by Garrett Lau
In July 2001, Jeff Tse and I went on a three-week VeloSport Vacations bicycle tour that followed the Tour de France. My report is in three parts:
11 July 2001: My bike case comes out of
the baggage carousel at the Strasbourg airport along with ten others. Five of
those cases belong to the seven members of the Velo Club Monterey who are in my
VeloSport Vacations tour group. I have a nice Alsacian dinner with them. After
dinner, Jeff arrives.
12 July: We meet the rest of the
25-member tour group. I am the only one with unshaven legs. Most of the riders
are Cat 2 and Cat 3 racers.
13 July: Our first ride is 55 miles
with three significant climbs. It is such a hammerfest, that, even before the
final climb, one guy describes it as “the toughest 47-mile ride I’ve ever
done.” That’s ironic, since he’s the one who’s been pushing the pace the whole
time. We take the final climb at a reasonable pace, but we still arrive at our
lunch spot atop the Col du Donon way before our VeloSport-supplied lunches, so
I buy a bratwurst sandwich at a nearby bar. After eating both lunches, I walk
down the hill a bit to find a good spot to watch the race.
About
two hours before the racers arrive, there is the spectacle known as the
publicity caravan. This is a parade of sponsor vehicles. Some have dancers in
costumes, and some have beautiful women who just wave, but most have people who
throw swag out into the crowd. There are all sorts of swag, such as keyrings,
hats, notepads, and even cheese! No matter what the item is, there is fierce
competition for it, with grown men often ripping things out of children’s
hands!
After
the caravan passes, it starts to rain, but the rain stops just before we hear
the helicopters that hover over the racers. Anticipation grows as the
helicopters get closer, and then suddenly the crowd erupts into a roar of
cheers as the racers arrive! The crowd is a sea of people all the way across
the road, which parts just barely enough for the racers to pass. Then the sea
parts a bit more to allow all the support vehicles to pass. This is repeated
for each gruppeto of riders, until the vehicle labeled “fin de course” passes, and then the crowd disperses.
I
join the VeloSport group at a bar to watch the end of the race on TV. Then we
ride our bikes down the hill to the bus, which takes us back to the hotel.
Fifteen minutes after our arrival, a local twilight criterium starts on the
street in front of our hotel. We have dinner at a pizzeria with a view of the
crit.
14 July: Riding at my own pace
today, the Col du Calvaire, a Category 2 climb, is not particularly difficult.
The only thing that makes it challenging is the mass of pedestrians milling
about on the road. That, and the rain. The race viewing experience is similar
to yesterday.
15 July: This is the fourth
consecutive rainy day. Thankfully, we don’t have to ride our bikes. We take the
bus to Colmar, watch the stage start, have lunch, then get back on the bus for
a 6.5-hour drive to our next hotel in the Alpine town of Uriage-les-Bains.
16 July: The original plan was to
ride out to Aix-les-Bains to watch the stage finish and then take the bus back
to the hotel. However, most of us are tired of long bus rides and late night
returns, so we just ride 25 miles along the planned route and then turn back.
This gives us time to explore the town of Uriage, shop at a bike shop just
outside the town, and visit the big city of Grenoble.
17 July: This is the day we’ve all
been waiting for: l’Alpe d’Huez. After a brisk 26-mile ride to Bourg d’Oisans
and a slow cruise around the automobile traffic in the town, we start up the
eight-mile climb. A lot of people pass me in the first two miles, including
everyone who started with me, but I decide to keep a steady pace and not push
too hard too early. Even my slow pace is a bit painful. I’m glad I have a
26-tooth cog.
Each
of the 21 switchbacks has a numbered sign, but some signs are obscured by
spectators, banners, or trucks going up the hill. That’s OK. I’d rather see
these things than the signs; they help keep my mind off of the pain. Many of
the spectators shout, “Allez! Allez!” That helps. It also helps when I recognize
riders that I pass as people who passed me earlier. I speed up slightly
whenever I pass such a rider, so, near the top, I’m going much faster than I
was going at the bottom. Nevertheless, about a mile from the top, someone in a
VeloSport jersey passes me like I’m standing still: it’s Frankie Andreu! I
sprint to catch him, and then chat with him for about a minute before I blow up
and resume an easy pace. I reach the top beside a Frenchman who turns to me and
says one word: “Voilà!”
Although
climbing l’Alpe d’Huez is an awesome experience, that’s not the only excitement
of the day. There’s also the race. Lance Armstrong launches his decisive attack
at the bottom of the climb. By the time he passes my vantage point near the
top, he has a two-minute lead over Jan Ullrich. He ends up with a record time
for the climb: 37:30. My time was exactly twice that.
All pictures from this trip: