Chapter 3: Is it possible to fry eggs on your helmet??

I know, I left you in suspence..but since I am writing this blog, you all know i survived the Glandon descent.

After I got tackled by the the cop/security man, I decided it was time to test my luck and get my butt down the mountain. The great thing was I was not the only one who thought this descent was totally INSANE!! at every corner for the fist 2 km, there was a volunteer dressed to the nines in neon (last year a rider ran one off the cliff killing both of them...hence the extra-neon this year) directing riders and keeping it at a reasonable pace. No one, and I mean NO ONE did the insane, crazy, dive bomb for the first 2 km, which I was thankful for. In my dreams the week preceding La Marmotte I had scenarios of crazy men trying to get around me on the descent and forcing me over the guard-rail...oh wait! there was not guard rail!..perhaps, that is what the neon-volunteers were for....

I was actually ok for the first 2 km of the descent, but then things got ugly...our first slow down was due to ambulances because some riders decided it was a good time to speed up on the final descending radius turn. Lets just say that there were 3 ambulances and a lot of trashed bikes.

This is a common theme amongst this descent although the tough part was over....I actually almost had my own little accident....

Yes, that is right, Ms. Paranoid descender let the adrenaline and "in the moment" get to her head...and when she realized that she was going TOO FAST and that there was a >120 degree turn that other riders were braking for and she did not brake soon enough..and THEN the wheels started to skid........ lets just say that I BARELY made it; someone was looking out for me on that one, there is no reason why I should have still been upright on my bike with out a scratch or concusion. That knocked some sense into me; lets just say MANY people passed me after that point.

So, now that I had the "SAFE CHEWY" hat on and descended like a slug (it was my anniversary so arriving at the finish/home with road rash and a concusion was not a good idea; I can't believe my husband was OK with this in the first place) I took pleasure in watching others descend; there were riders who took the turns beautifully with great bike handling skills and at safe speeds for them (waaay too fast for me); I was in absolute awe. Then there were the A-HOLES who would bomb by at a ridiculous pace into oncoming traffic (I saw one almost hit a car windshield but he swerved in time to hit the bush/trees instead); I think they lost their brain cells earlier in life (in total, I witnessed 5 crashes or remenants of crashes during this descent) And then, ofcourse, was me...Mrs. Slug, brakes squeaking at every corner but happy to make it to the bottom alive...phew...glad that was over...or was I???

The next part of La Marmotte is supposed to be the "easiest" part because it is the "flattest"...ummm yeah... 25 km at 3-4% average with rolling hills is REALLY flat. Then add Boulder strength HEADWIND, 30 degrees celcius with NO shade in a mountain valley and you get a 30 km journey through an inferno. Good thing is that you are still surrounded by MANY people so there is always a draft and min-peleton to help out.

First thing at hand was to EAT; that was a 45 minute descent without food or water (don't EVER take your hands off the handlebars) so I dug in for my cookies, but they were mush...bloody hell! I shoved what I could into my mouth; somehow hot gluten-free cookies taste the same as Nestle Tollhouse when they come out of the oven, so I loved that. But, I knew it was not enough calories, so I resorted to my gels which were disgustingly HOT...ugggghhh. So there i was with melted chocolate cookies smeared over my face trying to take in a what seemed a boiled gel while following a pace line...but the pace line was too slow! (I know, poor, poor me)

The problem I encountered during La Marmotte was that i lost all the guys I was climbing with on the descent because I am so slow going down the mountain, so when I arrive at the flats I have no-one at my pace. So I played a game; catch the group in front of you, suck some wheels for a bit while eating, drinking and recovering, then go again. I played hopscotch with the mini-peletons. Finally with about 7 km to go to the base of the next climb, a group about my speed cruised by and I hopped on; it was a blast. I must say I absolutely LOVE drafting!

When we finally arrived at St Michel de Maurienne, I pulled over to refill my bottles as I was parched after an hour in the sun. Also, because I had not been following my "allergy-diet" 100% I was having a few "issues" and was in need of a porto-john. Cool thing is they had 3 specifically set-up for girls!! The guys had to go in public; they pretty much had a cicular trough where 5 of them at once could whip it out and go in public. No me though, I am a modest lady, LOL! So, I waited in line, took my turn, refilled the bottles, and had some SALT. It was sooo ridiculously hot at this time and nearing mid-day so all those trees on the climb to Telegraphe would be providing no shade.

Below is a map of the course and the pink indicates how far I had travelled so far.

It dawned on me then, with my white and blue helmet and with white clothes...if I am THIS HOT, how are the cyclists in black dealing with it? Then gigglind to myself I imagined frying eggs on the pavement or on a hemet...Really funny until I realized this ride wasn't even 1/2 way over yet...then I realized that if I was thinking these thoughts already, what was to come? THEN I realized that this was going to get a hell of a lot harder.....

Chapter 2: Col du Glandon

So, the journey begins at 4:30 am, France time...so in other words, all you party goers in America were still out on the night when I was carbo loading with rice before 5 am!

There is something very strange and peculiar about boiling rice when it is dark out in the morning. Anyhow, back to the subject matter at hand. After I managed to force down some food and slather on sunscreen, chamois cream and bug repellant, I was out the door to make the 12 km treck to Bourg d'Oisans where the ride began.

Allemont, Bourg d'Oisans and all the other villages are NOT very big, they are actually pretty tiny. I don't know what the population is, but it is small! perhaps a couple hundred people in each village if that. So, how the heck to do fit 7000 riders into an area that small? Well, you pretty much use up the ENTIRE village. Yes, that is correct, for those of us seeded in the final wave (over 3000 of us) we had to go to go to go past the village into a "corral" that fed us into the village from the outskirts.

To be truthful, I was not very happy at first to know that I was in the last wave. That meant over an hour of waiting and by the time we were on our way the sun would be out in full force and the wind would be picking up (if you think Boulder wind is bad...which it is! wait until you come ride in the valleys of the French Alpes!). But, I tried not to think about it and actually made a nice conversation with a man from Belgium who spoke great English. This was his 3rd time doing La Marmotte and gave some excellent tips on how to "get through" this event. Thank you # 5890!

With that many people in a "holding corral" for an hour, there will indefinitely be a need for people to relieve themselves. So, men where whipping out there "bits" and doing their business into the river. At this point in time I "REALLY" had to go...but there was no shelter; so what does a woman do in this situation?? well you squat by a tree, say "pardon" and let it go!...c'mon, finding a woman in the crowd was like finding a needle in a haystack, I am sure they were either astounded by the bravery or lack of elegance!

Then at 7:50 am, right on cue, there was this wave of "clicking sounds"..everyone was clipping into their pedals. My stomach started to flutter and all I could think was "here we go...it's going to be a long day" So we edged forward to the timing mat (I was about 1 km back from the start) with the village of Bourg D'Oisans out in full force cheering. It was like Le Tour for the start. When I finally saw the big air inflated arc that would mark my departure I had a huge sense of the "unknown"..what was the day going to bring? how would I handle the rough parts? would I be ok on the descents? But before I could think too much about that we were off and I was sucking some wheels!!

I have never drafted in a big cycling event like this let alone many training rides. Let's just say I had a BLAST. I might have gotten a little carried away in the first 10 km...it was just so fun for me!

But...that didn't last for long because at 15 km, you start climbing.....

Gregory waited for me around 1 km into the climb. I blew him kisses and wished him happy anniversary. A few riders who spoke English and understood what I was saying/doing told me that I have a very "patient" husband to put up with a wife who would do something this crazy on their anniversary! I agreed! To give you even more evidence that my husband is the best; he then proceeded to drive up to Alpe D'Huez and wait for me for the REST of the day because the road were closed. I am one lucky Chewy!

After the first 6 km of the ride which are some of the worst (9-11%) we had a brief descent and then the most brutal part of the climb at +12%. Lots of huffing, puffing, cursing and many people reconsidering what they got themselves into. Since I had done this climb many times before, I knew how to pace and kept it steady. Many of the people who started out like bats out of hell were fading...and little did they know what was yet to come...

Every 5 minutes a support vehicle/motorcycle would pass with their sirens trying to keep everyone to one side of the road, which was almost impossible...with the amount of people we were riding 8-10 abreast. It was a zoo!

I was trying to keep on top of my nutrition, but having a few "GI issues" so I did the best I could. With about 15 km left to go on the climb the sun was out in full force and the wind was VERY mild in this valley so we were all roasting like hamburgers on a barbeque. I was paying close attention to my salt and water intake as any sort of deficit will put you out of the game before you know it.

Looking at my watch, I knew I was making good time. With the draft, lack of wind and initial excitement I reached the point where you can see the Glandon peak 15 minutes ahead of what I thought I would be at. Then I relaxed and told myself to "slow-down" it is a long day! On the final stretch to the summit I took out my disposable camera that I purchased for this event and as I was balancing my bike and trying to take a picture, two nice German men made gestures for me to give them the camera so they could take a picture of me. So we got a few good shots, and it was all smiles and fun...hmm...for now..the camera was not so fun after a few more hours....

I reached the top, well, almost the top of Glandon in great shape. Because there were so many riders the security crew was bottlenecking them so that only a handful of riders could descend the "death-trap" at a time, which lead to a back-up a few hundred meters from the summit of Glandon. That was fine with me! I pulled over, layed my bike down, drank and ate, asked a few nice Belgium men to cover for me as I "relieved myself" in the midst of thousands of cyclists, refilled my bottles and absorbed all the organized chaos going on around me. There were sooo MANY cylclists, volunteers and supporters! It blows my mind! to think that you are part of this event and one of many just trying to cross the finish gives me undescribeable feelings...it is something you need to experience to understand. And just as I was flying high in my emotions, waiting my turn to funnel into the descent and cross the timing matt I was brought back to reality by the screaming sirens of an ambulance.

At that time, i could not tell if the ambulance was coming from ahead or behind, but a volunteer police man hearded us to the side of the road and bumped me a little "too hard" when I was half clipped-in...so I did one of the "tip the cow" falls. I was fine and didn't know what was more funny, all of the males watching and looking at the cop like "you just pushed a woman over!!" or the horror in the police mans face when he realized he had pushed a "woman" (in Europe it is unacceptable...plus seeing a woman in this event is like finding a needle in a haystack; of the 7000 participants only a couple hundred were women). I assured him I was fine, which I was...but, I could not get over the ambulance (and there were many more to come); the reality of the risks and dangers of such an event flooded my mind and grounded me for what was to be one of the most nerve racking and emotionally draining descents I have ever experienced.....

Chapter 1: What exactly is La Marmotte??

I’m sore, really, really sore. I’m tired, really, really tired. I’m happy, really, really happy!

This is going to be an “epic report” that will have a number of “Chapters”. Today, before getting into the nitty gritty, I am going to give an overview of the La Marmotte race after experiencing it firsthand. Every cyclist in Europe will know what you are talking about when you say La Marmotte, but only a handful or so do in America. This is very unfortunate because there is such a vast opportunity for American cyclists in Europe. If you don’t mind camping, it can be very affordable as well.

Brief recap for those of you just joining in on the blog or are not aware of the bike race La Marmotte (it is HUGE in Europe). La Marmotte has been labeled the hardest one day cycling event in the world; as to whether or not that is true, I don’t know, but it sure as heck was the hardest bike ride I have ever done with physical and mental feelings of torture and pain that can only be compared to Ironman. La Marmotte is a 174 km bike ride that takes you over 3 mountains and 5 Col’s: Col du Glandon, Col du Telegraphe, Col du Galibier, Col du Lautaret, and Alpe D’Huez.

The reason I know about La Marmotte is because last year at this time I had just finished Ironman Nice and was in Allemont recovering with Gregory. There were a bunch of signs between Allemont and Bourg d’Oisans displaying the “roads were closed” on Saturday for a cycling event. Of course Gregory, Joelle and Claude and everyone else in Allemont knew what was going on. In my head I was thinking “why would they close the roads for cyclists? In America they only have cops at intersections”. Gregory asked me if I wanted to go watch some of the race Saturday morning. So we walked to the bakery and had breakfast by the damn as the cyclists started arriving. I thought it might go on for 10 minutes or so….then it was 20 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hr…you get the idea. NEVER had I ever seen so many cyclists at once. I then thought that this ride has something special about it.

A few weeks later after I had recovered from Ironman Nice, I decided to tackle Col du Glandon/de la Croix Fer for the first time. Let’s just say that this climb is really, really cruel! You go up for 45 minutes at avg. 9% then down for 5 minutes that puts you back near where you started, then up again for an hour, then down..then up to the summit. A disclaimer; when you look at the gains in altitude for a climb (where you started vs. where you end up), you get the number referring from the bottom to the top, but that does not include all the ups and downs that occur during the climb. So where some people think that you only have to climb 1300 meters it is actually more due to these descents during the climbs that take you back down and you have to re-climb.

Back to the subject matter at hand; I had done Alpe d’Huez before Ironman Nice and the climb at that time rendered me “out of order,” I was toast afterwards. So, when I put two and two together, Col du Glandon + Alpe D’Huez…+ TELEGRAPHE AND GALIBIER!! (which, I had never done) I realized this ride was EPIC, like INSANE! And yes, only then did I tell myself I wanted to someday do it.

Fast-forward to this year. After such a disappointment at Oceanside, I realized I needed to get back to the “roots” of why I enjoy sports and needed a goal that was not triathlon related and something that could help me dial in my nutrition. There was a little devil tugging on my ear whispering “you know what you could do, don’t you?” Then I took the plunge and registered online. Heck, it was only 40 Euros, so if I don’t do it, at least I am not losing my life savings! (like Ironman, LOL!) Then tickets were booked to France; we decided 3 weeks would be enough time in the mountains to determine if I could “finish it” and learn some French! Which I have! (those experiences in another blog entry). So in June I crossed the pond to start a new adventure…

Back to the ride...

The interesting thing about this “ride” is that it gets more and more popular every year. Last year there were 6000 participants, this year there was just over 7000; and the real kicker is that they turned down over 1500 late registrants! The magnitude of this event takes my breath away and the amount of time and effort to organize it, I cannot fathom! All of this for 40 Euro’s…yes that is around 60 American dollars. Why the heck we pay $275 and >$500 for ½ Ironman and Ironman I cannot answer. All I can confirm is that the support, resources and encouragement matched and even surpassed that of any Ironman event I have done.

There were numerous stops along the course and they had spread them so precisely! There were water stops with bathrooms which were most frequent. There were hoses flowing with filtered water for bottle refills (such a great idea! With >7000 riders it is impossible to do individual bottle refills). At Col du Glandon (which was insanely busy! More on that in Chapter 2) because there was no place for the “hose” system, volunteers had gigantic tubs of water and used pitchers of water to refill your bottles. There were 3 major food stops along the course that served exactly what you wanted! The first one had bananas, fruits and gels; the second stop brought out the salty food, soup and sandwiches, and the last one had everything imaginable; my favorite was the Pepsi! Along the way I recall 4 Mavic stops for bike repairs and an endless amount of security and support passing us (every few minutes a motor bike or support crew would pass and help anyone in trouble). And last, but definitely not least was the medical support. I will not go into detail now, but the number of lives these people saved because they were prepared and got to them instantly (mostly on the descents due to crashes) blows my mind. I saw 5, yes 5!! Accidents and many people being loaded into ambulances during the first descent….not pretty, and not the reason I signed up for this event, but the fact that there were police and ambulances pretty much lining the descent every 5 km is very reassuring.

Next up…the beginning; my Journey to the starting line and what it is like to be in a tiny village with over 7000 cyclists!

Holy Crap!

That was hard!! Just as hard if not harder than Ironman in my opinion!!

Full report to come soon, but in the meantime:

9 hrs 30 min 38 seconds....that earned me a gold-standard finish by over 30 minutes! I am pleased! but really don't know how to take it as I have never, ever hurt so bad on the bike as I did today!

Amazing experience! great organization and something I will NEVER forget!

On her way

I've taken over Erin's omputer while she is riding her bike. Just saw her pass the 15k mark and she was doing well; which is good considering that she still has 165 to go!
Weather is good so far, lots of sun and not too hot yet to climb croix de fer. More updates from Alpe d'Huez!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!

Happy Anniversary love of my life!! 2 years already!! LOVE YOU!

It's Show Time!!

Well, it has been quite a busy, busy, busy week! Sunday I traveled to Paris to pick up the "package" Special delivery via United Airlines! My hubby finally arrived in France. Wow, 3 weeks is a long time to be away from your spouse. Lets just say I am happy to have him back!

After a few more doctor check-ups (health care is absolutely astonishing quality-wise and super cheap even without insurance so Gregory and I get our yearly maintenance done in France) and visits with friends we drove back to the Alpes.

We picked up my bike that had been dropped off for a tune-up/check-up before the race....


hmmm, this bike is RED, not black like the old one. What is going on?? Well, I just got this bike today, one day before La Marmotte!! I know everyone has bike problems and little tid-bits to fix before an event, but I thought my bad luck with this was OVER! I was wrong. Long story short, my previous frame had some length discrepencies, which were supposed to be fine for the La Marmotte, but an new frame was ordered and it would be replaced (we found this out on Wednesday). When I rode my bike, the spokes in the wheel creaked (not a good sign!) due to truing the wheel to accomodate the length discrepency (Thursday). To be on the safe side, the bike shop gave me a rental bike to ride. My auntie Cocole (and me too) was not happy on switching bikes 2 days before the race...it is hard to switch geometries and shifting (this was a triple). But I rode it and although it was not like my original bike, I was happy to have a bike to ride; things could be worse (oh yeah, I have been there before too!)

But, Auntie Cocole was determined and called the shop early this morning and what transpired between her and the bike shop I do not know, but Gregory and I ended recieving a call early this morning telling us to drop off the bike at the shop ASAP!! We dropped the bike off and at noon it had my compac crankset on, my proper stem length and wheels that cost more than the bike...lets say that the bike had a huge MAKE OVER! I think I ended up with a better bike than I started with!! It rides like a charm!

I am very fortunate to have an Auntie Cocole who looks out for me! If you are reading this Cocole, Merci Beaucoup et Gros bisous!

Now on to the La Marmotte details. This year there are a record number of riders! Over 7000 people are signed up! My number is 6306 and I start at 7:50 am. I am the third and final wave to start...although I won't be alone, I start with 3000 people!

There is a nifty athlete tracker where you can see where I am on the course. Here is the link:

http://www.la-marmotte.org/cartemarmotte.php

Just plug in # 6306 and you are set!

I am pretty much set for the day...it is supposed to be warm...But, you need your gloves and jacket because there are still snowpiles at the top of Galibier.

I am also going to be lugging around 10 hrs worth of nutrition (I am HOPING I am done around 10 hrs...if not, I resort to "real people" food) These are the times that having food allergies can be a little tricky. How do you carry that much?? Well, lots of plastic baggies and an extra large "bento box"! The basic plan involves Carbo-Pro, hammer Gels and Pamela's cookies.

Pamela's cookies are also pretty compact and easy to transport, especially their miniature cookies, YUM!


I told Gregory that I have "butterflies" in my stomach. This is like doing your first Ironman! I don't think that a lot of people who have not ridden over here grasp the concept of how difficult this is and how "just finishing" is an accomplishment! It is 174 km; however, the 22000 ft of climbing occurs over 73 km; do the math, it's a monster! but I am loving it, I am loving the idea of the challenge, the unknown, the amount I will learn about myself and the courage that I will have to find within myself.

This is what it is about...this is what I have missed. There are so many "if's" "but's" and "what's" but all I know is that I am going to start and try to get as far as my body and mind will allow me...

Hopefully that will be to the finish line at the top of Alpe D'Huez. Then, and only then, will I raid the the La Marmotte promotional store and purchase everything in site with a furry Marmotte (groundhog for the Americans) plastered over it.

Cheers!

Tragic...just tragic!!

I am utterly devastated! I think I am entering a period of depression....

Not only is Michael Jackson dead, Farah Fawcett dead, Ed McMahan dead, my Netflix doesn't work in France so I consider it dead, but the worst of all, earth shattering BAD NEWS...is that the pool is STILL CLOSED!!

SOB!

I know, I know...with time I will get over it; I just had these huge dreams of accomplishment today! Like swimming 100 meters in 50 seconds after my 3 week break from the pool. So now I am in a period of mourning...till the 4th. But, that will be ok, because on July 1st the Allemont pool will open so I don't have to ride up a mountain to swim....

I existing on hopes that a magic swimming fairy will come visit me and give me upper body flexiblity and webbed feet so I can stay afloat when I actually get in the water again. I did opt for a bath instead of a shower the other day, does that count as swimming?

I guess I can say I only took Wolfang's advice to heart....a few months ago he said:

"If you have any hope of being a decent swimming I need to swim more and become more flexible; shoulders, hips, ankles..you name it. Otherwise, you are better off training to take an hour of your bike and 30 minutes off you run for the IM!"

I guess I opted for the bike and run...LOL!

On a more positive note, Gregory hopped the pond and is in London at the moment catching up with friends and ODing on baguette, saucison, and pastries..... I will meet up with him on Sunday when I return to Paris.

This past week of cycling has been a bit challenging. After the ride last Saturday, my legs were suffering..and still are, but that is ok, because it is rest time! To put it shortly, none of my rides/runs felt good this week and you can forget about any sort of intensity! Good news is that I had a lot of distractions from my jello legs; this Sunday there is a bike race around the Oisans region that ends up in Vaujany. A lot of people stay the week and do La Marmotte the next Saturday. Anyhow, the booming village of Allemont/surrounding area went from about 50 people to a couple hundred! There are lots of bikes and riders! That means I have to get up extra early to get my treats from the bakery before the roadies clean it out!

Tomorrow I will take my bike to Bourg D'Oisans and leave it for a tune-up...little too much squeeking and groaning these days. Also, it is important to make sure the brakes work and screws are tightened before La Marmotte, LOL. Possible scenario's going through my head tomorrow:

A. ride to Bourg D'Oisans, and run back to Allemont (7 miles flat)
B. ride Col D'Ornon and then to Bourg D'Oisans and take the bus or run back to Allemont
C. ride to Bourg D'Oisans, ditch the bike, shop (because it is market day!) have lunch and take the bus back....

Liking option C so far...I am supposed to be tapering and all...

Then on Sunday it is back to Paris, will I will get to see my HUBBY for the first time in 3 weeks!! I am very excited!

Cheers!

I'm Not So Bad Afterall....

I wonder if there is an equivalent to road rage with bikers? It could be bikers being annoyed with bikers, or even better, bikers losing it on cars (not sure who has ever won that battle!)

You are probably wondering where the heck I come up with these ideas?? Well, on my bike of course! Today I got back on my bike, although the legs weren't sure if they liked it, and I know the bike didn't because it squeeked, screamed and groaned all the way up Alpe D'Huez. Thank goodness it is going into the shop for a little TLC over the weekend while I am back in Paris!

Anyhow, back to the point...eventually I made it to the top of the mountain and had to come back down. I am always a little nervous when it comes to descending, but it has gotten better, day by day, practice, practice, practice. So yes, I can dive-bomb a straight section of the Alpe D'Huez descent and brake in time to make the corner without running off the cliff....Bravo moi!!

Today, I met a descender who was worse than me!! and this descender was not on a bike! Yup, a little grey car braked more than I did and I almost rear ended the dude! Not sure if they were more scared of the descent or the crazy lady with the neon pink wind jacket following them! It was annoying though, because they would SLOW down to almost STOPPING at the corners, at which point I would get ready to pass, and then they would accelerate really FAST so I could not pass. But, then again, brake halfway down, I would catch them at the corner, try to pass..but, no such luck. This happened for 18 of the 21 turns of Alpe D'Huez. It was a little frustrating, but I was in no rush...actually I was secretely enjoying this experience knowing I was chasing a car, LOL.

But here is the real kicker! at turn 18 the car doesn't accelerate and goes very, very slowly...since there were only 3 more turns and there was traffic coming up in the opposite direction I could not pass...but, I was REALLY wondering what was going on at this point. We reached the next corner and low and behold the car was being held up by another cyclist!!

This cyclist must have been scared out of their witts!! (and no, I am not poking fun because I was and still am one of them) so they were on their brakes and descending in the middle of the lane. Poor guy! For onces the smell of burnt rubber was not coming from my brakes!

So, rather than going into "Bike Rage" mode I giggled to myself. It's not everyday that I can say I am not the slowest descender on a bike AND I was faster than a car! LOL

It's Been One Year...

Today is June 22nd, 2009 (duh!!)...what is so special about it?? It marks the one year anniversary that I defied odds...I survived.

One year ago at this time (in France) I crossed the Ironman Nice finish line and knew that things were not right. What transpired after my finish is a haze in my head, and, it makes me cringe to even think about what my family/friends witnessed.

However, I do feel it is important to write about this, in detail, because it keeps me grounded, optimistic and feeling fortunate for every day. At this time, one year ago, I crossed the Ironman Nice finish line and was taken to the med-tent with what they thought was dehydration (it was +40 degrees celcius out). They hooked me up to an IV and waited to see what would happen...At that time, going through my head was that I thought I did everything right, I drank enough because I knew i was prone to dehydration. During this time, I knew things were very, very wrong; all I wanted to do was sleep. After one IV, they hooked up another...at which point I threw up water, a LOT of water...and this is where I stop remembering....

Gregory filled me in on the rest; and I am thankful I do not remember. Since I threw up fluids they hooked me up to a 3rd IV! and I did not get better so they called an ambulance to take me to the hospital. On the way to the hospital, I started seizing and would not stop, so they induced a coma. At the hospital, they discovered my sodium/potassium serums (electrolyte balance) was deathly low....so they started infusing me with electrolytes...Simple solution, right? Well, not after you seize and your electrolytes go so low. They were scared I had brain swelling and had brain damage.

I am sooo fortunate..and I don't know why, but my Cat Scan came back normal...That does not mean that I am not crazy! Of course we know I am a little "weird"...Gotta put some humor in this somewhere. In technical terms, I had hyponautremia.

I think that a common theme through my blog is how I take each experience I encounter and try and gain perspective from it. Ironman Nice taught me that I am not invincible! It also taught me that I must appreciate everything I do, and never, ever take anything for grantid. For instance, a 10 minute bike ride might not seem worthy of consideration to an Ironman athlete, but what if that was the last 10 minutes you could ever ride?

Ironman Nice also taught me how important family is...I cannot put it into words, but when you think of losing your loved ones and then realize that they were waiting in the Emergency room wondering if they might lose me...that is perspective!

Cheers to one year of health, happiness and love!

My Everest!

My Auntie Cocole made a great point to me a few days ago. She said (in English, BRAVO!) that everyone has their "own Everest" to climb in life. This "Everest" is symbolic of your dreams, goals and desires. I have been lucky enough to summit many of my own "Everest's" (you don't always just have one!).

I had planned the week in advance with Joelle and Claude that I would ride 3/4 of the climbing involved in La Marmotte on Saturday. This includes Col du Glandon, Col du Telegraphe, Col du Galibier and a 8km descent to Col du Lautaret. Below is the profile. I planned to descend Glandon and then drive to the bottom of Telegraphe and then climb Telegraphe and Galibier.

I must be honest...in one of my previous posts I stated that the La Marmotte climbs ~50000ft...well, I may have overexagerated just a wee bit, LOL. It actually climbs ~22000 ft (~6.7 km), which is still pretty hefty!

I have been pretty nervous all week thinking about this day. I knew it would be tough..I had never climbed Telegraphe or Galibier before and had heard nothing too pleasent about them other than the scenery. On a ride I did Thursday, I met up with about 10 Belgium men on Col de la Croix de la Fer and they were doing the La Marmotte course minus Alpe D'Huez. They had done the race before and gave me some great tips!...Ofcourse, they said it would be hard...but, if it were easy, I wouldn't be doing it, right? Yes, I know, I am crazy..more on that in a bit.

We had great weather all week, but Friday night a front blew in with wind, cold, clouds and rain. Not bad to climb in! I was actually happy about the cooler temps. It was an early start and the clouds were low...perfect! Below is a picture of me heading out; all smiles.

Before I go any further with this post, I must say I have the best, absolute BEST mother-in-law and Auntie-in-law. I don't know many people that would put up with a day of driving around, supporting and making sure their crazy daughter/neice-in-law is safe while she decides to tackle some mountains! Merci Beaucoup!

Still smiling on the way to Glandon

You can see the clouds in the background. Biking through the layer of clouds is the most fascinating experience! It is pretty foggy and dark below, but then you break through to some gorgeous sunshine.

Here is a great pic Joelle took of the dam/wildlife a few km from the peak of Glandon

Almost there!...

It was really funny for me because Joelle is the "photographer" and Claude (aka Auntie Cocole) is in charge of the driving/safety. Joelle loves getting a "good picture" which, included directing me into the oncoming lane of traffic during a descent or climb so she could get me at the proper angle with a "beautiful" background; and at the same time of all of this happening, Cocole was sticking her neck out the window of the parked car screaming "BEEEEE CAAARREEEFULLL!!" I was cracking up as I was climbing/descending; especially when they would drive by and Joelle was halfway out of the window of the car trying to get her shot and Cocole screaming "BE CAREFUL" as I climbed at a snails pace! I was in more danger of falling over from going too slow than losing control of the bike, LOL!

The riding was tough! It was a really, really windy day out, and when you are trying to climb +8-9% into a cold headwind, it takes a toll. Near the summit I was getting the "frozen fingers/frozen toes"syndrome and was happy to accept the ride down the Glandon from my awesome support crew. On days like this, it is not worth the risk to descend when you don't have too....maybe I should rephrase that; when you are a crappy descender like me, you will use any excuse to get a free ride down the mountain! LOL

Here is a picture at the summit. It was awesome! We were "in" the clouds; Very Cool!

On our drive down Glandon, I took a few pics. The one below is ~2.5 km into the descent past the technical "don't make a wrong turn or you die" part. It is looking up into the clouds, unfortunately you cannot see the hairpins of the descent, none the less, it looks cool!

This is a river of snow. Remenents of an Avalanche.

And this is looking down at the Glandon descent. It is sooo beautiful! Once you get past the first 3 km of this descent it is "relatively" safe.

From the bottom of Glandon, we drove to St Jean de-Maurienne the bottom of Telegraphe. This section of the course is super flat and will be super fast with the draft created by +6000 riders. Yes, that is right, around 6000 riders are crazy enough to do this event! It has wave starts, one at 7 am, one at 7:30 and one at 7:50 am. So even though the wind whips through this valley, I am hoping it will be barely noticeable! I am also hoping I can follow someone safe for the descents! LOL

Once in St Jean de-Maurienne, you make a shart right hand turn and go up, up and up to Col du Telegraphe. Below is a picture of me about 1/2 way up. This climb is pretty mild and a good warmup for what awaits. It is very sheltered with trees; it is like riding in a forest! On a few of the turns you can get a peak across the valley at the neighboring mountains to get an idea of how high you are.

The summit of Telegraphe is right around the Boulder altitude, so I was doing pretty well at this point. Chowing down on cookies and Carbo-Pro as I knew it would be needed the higher I got. One thing Megan told me that is super important is that the higher in altitude you train, the more calories you burn; so those 250-300 calories per hour at sea level won't cut it at the top of a moutain!

Once you hit Col du Telegraphe you have a quick 4-5 km mile descent into the village of Valloire. At this point in time I was thinking to myself "only 17 more km to go...this is not so bad!!" Because the average grade so far was ~7% it wasn't really "doing me in" like I had expected. Everyone says "OMG Galibier!! WOW..." and I hadn't yet experienced the "WOW"...Naivety is bliss sometimes!

The first few km out of Valloire are simply "easy"...~5%; but you do start noticing the altitude. Nothing too bad...I was waiting for the "WOW"; but then I started looking at the writing on the road as I climbed (leftover from the tour and other bike races". There were names, and the word "COURAGE!" , but most disturbing were the pictures of the devils fork and devil. At that point I knew that this was going to get bad. I also became aware of the lack of trees and the blotches of snow; it was getting cold...and you know you are getting high when the trees don't grow anymore.

But, I still told myself "maybe it won't be that bad" ...so I distracted myself with the scenery (pic below).

Then you arrive at km 26 of 34 and you realize that the road makes a sharp right turn over a river and then heads back in the direction you are coming from. Then your eyes follow the road as it sharply ascents to the hairpin climb on your right that you didn't notice...Then you realize that you are WAY above Boulder altitude, and an 8-10% for 8 km is going to be a B*&ch . Then, you realize that this is not as "fun" as it seemed anymore. THEN you realize what the "WOW" is.

Below is the picture of what you see on your "right". It is the first 3km of the climb (yes, bottom to top) before it takes you onto the backside and then onto another cliff/mountain (at that point in time I could not tell the difference) and eventually to the top.

I am not going to lie, this was tough! Very, very tough! From the climbing standpoint, it was hard, but what made it harder was the altitude. I never, ever, EVER thanked Boulder for it's altitude till today, because as I passed people wheezing and coughing and pulling over for breath, even walking their bikes! I realized that although I was "suffering, huffing and puffing" I was not going to collapse, or get altitude sickness...I guess from that stanpoint I had it good, LOL!

What makes this climb even more amazing is the scenery. It is absolutely magical. You go from the bottom of Telegraphe where you climb through a forest to the green prairies of higher altitude an then you get to the snow-fields! In the picture below, I am about 4 km from the summit and as you can see the snow is appearing.

I think this next picture captures it all. Nothing more to say other than I am truly lucky to have the opportunity to experience this!

About 2 km left to go and I was dreaming of making a snowman! Actually, you can see the peak at 2 km left to go..and it is very high! The last bit is ~10-12%...kinda like Ward! Except at one km to go there was a backup in traffic coming from the opposite direction because of a snow cave-in on the road that blocked over one lane...of course the cyclists got priority!

Finally at the top! And you really do feel like you are on top of the world! Well at least for 3-4 minutes because it was FREEZING! We were so cold we didn't even get a picture at the Col du Galibier sign! Sigh, I guess I will have to do it again, LOL

From Galibier I descending 8 km to Col du Lautaret which is MUCH warmer and has an even better view of the glacier La Meje in the background. I was extremely excited to see a merchant selling nougat products, so we loaded up.

Joelle looked at me and said "It is enough, you are finished!"...but I had a little idea brewing in my head. I knew my legs were going to be shot on Sunday regardless, and didn't really want to get up the next morning to finish off my adventure with Alpe D'Huez, so why not get it all done in one day?? It would be the La Marmotte without the descents/flats.

Scared that Joelle might bat me across the side of my head, I yelled to Cocole "Alpe D'Huez" and being the super trooper and eager beaver she lit up and said "oui...to the bottom of Bourg D'Oisans! we will see then!" Cocole used to be a competative skier, so she understands these stupid ideas athletes get...no doubt about it, I was not thinking straight.

So off to Bourg D'Oisans we went. I chowed down as we drove and was questioning my actual desire to do this, and I told my head to shut up because no one in their right mind would think this was a good idea, but I needed to know where/how to dig come race/La Marmotte day (I don't like to call it a race because if I raced this thing, I wouldn't even make it to the first summit! I like to refer to it as an "event").

So I started Alpe D'Huez with the agreement that Claude and Joelle would stop at different points on the way up in case I pooped out. Suprisingly I felt pretty good for the first 9 turns...including the killer first 5 turns at 12%. At this point in time I felt invincible! No Problem, my legs can do La Marmotte! Then I was thirsty and noticed the wind picking up..and then I started getting mad. First sign I need to eat! So I pulled over where Claude and Joelle were parked, at a bit and took some electrolytes. At this point I was only 7 turns from the top, just over 5 km to go! No problem, right?

At 4 km to go, the wall hit! "Welcome to hell kid!" The wind was whipping, my legs were on fire, I was ready to cry, and the only thing going through my head was "left-right, push-push, keep it smooth" It felt like Ironman...you know when you only have a few miles left to go but it seems like eternity?? 2 km from the top at the "red La Marmotte sign" Claude and Joelle were pulled over talking to Gregory.on the phone (he was wondering what trouble his wife was getting into, again!)..so I pulled over to say hi...he hadn't heard from me since I started my adventure (actually, he slept right through it, got to love the time change LOL). And what does an encouraging, supportive husband tell his wife at times like these when she asks him if it is ok if she stops and calls it a day 2 km from the finish?? He say "Suck it up Princess! get your a$$ to the top!"

So I did...nothing pretty or glamorous about it. I worked, pushed, pulled and got my princess butt to the top! And boy did it feel good. These types of days are one in a million and I will not/cannot compare it to anything I have every done before!

I can't say that I am not scared for La Marmotte anymore, but at least I know what to expect.

This biking adventure was extremely taxing on my body, and I know it will take a few days to recover, however, I find it a lot easier to deal with because you don't have the "pain" you get from running. There is no impact in biking (well, as long as you don't crash) and all you are left with is a deep fatigue. I am not limping, I am not cringing when I touch my legs, I am just tired!

So today was a day off....tomorrow might be another one...heck, I might not get on my bike until La Marmotte, LOL j/k Good news is that the pool opens in a few days!

I will let you know when I get back on my bike!

Thanks for reading...and yes, this day was one of my many "Everests"

If you want to see the entire gallery of the day here is the link:

http://picasaweb.google.fr/goodcookies4me/ColDuGlandonEtTelegrapheEtGalibierEtLautaret#

La Piscine Ferme!!

So after my "epic" ride on Sunday I felt like it was vital that I try to climb Alpe D'Huez on Monday to really know what it will feel like for La Marmotte. I did not like it. Plain and simple I suffered! I suffered, went home and worked and my legs continued to suffer...that deep throbbing, and pain that you feel when you know you have done something stupid. Let's just say this was not an "overnight recovery" sort of thing...

So, what is the best thing for you when you are sore and need a "recovery" day? To swim of course!! I even promised Wolfgang I would go to the pool! So Tuesday started off well...a VERY easy jog/run to warm the legs up and then off to the pool

Oh Wait...there is one problem...the pool that is supposed to be open is 10 km away, 8km of which is climbing at +10% (the local pool does not open till July 1st). But I REALLY, REALLY wanted to swim (sense the sarcasm...imagine the wrath of Wolfgang here...). So I got on my bike and rode my heavy legs to Vajauny, all the while my new bike making funny noises, creeking, groaning, and even dropped the chain....I think my bike wanted to go to the pool as much as I did!...we are getting along just fine!

But, I persisted, sweated, cursed and basically suffered the entire way up...and here is proof! +10%

And because I was so eager and excited to swim I pulled over to take a picture.....half-way up...

And this is the pool.

And this is the sign on the pools window stating that no loose fitting boxer shorts are allowed. Now I understand why Euro's always wear the speedos! However, what this sign does not describe is how the Pool is CLOSED.... I didnt' know whether to celebrate or cry....I was happy not to swim because we all know how much I love swimming, but miserable because my legs took another beating when they could have been at home resting! So I guess I am blessed and cursed from the swimming standpoint. Blessed by the fact that I have an excuse NOT to do what I don't really like, and cursed because I know how bad it is going to be when I actually get back into the water...it will not be pretty, but I am not going to worry about that right now!

All my concerns were washed away by this site..right outside of the pool. Does not get much better than this!

I went home and proceeded to cook up a storm to fuel myself for the rest of the week. It is really cool to have most of your training/stuff done by midday and work in the afternoon. Everybody on the other side of the world is sleeping while I am riding my bike, so I don't worry about emails/work till I get back. It takes a lot off the mind so that when I am training.

Anyhow, it is amazing how the body bounces back. After some good food and rest, I had an awesome run and climb up Alpe D'Huez today! It felt great! I am hoping for the same tomorrow. Friday it is supposed to rain, so I am going to take a deserved rest day from the bike!

Climb, climb, climb!

Where I live and La Marmotte:

Below is a map I scribbled on to give you and idea of "Where in the World is Chewy?" as well as what this "La Marmotte" bike ride is. In blue is the La Marmotte course; if you want to get a closer look, search google for Alpe D'Huez and use this map as a reference. In the pink is where I have ridden so far...and the little star is where I am living right now. As you can tell, I have only explored the first half of the course. Next weekend my awesome Auntie Cocole and Joelle will be playing "SAG" with me as I start with Col de La Croix de Fer and then driving me to Valloire, the beggining of Galibier; this way I have an idea of how much it is going to hurt!

Col D'Ornon

On Friday I decided to do a little "warmup" before tackling Alpe D'Huez again. There is a relatively "easy" climb (only avg 6-7 %) to Col D'Ornon. The backside of this climb is part of the long course Alpe D'Huez triathlon.

The start...

The village of Ornon. The villages tend to be a few km below the summit. So Col D'Ornon is 5 km further. Also, the village of Huez is 4 km lower that Alpe D'Huez.

A spectacular view of some of the homes/gardens near the summit...Unfortunately my picture of the summit didn't turn out so well...taking pictures while riding a bike is a tricky thing!

And this is proof that afterwards I climbed Alpe D'Huez! Actually there was an electric bike race going on at the same time I decided to climb so there was crowd and vehicles with loud speakers playing techno music! it was a party. I was also fortunate to meet a nice man from Holland who rode up with me and spoke English!..it was good to have an English coversation, LOL!

I also have experienced the wonders of "Compac Cranks" I absolutely love them! Last year, I rode with a 42 as my smallest (thanks Wolfgang!) and was grinding every climb...even for IM Nice. Things seem so much more manageable with the smaller crankset! Managed to knock 6 minutes off my Alpe D'Huez climb time to 1 hr 11 minutes...my goal is to go sub 70 min by the end of the summer!


Col de Glandon and Col De La Croix de Fer

Today I wanted to "push the legs" a little. Get them used to climbing for a extended period of time; in 3 weeks, they will have to be ready to climb at least 8 hrs! So I embarked to climb Col de Glandon (part of the La Marmotte course). I have done Glandon and Croix Fer before but not any further. So to go past the summit and descend is "unknown territory"; I was going to go "where no Chewy has gone before!" My intents were to climb Glandon, descend 1/2 way to St Colomban des-Villard and head back...Gregory had told me the descent from Glandon was a "little hairy" and one to experience before La Marmotte and the climb back up was "ok"....more on that in a bit.

Here is the departure from the EDF dam in Allemont. I was heading to the mountains in the back of the picture on your left.

This is after the initial "steep" part..the destination lies around the peack in the middle of the picture in the back.

Near the top is the EDF dam that feeds the one in Allemont. It also marks the end of the "steep" part of the climb. The rest of the way to the summit is moderate and much needed for the sore quads!

The tail end of the dam and the road snaking off in the distance takes you to Col de Glandon and Col de la Croix de la Fer (2.5 km farther up the road). the road splits in the distance and if you turn left, you end up at Col de Glandon within 500 meters; if you veer right, you go a little farther, 2.5 km to Col de la Croix de la Fer.

Her is Col de Glandon summit.

Here is the view up to Col de la Croix de la Fer from Glandon. It's hard to see, but it is at the top, LOL

Now the fun begins, descending Glandon to St-Colomban des-Villards. Not only did I almost crap my pants and have a heart attack at the same time; I blistered my hands from braking so hard! My bike smells like burnt rubber!. This descent is the "Craziest" I have ever done, and boy am I glad I did it. My only concern is how many people are going to kill themselves during La Marmotte during this descent! The road is one car wide and the first 3 km are at 12% with descending radius turns and NO GAURDRAILS!

The picture below is 1.5 km into the descent where I pulled over due to panicking...I finally looked up and saw what beautiful scenery there was! So I took a picture, composed myself and kept going...braking a LOT!

Fortunately the descent levels out after 4 km, but it still is not easy...that should have been my first clue that the climb back up would be a killer!

Here is the profile for the climb back up. The red part is +10% (around 12 % for this climb). OK! OK! Gregory said it would be OK!...my arsss it was OK! but I survived, without walking my bike or stopping, but it was tough. Then to add icing to the cake, I decided to take it to the next level of sadistic self-inflicted hurt...I went the 2.5 km to Col de la Croix de la Fer.

Here is the view approaching the Col de la Croix de la Fer summit. Can you see the 3 mountain peaks in the background?? Guess what those are?

Finally, the summit

And those 3 peaks are the mountains you see on the Evian water bottles! It is so beautiful. All of these pictures do not give the panorama the credit it deserves!

And, I did sit in the well afterwards for a mountian fresh ice cold bath! My quads are a little tired now....yawn, time for bed. More mountain adventures later...

Alpe D'Huez

Well, I made it to Notre Dame and Tour Eiffel before hopping on the TGV to Grenoble, followed by a bus ride through the villages of Oisans to the final destination: Allemont.

For those of you not up to date on your French geography and miniscule villages that lay nested in the French Alpes, I will give you the easiest reference point to find us. We are located 5 km away from the base of Alpe D'Huez...and Col de le Croix de Fer is our backyard. Tough life, I know...

This is the view I wake up to in the morning. I actually took it hanging out of my bedroom window. Today was beautiful! Clear skies, and around 30 degrees celcius, but the wind helped cool things down.

First stop was to the bike store to pick up my new bike. Gregory and I realized that it would be $800 dollars to get my bike to and from France via the airlines plus any tune-up charges, which, is the cost of a new bike! So we decided to invest in a bike to keep in the Alpes for us when we return in the summer. The bike shop is named "The red frame" in English.

The bike I got is called "Q-bike" and rides like a charm! Here I am strapping on my "lunch box"

Next stop, Alpe D'Huez (the mountain right in front of me in this picture)

One final pose for the camera! I did something I have never done before on this ride; I rode with the camera and took pictures along the way. Alpe D'Huez is hard from the standpoint that is it steep, an endless sort of steep. It is also very unique in the fact that is has 21 turns, all of which are marked by signs. The first 3 km are the hardest at +12 % and I usually end up contemplating walking my bike (or riding it off the ledge) those first 3 km. Then the climb levels off to a "modest" (make me want to puke) 8-9% with some steeper sections along the way. Here is a picture at the half-way point looking down at the start point: Bourg d'Oisans.

The final 3 km are just as hard as the first, becoming steep again. The locals are already gearing up for La Marmotte, as you can see from the large red "Marmotte" logo erected 2 km from the finish of the climb. I am very proud of myself, this picture was taken while biking!

Finally at the summit, there is a "finisher" area for all the tourists and locals who make it to the top. It really is something to climb this beast! There was one man who started walking his bike at turn 14 and was 2 km from the finish when I was on my descent still walking it up for the finish! Allez, courage!!

Here is the view from the top...it is sooo beautiful!

This is my post ride lunch! mmmmmmm

And this is my post ride ice-bath! Yes, that is a well that is mountain-spring fed. Cold, crisp and oh sooo good for the legs after a day of climbing

brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.............

Tomorrow I will be climbing Col d'Ornon followed by Alpe d'Huez, and Sunday I will tackle Col de la Croix de Fer....soon I will have gorilla quads!