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This one is fairly straightforward, although there is nothing easy about the long climb on the Tourmalet and the final assault on the Hautacam. We start off on a flat road, although we still have to work to keep a decent speed towards the first big climb of the day. Then there are rolling hills, where we add resistance before each one but maintaining our cadence by standing out of the saddle. We tackle the Tourmalet by starting at a fast climbing cadence but then slowing down the rhythm as the incline rises, varying our position on the bike to help break up the effort but without taking the heart rate too high - we can't afford to overdo it on the first climb or we'd lose too much time on the final ascent.
A brief respite as we head downhill, before the road leads up towards our final destination - Hautacam. No sprints on this one, just hard work and even harder work - when Lance Armstrong demonstrated his strength on this climb in 2000, he merely worked harder than others to leave them behind. There was no sudden burst of power, he just kept going until the others could not keep up. We do the same in three stages - there are suitable gaps in the final track when the vocals are a cappella and we increase resistance as the bass rhythm kicks back in, finishing in a show of strength for the final two minutes.
The Pyrenees are now over, the riders will have a well-deserved rest day before making their way to the Alps (which is where I'm going tomorrow for the Marmotte - see you next week!).
Warm up - 6.5 mins
Seated flat road - 7.5 mins
Rolling hills - 10 mins
Fast climb - 5 mins
Brief respite as we arrive at the Tourmalet - 1.5 mins
Fast seated and standing climb - 4 mins
Heavy seated to standing climb - 9.5 mins
Downhill recovery - 1.5 mins
Strong seated and standing climb - 8 mins
Cool down - 6 mins
Playlist
Voices - Dario G. feat. Vanessa Quinones
Clubbed to death - Rob D.
Children (Paul Oakenfold remix) - Robert Miles
A forest (extended remix) - The Cure
A fast and inspirational climbing track for which I don't have details (sorry!)
Uninvited (full length extended version) - Freemasons
3rd Earth - Solar Stone vs. Scott Bond
Beautiful strange - Bedrock
3 comments:
Doing this one on a Saturday class, thanks bud for the suggestions and the creativity.
Shannon
Thanks, Shannon! I realise that music is always subjective but I have a fair idea of how each stage is likely to pan out, the race strategy, etc., so it's something I like to share, if it helps.
More stages in the Alps coming soon!
Robert, you're very, very glad you didn't do the Etape du Tour! Rain, rain, rain, the entire way and fog and freezing cold on the cols from the reports I read! Pure misery - I hope you fared better at La Marmotte!
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