Chapter 4: Col du Telegraphe

After my water break, it was a quick 500 meters through the village, a sharp right hand turn and then back up into the mountains

So a great trick to make the "journey" seem not so long is to combine Col du Telegraphe and Galibier as one....I like to think of it as the "grand-slam", "go all the way, or go home". So, heading back up into the mountains, I just kept the 34 km notion in my mind, with a stop in the middle to refuel.

To be honest, Col du Telegraphe is not that hard and actually an enjoyable climb; it is what I like to call the "warm-up" for what awaits. There are only a few parts that go above 8% and it averages around 6.5-7%; it is definitely a treat in comparison to Glandon. But damn! it was hot! It was the middle of the day and the "forest" that usually makes this climb beautiful with the shade and odd rays of sunshine bursting through the trees was nowhere to be found. We had direct sunlight. I tasted the salt of my sweat and my head throbbed! I took extra salt tablets for fear of a Nice/hyponautremia reoccurance. And throughout this, all I kept telling myself is "don't push, just keep it nice and easy...if you push, it will all be over before you hit the top". Then my feet started to hurt; dammit! not one day, minute, or second over the last 3 weeks of training have me feet hurt! What the heck is going on...I was pissed so I decided the best thing was to deliberately ignore it "Take that feet! I do not want to feel you anymore! I am on strike from my feet! Go away"...it worked for a 5 nanoseconds. It's not you could clip out one foot and shake it out; actually, I tried but almost fell over, trying this on a climb is not a good idea. Sooner or later...as many of you know who do endurance events, these aches and pains become normal and they soon become a dull noise in the background...

I climbed around another switchback around halfway up Telegraphe and I didn't know whether to smile or crap my shorts. I saw the dark clouds bubbling up in the sky; they were menacing and dangerous looking. Good news is this meant the sun would soon go away; bad news is that I was riding an aluminum bike and did not want to get electrocuted in a thunderstorm. I knew that if this was any other environment/setting that I didn't need to worry; perhaps 2-3 hours before this storm passed overhead...I would be long gone and out of harms way. Not in the mountains. The mountains are treacherous when it comes to weather. Rule of thumb: always, always, ALWAYS check the forecast before you head out for a ride/run; otherwise you might end up not coming home....I think I recalled seeing thunderstorms in today's forcast.

After spending almost a month in the Alpes I have seen enough bad weather to scare the daylights out of me. The storms move light freight trains, and by the time they appear, it is too late to get out of the way. So, knowing that I would most likely encounter some "nasty weather" I double checked I had my rain jacket and gloves and tried to think happy thoughts.

Telegraphe arrived in a flash and I realized I was a bit behind on my hydration, so rather than stopping at the summit, I decided to chug my current bottle of water/Carbo Pro and descend a few km to Valloire and stop there. From what I recall, one of the biggest aid stations was supposed to be there. So down the mountain I go and I enter the village of Valloire and am directed into a timing chute for the chip to record my time. However, everyone keeps going and olny a handful of folks are stopped. I was thinking "this is not the aid station I imagined". First, the food was in the form of a "Sandwich Stand" 5 Euros for ham and bread. The water was coming from a fountain (one of those decoration fountains where the marble angel statue is peeing) which 50 riders and their best friends were trying to fill up their bottles. I got tired of waiting to fill up my bottle and wandered to the grocery store across the street and bought a bottle of water and a chocolate bar (Mars bars are awesome in Europe...absolute HEAVEN). At this point in time my stomach was in total revolt so I didn't give a rats ass about what I was eating anymore, just as long as it tasted good. After my pit stop it was off to start the climb to Galibier...

So through the town of Valloire I went, bracing for the initial km of the climb which is pretty knarly....That first little effort up the hill let me know that chugging the last bottle of Carbo-Pro and Mars bar was not such a good idea; I was about ready to pull a "squat in the bush" when low and behold the infamous Valloire aid station appeared in the near distance. It was like an Oasis in the middle of the desert...and I found my treasure, a real BATHROOM! yes, a real, honest to goodness bathroom. Not a blue plastic dome that smells bad, but a public bathroom that had been cleaned within the past week, what a treat! So I went about my business (Thank GOD!) and was ready to head on my way when I took a moment to look around me. Because I had already stopped for food/drink I didn't bother with any of it at this stop...and I was glad; this aid stop was like feeding a famine! hundreds of riders lined up for bowls of soup and sanwiches (kind of like a soup kitchen) and the volunteers were dishing it out as fast as they could. Kudo's to the volunteers!

You could definitely tell at this point that the ride was beginning to take it's toll. The medical tent was full at the valloire stop and every direction you looked there were riders streching, working out cramps, eating and lookind pretty tuckered. I tried to keep my head focused on the goal and not get the local carnage get to me...but, truth be told, I was getting tired. There were 17 km's left untill the top of Galibier and a storm was a brewing.....