Back in Boulder

Pictured above Andrés Salazar and myself at the beginning of a big ride last Saturday, July the 3rd, 2010. Andrés was nice enough to join me for a spin up to the Jamestown Mercantile. From there, in preparation for this year's Triple Bypass, I rode Super Jamestown, a steeper climb further up above Jamestown. Then I descended to the Left Hand Canyon turnoff and rode up Left Hand Canyon, a Boulder classic. From there I returned down Left Hand and up over Lee Hill back into Boulder. It was about 7,000 feet of climbing in 61 miles. Below are a map of the route and an elevation chart from my Garmin.

It was a great ride and I felt good afterwards. I guess France was good training for the Triple Bypass. I'll find out how true that is tomorrow. On the 4th of July I road up to Jamestown again with my friends Brenda Maller and Julie Gillaspie for the Jamestown 4th of July parade, replete with the traditional kazoo marching band, a vintage fire wagon, and all the local kids on their bikes. Brenda and Jules in Jamestown below.

Of course with Brenda leading we had to go up to Jamestown the hardway. We had the steep climb up over Olde Stage Road on the way up and we came back over Lee Hill. On the upside, up on Lee Hill Brenda spotted a Western Tanager. I love seeing these colorful birds and had not seen one yet this year.

I think a lot about how cycling in France compares to riding in Colorado. I am fortunate to live in Boulder. The riding around here is incredibly varied and great. We can ride flat on the plains or we can pretty much pick any climbing gradient we want by choosing among the various climbs west of town that take us up into the mountains. But I have also been fortunate enough to vary my riding with some incredible bicycling trips throughout the Rockies from Montana to New Mexico; in the California Sierras; in the mountains of the American South East; and of course in France.

So how does France compare to Colorado for cycling. It's different and in that difference lies the pleasure. The first time I went to France to ride was a trip two years ago when I went to the Pyrenees. A friend of mine asked me if I was sure I could make it up the Col du Tourmalet. My friend was a good cyclist and his question gave me pause. How hard could it be?

Three days before I left for France I did one of the hardest short climbs we have here in Boulder: the front side of the Lee Hill Road plus the mile and a half up the Deer Trail Road at the top of Lee Hill. The first mile of the Lee Hill Road after the Olde Stage Road turnoff averages about 11 %. There is a bit of a break and a downhill after a false summit then another three quarters of a mile of so at about 11% to the true summit to which I added another mile and a half of unrelenting steepness up Deer Trail. I road the route nonstop and thought to myself that if I can do this how much harder can the Tourmalet be? The answer was not harder, just different.

I had incredibly good riding in the Pyrenees and I thought I road well. As a Clydesdale I am not a fast climber, but the altitude difference between Colorado and the Pyrenees is huge, and while I would be gasping for air on a big Colorado climb like Independence Pass, on the Col du Tourmalet I found myself spinning easily to the top chatting with the people around me. I had pretty much the same experience riding in the Alps. The fact I ride at such a high altitude here in Colorado is a huge advantage in France (the way Hank rode in the Alps was super-impressive given that his training mostly involved spinning in front of his TV in White Bear Lake, Minnesota - elevation 950 feet). The the top of Alpe d'Huez is only 700 feet higher than my bedroom in Boulder. Compare the profile of Independence Pass.

The top of the Col du Tourmalet is at 6,964 feet. The top of Independence Pass is at 12,100 feet. The highest point that Hank and I rode to in the Alps was the summit of the Col du Galibier at 8,678 feet.

The other big difference is that the French descents were typically much more technical. You could never just let your bike go as there was always a switch back turn coming up. In Colorado I can hit 50 miles an hour on a straight away descent. That didn't happen in France. Hank told me today he wore out his rear brake pads. I put on new brake pads before I left for France. I had an inkling of what was coming.

Speaking of what is coming, as I mentioned, tomorrow is the Triple Bypass ride - three passes, 120 miles of riding and over 10,000 feet of climbing. My friend Tony Klaich has come in from Chicago to ride it with me. I'll blog about it on Sunday.