue tits had an appetite on them until I noticed our next door neighbours dog sneaking out of the garden, licking her lips sheepishly. Apparently she has quite a taste for these, it's not her first time. I imagine she had a bit of a stomach ache last night!

Helyn

Alpe d'Huez, the new catwalk!

2011-12-12T02:08:00.000-08:00

At the end of November, Guy was asked by the local cycle shop (Cycles et Sports), if he had a a spare hour or two to go up to Alpe d'Huez with a journalist and photographer from a French cycling magazine called ' Le Cycle'.

It was a nice sunny day which was fortunate as there was lots of roadside changing to be done! A whole rail of winter clothing plus several flash bikes were taken out of the back of a van and the shoot began!

At one point Guy was given a pair of sunglasses to wear for a shot descending the Alpe, this meant taking his own prescription glasses off and making his way down on a wing and a prayer!

At the end of the shoot, he was given the full Northwave kit to take home; from hat to overshoes. Not a bad mornings work really. Here (top left) is one of the pages featuring King of the Mountains' very own pin-up, and top right, the roadside 'wardrobe'.

Helyn

The skis are out!

2011-12-11T15:16:00.000-08:00

First cross country ski of the season under our belts!

Saturday we were at Alpe d'Huez and today at Chamrousse. Both days were sunny and bright. Lots of snow forecast here for the next few days so there should be plenty on the Col d'Ornon pistes by the end of the week and we can ski more locally.

A bit rusty to start with but a bit like riding a bike, great to be out in the fresh air getting some exercise again.

Helyn

Snow time like the present!

2011-12-08T09:32:00.000-08:00

Well, it's here and you can hear the local ski resorts sighing with relief!

Yesterday a good few centimetres fell in the local area.

It's unusual for me feel happy about the arrival of snow as I'm pretty content to ride my bike for as long as is possible (though even when not really possible I'll embark on the occasional ride that could feature on 'Frozen Planet'!). This year however I'm pretty fired up about getting out on my cross country skis and using my brand new carbon fibre poles. It's a great way to stay fit for spring and I need to with the Tour of Flanders sportive on my calendar....

Guy and I have worked out a list of cross country ski events that we would like to participate in. As a demonstration of the phrase 'time is a great healer', I am again going to attempt a race called the 'Traversee du Vercors' that I did back in 2009 (see old blog post 'Biting off more than I could chew..'), glutton for 50km worth of punishment!

So, here's the village this afternoon (photo top right); the remaining vegetables interred until spring and one of the Combe Noire gullies behind the house having already avalanched. We have our shovels ready, the fire wood is stacked, snow tyres are on the van and the down jackets are out of the loft. Next job is to wax those cross country skis....

Helyn

A bit of Alpe d'Huez trivia...

2011-12-05T12:00:00.000-08:00

Each of the 21 hairpins of Alpe d'Huez is numbered with a panel. Each panel bears the name/s of stage winners of Tours past.

So, which bend bears the name of Pierre Rolland, winner of the 2011 stage?

Bend 16.

Marmotte entries for 2012

2011-12-04T16:04:00.000-08:00

The on-line registration for individual places in the 2012 Marmotte has already closed.

Another season over and time to catch up

2011-12-04T07:26:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been a shamefully long time between posts, but now the 2011 season is behind us we can dust down the blog and post the odd bit of news.

Our season started in May with much higher than average temperatures for the time of year. This was bookended by some incredibly warm weather during the last week of October when our last guests left. The snow on the Galibier in July just before the Tour a bit of an anomaly though!

We had a great time during the Tour, it was thrilling to see the riders on the Alpe d'Huez again. I got the impression this year that there were more people than ever lining the route and in Bourg d'Oisans during 'Tour week'. With two days on the Galibier and the TT on our doorstep, we didn't have to go far to catch the action. I think the group of Aussies we had staying that week won't forget their trip for a while!

Not so much riding being done by Guy and I this summer due to the birth of our first child, Alice, in March. Since the season end however we have been making up for lost time. Firstly, with a trip to the south coast for Guy to take part in the Roc d'Azur mountain bike race (see photos above and left). Unable to get a spot in the main race, he found himself in a team from our local cycling club riding in a night time street race (Roc Ruelle). Several 1km circuits of 100% urban riding (including a descent of a triple flight staircase!) during half an hour in a tag-team of two. Exciting stuff! Mont Ventoux on the way home for me (photo right) during a lovely stay with Peter and Joan where we have our Alpe d'Huez/Mont Ventoux week liaison.

On our annual trip back to the UK , Guy managed to squeeze in a cross race in Durham (photo right), close to his home town. The race took place on the morning that we were leaving to catch the ferry back to France via Hull. No time for a shower after the race, just a quick wipe down and off we drove/sailed!

Our spring plan was to be me riding the Flanders sportive, and Guy, Paris Roubaix. The clash of the Roubaix sportive with the Flanders pro race means that we will now do this over consecutive years. Short straw, I'm up for Flanders first! So, it will be a winter of turbo training and some good cross country ski sessions to keep me fit (snow permitting, which is not looking good at present - maybe I should have tried in July!).

One of our most enjoyable seasons yet without a doubt.

(For more Roc d'Azur photos see: https://picasaweb.google.com/106063581583726549371/Autumn2011).

Helyn

Alpe d'Huez Time Trial

2011-08-27T14:19:00.001-07:00

I rode the Alpe TT on Thursday, a hot day even at 10am. It was well attended with maybe 40-50 riders taking part.

One of our guests, Glenn, very kindly attached a small camera to my bars for a time lapse photo shoot of the ride. He then spent some time editing last night and here's the end result, pretty nifty (even if I wasn't!):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWtjBLNUFbc

It has to be said that the clip makes it look easy, if only it really was over that quickly!

Only a few more of these TT's left for summer 2011 so I'd better make my next one count...

Helyn

Downhill & FourCross French Cup at Oz en Oisans Aug 2011

2011-08-25T05:35:00.000-07:00

An amazing spectacle as France's finest gravity racers came to the area. A brilliant spectator-friendly bit of bike viewing!

Guy

Alpe d'Huez to stage 2 Grand Tour stage finishes in 2012?

2011-07-24T14:04:00.000-07:00

As the dust settles on this week's (frankly rather exciting) Tour de France stage on Alpe d'Huez, rumours are currently circulating about the inclusion of the famous climb next summer.

The Giro d'Italia organisers look set to include a stage finish for the first time there to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Fausto Coppi's inaugural win there in 1952. This seems almost certain to happen next May, according to the Italian sports daily Gazzetta dello Sport.

The Tour de France could also be coming to the Alpe next summer. This could be in the format of a mountain time trial (à la 2004) and would come reasonably early in the race (a clockwise year). Other rumoured local stage finishes are at La Toussuire and Albertville.

There you go! I am a big gossip.

Guy

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