EPIC CAMP FRANCE 2016 BLOG
EPIC CAMP EPILOGUE
FRIDAY, JULY 15, 2016 AT 06:00PM
Wow wow wow what an incredible camp we experienced in France. Almost everything went to plan with great weather, mind blowing scenery, scrumptious French food, high quality accommodation, hospitable motorists……and a great bunch of athletes.
After this camp we are fitter and stronger than before but the biggest arsenal for the athletes to add to their toolbox is how to better deal with adversity. Our camp athlete now need to think how they can implement these learnings into racing and potentially other aspects of life. If you listen into IMTalk with the post camp chats every athlete had to face some serious demons out there, get over those hurdles and make it to the end of the day, a lot of athletes had some very very dark moments. Then for 11 days they needed to get up again and back it up.
Our opening day climbing Mont Ventoux was the perfect wake up call for everyone on how tough our schedule was going to be. Backing that up on day 5 was the brutal day including the Col D’iseran. A number of athletes arrived at the base of a 20km+ climb completely smoked but they had to figure out a way up. Let’s remember these are Kona standard athletes not your middle or back of the pack weekend warriors. It was brilliant to see the determination and fight amongst the group which helped inspire each other. JB rolled in at 8pm that night after our day started our day at 6am!
I had a number of goals for the camp but first and foremost my objective is to ensure everyone else is having a good time and have what they need. Our awesome support crew of Julie & Ian from Pyrenees Multisport along with Oli Jenner & Tim Piggott made my life so much easier.
I tried to list what I would have changed on this camp and couldn’t come up with too much. The only change I would have made would be:
making it 100% mandatory to have a garmin 800/810 for the best possible mapping & guidance
more strongly encouraging smaller gearing. I spent a huge amount of time in my 34:28!
As far as my athletic endeavors/goals. I came home super strong in the final 4-5 days as did other athletes I coach. For me I think part of this was delayed acclimatization to the heat and altitude along with my GI tract giving me some issues. The Tri we did on day 8, the climbs of Colombiere and Ramaz along with the 10km on day 10 felt awesome which is hard to believe given what we had been through prior. The satisfaction I got from those days, along with my birthday epic, far outweighed where I finished on the points table.
This camp was the first without Scott (last camp was Canada 2014) or Gordo (last camp length of NZ) so it is down to me to ensure standards and traditions are upheld. By and large I think I did a pretty good job leading by examples. Epic Camp is so much more than just going and riding your bike. Whilst I didn’t leave with the yellow jersey I did leave with my dignity. My birthday training extravaganza was a real highlight that there is still life in my body. If I can stay in shape and make it to Roth next year I’d like to think that my time might start with an 8.
A bit of summary of the camp crew for France 2016
Phil Paterson – for a former top junior cycling fanatic is was awesome to get Phil to Europe and experience the many Cols he has seen so many times over on TV. Much like the other athletes from Christchurch Phil came home strong towards the end of the camp. He also wins the most daring attack when he tried to go on a solo breakaway less than 1km into one of the hardest days over the Izoard and Lautaret. As a second reward Phil cracked the 100km/hr barrier on a descent which is no mean feat.
Glenn Olsen – big Glenn was a sleeping giant on this camp. In Canada we saw his brut force on the flat lands but there was next to no flat on this camp. I was impressed that Glenn kept plugging away day after day over the big climbs.
Adam Krzesinski – Adam showed us the way up many of the climbs in the first half of the camp and won the final day tri fair and square.
John Ballard – awarded by Molina as the best blogger on the camp JB looked exactly like he did in France. Those that did not know him thought he would blow up at any stage but those that were in Canada knew that looks can be deceiving. There was one day JB exploded but that seemed to be the catalyst to come home incredibly strongly in the final days with brilliant climbing and racing performances.
Lou DiGuiseppe – Lou is the heart and soul of epic camp and adds so much value to everyone’s camp without realizing it. Every day Lou would ensure he upheld his epic standards including the 100x100 on 1:45. Now into his 50’s I hope we see Lou back again.
Julian Stockwell – after sharing a room pre camp with Jules I felt somewhat responsible for him getting sick after my snoring probably kept him awake pre camp. Much like Phil, Jules lives and breaths TDF so if you wanted a question answer on TDF he would know it. He also gave out a few good lessons on how to descend properly.
Iain Wood – the sandbagger extraordinaire was humbled with some sickness but showed his metal at Alpe D’Huez with 4th place on the hill climb and I think 4th on the run too. I think we would have seen a bit more on the climbs had we had a 100% healthy Iain on board.
Peter Mills – this 50 year old kicked my butt on a couple of climbs which was impressive to see. Sometimes I wish we had some time on these camps to check out technique because if I could do something to help Peters swim he would be a complete weapon. It was great to see Peter pushing just the right amount for the red jersey (50+) without compromising his upcoming IM.
Murray Lapworth – the holy hammer put his hammer to the other red jersey contenders. As we sat up at Alpe D’Huez pounding down burgers and pizza Murray ran up and down the street past the café clocking up a 2hr run. Not the smartest move the day before our toughest ride of the camp but he was doing exactly what I said. Just take each day one at a time and discregard what is coming up. Murray was a worthy winner of the red jersey.
Chrissie Mckinlay – starting epic camp with a cold is not good but Chrissie battled her way through and someone managed to rid herself of the sickness. It was impressive to see her running so hard at the events in the battle of the girls grupetto.
Zarnia Morrison – a new nickname was found for Zarnia on this camp l'escargot francais de la Montagne for her uncanny descending. I was gutted when Zarnia got sick and was unable to complete the final day triathlon as she had battled so bravely all camp.
Di Kaltenegger – super mom was our oldest ever epic camper but she certainly didn’t look it! Di got the Bellwether bike jersey award on day one for coming out of the freezing Mediterranean waters with a smile on her face having loved the rough start to the camp. She followed that up day after day and never showed any signs of weariness despite getting the lurgie off the other girls.
Stefan Dooney – not being able to swim due to a shoulder operation meant camp completion was off the table from day one which must have been hard to take. I enjoyed hearing how Stefan, as a financial advisor, sees the value in life experiences like epic camp and puts that into his wisdom to clients. Epic camp is more than just going training, it’s about seeing some amazing parts of the world, competing and enjoying the company of likeminded nut jobs.
Shannon Proffit – I can’t say enough about how much of a legend Shannon is going uphill (as well as dragging my sorry butt through a few swims). When I started to feel really good on the climbs towards the end of the camp she still showed me up a few times. I loved that she is now the Queen of the Mountains on Strava on the 1st category climb of Col de la Colombiere (by ~2.5mins).
Andrew Charles – Charlsey is not in the same sort of shape he was in the good old days but his regaling of past camps and stories should be worth bonus points. It was great to see Chaelsey find his mojo in the closing days of the camp with tacks on’s galore and a strong showing in the final day tri.
Michael Turner – injuries suck and poor Titch was battling with a calf strain all the way through camp. In fine epic spirit when he couldn’t be patched up by our support crew titch would get out power walking so as to not miss any of the action.
Jen Macrow – joining her husband Titch on this camp Jen did not know quite what she was getting herself in for. Jen showed some impressive strength on the bike on many occasions and I look forward to seeing her guts when she looses her ironman virginity.
Rob Mohr – with the imtalk nickname of Rob “give me” Mohr, Rob certainly gave it more whenever a race presented itself. He drilled the runs and looked as fast as anyone I’ve ever seen running on Epic Camp – impressive!
Walter McCormack – for a big guy Walters’ climbing ability was bloody impressive. Had this camp included more flat riding I fear that Walter would have ripped us to shreds. It was a real shame that his fall at ADH meant he could not complete all the sessions. I look forward to seeing Walter tear it up in Kona.
Ben Moore – Ben had perhaps one of the most disciplined camps I’ve ever seen. He had his plan from the outset and stuck to it. That’s perhaps why he was one of the most accomplished athletes on the camp when it comes to race performances, he just gets the job done.
So where to for Epic Camp from here? I plan/hope to put on an Epic Camp every 2nd year with other camps thrown in the mix
2017 – Kona Epic Camp Lite (incorporating Kona 70.3). This is still a challenging camp but is open for athletes of all abilities up to ~14hrs IM. There is usually a mix of athletes and we have a great time touring the Big Island.
2017 – Camp Kia Kaha with imtalk incorporating Challenge Roth. This is going to be a bit of a tour plus smashing the race
2018 – my provisional plan is a Pyrenees Traverse.
2020 – I’m open to suggestions but I’ve love to head back to Italy.
DAY 11 – THE FINAL DAY TRI
THURSDAY, JULY 7, 2016 AT 09:44AM
My legs were unsurprisingly a little tender today.
To conclude the camp we were doing a mountain triathlon.
Swim - ~1.3km
Bike 28km with the Col du Joux Vert up to Avoriaz
Run – 3 laps of the lake ~9km
It was going to be a bit unknown how my body would react today. That was the challenge I wanted.
Swim – pretty uneventful and I was grateful for Shannon going better than me so I had some feet to follow.
Bike – it was straight into a 10km climb. Whilst I was not on fire the further we got into the climb I seemed to get better and my power was pretty descent. I got to the top in first with a reasonable gap but could see Adam was closing in. I rate myself as a reasonable descender but not suicidal. Adam must have flown down as he caught me. Today it was good to see those decenders getting rewarded for their skills.
Run – I was about 50m doing going into the run and held that through the first lap then eased off an enjoyed the remaining 6km.
I was totally done at the finish. Now it is time to pack, relax and enjoy my last day in France. The venue for today’s race was awesome with a great climb and beautiful swim/run.
Tri results
Adam – showing that being fast downhill does count.
Me - beaten fair and square today.
Rob – who looked on fire again during the run
Phil – on the comeback after a day of vomiting & diarrhea. Plus he banged out a sub 40min 10km before the race
Peter – first over 50 year old.
Shannon – 1st female on a course with downhill that does not suit her style
Iain Wood – still battling sickness but coming home strong
John B – hanging tough as he does every day
Ben Moore – has been steady& disciplined all camp but looked to be opening the legs on the run today
Glenn Olsen – the biggest man on the camp. He is a trooper by getting his big carcass over all the mountains.
Walter – not helped by the downhill today which is not his forte. Walter has battled so well since his fall.
Murray the holy hammer Lapworth – showed out support crew more than they were expecting in transition…. “when in France”
Andrew Charles – the sleeping giant who has found some fitness late in the camp and was tacking on early this morning.
Julian Stockwell – I think probably wet himself on the descent. He is fanatical about his descending and he is good at it!
Dianne Kaltenegger – what a trooper who has been sick for a few days. She is a star
Lou – the legend has completed another epic camp. He epitomizes what epic camp is all about by banging out the volume every day for camp completion
Chrissie – rounded us out and looked super fast on the run.
Sadly some sickness & injury took out some. Tich who has battled bravely so couldn't run, Zarnia who can't talk but still ran and will be majorly pissed that sickness has robbed her of camp completion. Finally Stefan (can't swim due to shoulder surgery) & Jen (has been sick as a dog) who both did the bike/run
So that is a wrap for the camp.
I’m going to say that this has been the most enjoyable camp in the history of Epic. Stunning scenery, amazing weather, awesome accommodation & food plus a great bunch of athletes. It’s hard to compare the hardness of camps but the opening few days of this camp were easily as hard as any other camp.
It’s a bloody long journey home so I might well write some other thoughts. Right now I’m struggling to keep my eyes open and it’s only 3:30pm.
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DAY 10 – THE BIG ONE
THURSDAY, JULY 7, 2016 AT 09:43AM
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I turn 40 today and wanted to celebrate by setting myself a personal challenge to more or less go all day long to see if I could find my breaking point. I decided to go solo all day long with the exception of the first 20x100.
Here is the run down
6:50am – kick off with a 10km run that needed to be sub 38mins for bonus points. I thought this was going to be a huge challenge but it felt really comfortable banging it out in 36:51
Straight home for a fast breakfast before a 30km spin to loosen off the legs. That felt lousy but I needed to be done for a 9:40am departure to the pool.
Birthday swim set – 100x100 on 1:45 (long course outdoor pool) with every 20th being recovery (backstroke / breaststroke). Obviously this swim was going to take a long, long time – approximately 3hrs. It was a bit like an ironman with the end being so far away all you could do was focus on the set of 20 you were working through. The set went surprisingly well not dragging on to much. I stayed in the moment and just banged out rep after rep.
Hats off to the others who made the 100x100. I’ve got a swim background so I knew I could do it. For most of those guys this was double the distance they had ever swum combined with the fact it was day 10 of epic camp.
As soon as I was out of the swim it was straight into a pretty non descript 2hr run where I was more concerned about staying out of the sun than cracking any particular pace.
Finally I wanted to bang out 90km on the bike but I only had 3hr30 to get it done and the terrain is not flat around here. I headed down towards Thones which was supposed to be a nice town but when I started hitting traffic lights I knew I needed to turn in order to keep my average speed high enough. The final 1hr of this ride was rough and a sure fire way for me to recognize this was getting emotional thinking about my awesome family back home.
Its fair to say I was pretty spent at the end of the day but well pleased with my efforts.
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DAY 9 – LAST BIG RIDE
THURSDAY, JULY 7, 2016 AT 09:34AM
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With just 3 days left on camp today was the last big ride day with our route shadowing one of the key alpine stages of this years tour. Sadly we had to cut out the Joux Plan as they are doing road works – all of the roads getting upgraded when the tour comes to town but due to strikes they are 1mth behind!
We had just a 6km downhill roll out before hitting the Col du la Colombiere. At 11.6km with an average grade of 6% this was one of the “easier” big cols. I went straight to the front and settled into what was a good strong pace. The power numbers I was seeing were as good as back home when I’m fresh and on much shorter climbs. One by one everyone dropped off until the final km when I thought I had disposed of Shannon who had stuck to my wheel all the way up. Then in the final ~200m I heard her coming on with a sprint finish. Whilst I did not have much left in the tank I did pick up the pace but did not have the desire to go into a full on sprint. Well done to Shannon as looking at Strava I averaged 288w to place 47th overall so we rode well. She will take the Queen of the Mountain by over 3mins which is bloody impressive for a 1st category major climb like that.
On the descent we had to deal with some road works and freshly sealed tar. Whilst it sucked and compared to the road surfaces we’ve had all camp it was the worst. However compared to back home it really wasn’t that big a deal. Adam’s bad luck continued as he got a stone caught in his derailer that broke the hanger and it was ride over.
Next up was the Ramaz. I had not inspected to profile so was not sure what was in store . My plan was to just take it km by km with the great road signs that tell you what lies ahead for the next km. Again, I went straight to the front and set the tempo which was not as strong as our first climb but we were not as fresh. In total, the climb was 14km long with 968m elevation @ 7%. By halfway it was just John B and Shannon on my wheel but that was about where JB dropped off. The further we got into the climb my power started coming up but it still didn’t seem to be enough to drop Shannon. Then with maybe about 5km to go I stopped hearing the gear changes behind me and when we entered a bloody long steep tunnel (must have been easily 10%) I heard nothing but silence. When I flicked up a gear there was a huge echo so I knew that she must have dropped well behind. Out of the tunnel the grade eased off and it would have been easy to drop off and roll to the top. I did an OK job of keeping it together reaching the summit in 120th on strava in 54:08.
The rest of the ride to Morzine was pretty rough knowing we just had to grind it out, my legs were done. Murray, Phil and myself tacked on 19km to get up to 120km.
To finish off the day we were required to do a 10km run up and around Lac Montriod with a 3km swim. What a great place to train, a touch fresh in the swim but good for recovery.
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DAY 8 - TRIATHLON DAY.
MONDAY, JULY 4, 2016 AT 04:04PM
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DAY 8 - Triathlon Day.
We’ve had a broken triathlon up ADH but today was the first of two proper tri’s
Bike 31km easy to Lake Annecy
Tri – Swim 1km (eyeballed to near perfection) / Bike 31km back to the chalet (31km with 800m elevation) / Run 6-7km.
Like yesterday my legs and body were feeling fresh as anything today. It’s hard to believe that I’ve done 50hrs training in one week and I feel better than ever on day 8! Not that I’m competitive or anything but I wanted to smash today’s race to smitherines.
I opened up well in the swim to have a bit of gap to Shannon but I nervously did some backstroke to ensure I was on course after my recent discretions. It was bloody hard to see the buoys as a sailing school decided to set up mid way through out swim blocking our sight of the buoys. As we came past there I though they were yelling at us but apparently it was a bunch of kids and they were cheering us on.
Onto the bike and I was on fire. The power was coming so easy and the pace was fast. With the road surfaces being so smooth over here you just motor along. I really didn’t feel like I was moving out of 4th gear but my power was close to Olympic effort with plenty of wattage in the 280-300w range. I felt sure than I would have a handy lead off the bike and I’d run more than 1km before Adam and John B (who was on fire) came past in the opposite direction. The Philinator, Rob Mohr and Peter Mills came next in quick succession.
With a lead of what I figured was 7-8mins I eased off and just ran a nice gentle tempo to take line honours. The others had been held up at lights a bit which worked in my favour slightly.
Me
Adam
Rob Mohr – who drilled the run to nab 3rd
John Ballard – nice work
Philinator – coming home strong
I felt invincible today, if only those days come exactly on time at our peak races rather than 8 days into Epic Camp.
I decided to let the yellow jersey slip today. I figured Adam would tack on which is all within the rules of the game. I certainly had the energy to do more but I really want to nail tomorrows ride and the final race. It’s been disappointing that I have not ridden the famous climbs as well as I would have liked and tomorrow is the last chance. I would rather crush two climbs and the race than take home the yellow jersey, who knows when I will get another chance to ride in France.
The red jersey is heating up with Peter Mills running 3hrs this arvo to put the heat on Murray, especially given Peter will pick up a couple more KOM points at the end of camp. Both Peter and Adam have IM races coming up post camp so it's descision time for them on what they really want.
So instead of tacking on we wandered into town for ice cream and beer before another magnificent dinner with Piet & Eva at Chalet 4 (this place is AWESOME)
Tomorrow we are off to Morzine
DAY 7 - TRIPLE COLS
MONDAY, JULY 4, 2016 AT 12:17AM
DAY 7
From here on in we have a big day followed by a shorter, harder day
Bike 122km with 3k climbing incl Cormet du Roseland, La Saises & Col D’Aravis
Swim 1hr
Run 10km incl 7x1km @ 3:50/km with 1min Rest interval.
As per yesterday I felt much better, perhaps the best of the camp as we set off today. I was determined today to be more competitive in the KOM’s as we had 3 big climbs.
After a 20km descent we were into the first climb the Cormet du Roseland which was 20km long. From the outset my legs felt so much better than every other day of the camp. I was able to climb with the same sort of power I showed back home. Adam took off from the outset but myself, JB and Walter were keeping him in check and as we were able to bridge over he punctured. I pushed on for a short period but decided it would not be right to take the KOM when the leader of the comp had punctured. It wasn’t going to effect the overall KOM as Adam has won every climb thus far but it would not have felt right. I was frustrated as I felt so good. There was certainly no team orders for others to stop and the others had every right to push on. When Adam caught back up I only held him for a short period but still managed to claw back most of the others by the summit.
For many of us this first climb today was the most stunning and enjoyable of the camp. The grade was nice, we had some shelter from the forest on the lower slopes then at the top the outlook over the snow covered mountains was just incredible.
Our 2nd climb up to Les Saises ski resort was not a KOM so we all dialed it right back and enjoyed an easier intensity on some lighter grades. Some more food at the top and it was all on for the final climb of the day the Col D’Aravis.
I had not looked at the profile of the Aravis climb so was going to take it km by km but I could tell from the map it was shorter than the others so far today and did not get as high. Immediately as we kicked off the pace was strong and power was up but my legs felt strong. Adam broke away earlier and I initially climbed on Walters wheel with Peter Mills on mine. Then after a few km we had some respite with a gentle and technical downhill section. It was time to attack and put my good feeling to some use. I bridged over to Adam but kept several bike lengths as the grade went up again, regrouped then pushed past and kept going. I kept my power in check and always felt I had another gear to go to if required.
It was good to finally find my climbing legs and rough things up a bit. My average power for the climb was 278w despite some downhill sectons - that's much higher than anything else I've acheived on the camp to date. Adam was 2nd up, Peter rode well for 3rd, Walter 4th and it was good to see Phil climbing better too in 5th. I don't think anyone was too displeased that the mapping software I used overestimated the total climbing meters today but we still got 3000m of gain!
Our accommodation is just down the road from Le Grand Bornard at Chalet 4. The chalet is owned and run by Piet and wife who know exactly what we need as Piet did Epic Camp 2009 in NZ. They have done a incredible renovation on the place with an endless pool, gym and beautiful interior. It’s well suited for families for winter or summer breaks.
Today’s swim for me was a 1 point bonus for doing the continuous IM set for 3km (12x 100 IM / 150 free). It was done at an easy intensity but I made a complete meal of counting as I still had my watch set to 50m and we were in a 25m.
Finally I knew Adam wanted to do the 7x1km @ sub 3:50/km pace run main set for points so I joined him for that to ensure I stayed ahead in yellow. We did the reps out and back on the flattest section of road we could find but each interval was basically 500m gently downhill then 500 up. After working hard to find our rhythm from a very short warm up during the first 1-2 reps we soon realized that opening up the legs in the first 500m and being well ahead of pace was the best strategy then slowing as we went up the incline. The set ended up being pretty straight forward – hot and hard but not too taxing.
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DAY6 - REGROUP DAY
SUNDAY, JULY 3, 2016 AT 11:38PM
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DAY 6
Today was a bit of a regroup day to give the body a break. There are several broken, sick, saddle sore infested athletes who will benefit from a chilled day to ensure we all enjoy the following 4 days of camp. That being said I still did 4.5hrs of training!
Run / Hike – 2hrs
Bike to the pool 15-20kms each way
Swim – 50m outdoor pool. 1000 bands only, 10x200 on 3:00, 200 fly
On my goodness did I feel better after today’s run. The pressure valve in my guts was release after 5 BIG toilet stops before, during and after todays run. As gross as that sounds it was a huge relief and I felt sooo much better.
Our running today kept with the theme of the camp and was breathtaking. It was more of a run/walk/hike up the ski slopes, through some villages then back down again. It was very easy going. Some did 1hr, myself, Phil, Adam, John B and Murray clocked in 2hrs.
It was great to see a 50m pool all to ourselves at Bourg Saint Maurice. I was looking for maximum points in the 1hr time slot we had so went straight into a 1km continuous bands only. Next up was 10x200 on 3:00 which in our fatigued state was a really hard effort (that set was giving me 2 bonus points). There were a few touch turns but I made it, just, with Shannon keeping me company. Finally I had a 200m continuous butterfly (remembering this is a 50m outdoor pool). That was by far the deepest I’ve had to dig on this camp thus far. I was blown by about the 40m mark and it took every ounce of effort to make it to 200m.
That swim set was enough to get me back into yellow.
Our afternoon was the first downtime I’ve had all camp. I got my first massage, watched a little Tour de France (falling asleep on the couch), did a few interviews for imtalk and generally regrouped. It felt good for my brain and body to slow down for just a short period!
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DAY 5 - THE QUEEN MOUNTAIN STAGE
SUNDAY, JULY 3, 2016 AT 11:23PM
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DAY 5
Run – 10km easy
Bike – 167km Le Grave to Sainte Foy Tarentaise incl Col du Galibiere & Col D’Iseran (highest pass in Europe) incl 4000m elevation.
Today is what epic camp is all about. Going very very deep when carrying fatigue. It’s like being in the back half of an Ironman run where you have to make choices to push on (or give up). You can't really simulate than in training but you can on Epic Camp.
I, like everyone I think/hope, was more than aware that today was going to be insanely hard. Whilst we had a KOM late in the ride I went into “conserve and preserve” mode from the get go. My plan was just to sit at a nice comfortable 180-200w on the flat and keeping it 200-220w on the climbs where possible.
Out the door we had 10km climbing up the Lautaret which is not that steep then carrying on to the Galibiere which was another 7-8km @ 7-10% with a strong kick at the finish. Obviously whilst we climb a huge amount that we all go on about we also have to descend. There are some on this camp that need some serious brushing up on then descending but others like myself, Phil, Adam, Julian Stockwell etc that enjoy nothing more than ripping it down the mountains touching the brakes as little as possible. When we were not held up by traffic today we had some classic high speed descending – awesome. Nobody seems to be taking any life threating risks but Phil did crack the 100km/hr barrier coming down Ventoux the other day.
After the drop down the Col Du Telegraph we were going to spend most of the rest of the day climbing up to the peak of the camp the Col D’Iseran - the highest pass in Europe. I decided to change my nutrition today taking just water for the first few hours then adding in some nuts, 90% dark chocolate, some fruit and one em’s bar. That was pretty much it for the day and it worked much better than previous days.
It was another hot one today with my garmin getting up to 35c (believe it if you will). I knew that I needed to keep my effort in check. So if I was not at the front I had no hesitation in letter others push on if it took me out of my comfort zone. It was all about survival.
For some reason I had in my head that the Iseran was just a gradual climb. Oh how wrong I was. Certainly the 40km approach is up and down but once onto the final 20km it was relentless with km after km of 8-9%. It was so cool as we rode into the snowline by which time I was solo and happy enough just tapping out all I had in the tank. The 2nd to last km kicked to 10% and as caught and passed Julian, who had left earlier, he suggested I look out for the marmotte (small beaver like anaimals) off to the right. I didn’t even reply as the only thing I could focus on was the tunnel vision that was taking me to the top. The air was thin, the grade was steep and whilst I was loving where I was I had just one focus which was getting to the top.
To close out the day we had a long descent with a 5km climb up to Station du Sainte Foy Tarentaise. All done I had 7hrs47mins moving time on the clock. It was very very long and hot and I was totally done. Our accommodation c/o Preiere Neige was simply stunning. We have two big chalets with hot tubs, sauna’s, our own chef and some stunning views. I'm going to enjoy some downtime here tomorrow!
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DAY 4 LE TRIATHLON DU ALPE D’HUEZ
SATURDAY, JULY 2, 2016 AT 03:33PM
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Bike - ~30km to bottom of Alpe D’Huez, TT up
Swim 1.5km timed swim
Run – 10km run race
Add the times together for a broken triathlon competition
Bike home (down ADH then 30km up the Col du Lautaret.
Yesterday I helped Walter over the Col du Lautaret. He thanked me with a beer and a couple of wines last night but I felt mostly ready to go today and was looking forward to arriving at a key climb fresher given the downhill approach. The key thing that has been bugging me is my guts. I often don’t handle altitude well when doing long haul flights and on camps at altitude. I remember back to our Italy camp where one day I literally could not walk more than a few hundred meters without crushing pain in my guts. This time around the altitude, combined with the BIG increase of carbs and the hot weather has my guts not in their happy place but it’s still manageable.
Today was a broken triathlon with the winner would take home 6.3 points with each subsequent place dropping by .3 of a point. My plan on the bike was to ride by feel but hopefully sit ~270w and just do my thing. I remember from last time that the grade was a nice steady 6-9% and the hairpins give you some welcome breaks, it’s also nowhere near as long as the big brutes like Ventoux, Izoard etc.
Shortly after we kicked off we had our first rain of the camp which was heavy at times but quite welcome. I was happy tapping out my target power and feeling pretty comfortable……until about 3km to go and my guts went south. I would have loved to have a light saber and open my stomach up to release some tension like Han Solo did in “the Empire Strikes Back” with that big beast to put Luke Skywalker in to keep him warm. So I did fade over the final section but still seemed to be gaining on Shannon. Meanwhile Iain Wood had found his legs and unbeknown to me was bearing down along with John Ballard. All in all I had not dug too deep and felt OK about the ride. Best of all the weather had cleared up at the summit for our swim and run. My time for the climb was 58mins which ranked me 4122 on strava (better than my 6500 on Mont Ventoux)
I’m trying to find some good words to describe the pool at ADH. It’s a funny set up with 2 lanes on each side @ 25m long with a bulkhead that goes out a few meters. It was nice set up but what was not nice was the service. It was like we were walking into a sterile laboratory with the staff upholding the law with great vigor. No shoes or socks on pool deck – fair enough. No short (togs) allowed in the pool – it was strictly speedo’s only. Guys that were wearing tri shorts had to roll them up to trick the staff. I wanted to put my bike shoes in the sun to dry – absolutely not. Then despite them being late letting us in they gave us a 7min warming to get off site when our scheduled time was done. Unbelievable!
We broke into 2 groups and for most it really was a case of just banging out the 1.5km. Many struggled with breathing at altitude but I seemed Ok with it. For me it was not a great swim at 22:28 (so just a tickle under 1:30’s), that was a fair reflection as I really did not put in a huge effort as well as the altitude effect slowing us down. Every length I was put off with Phil lying side on his side looking over the pool with his big hairy chest out so I blame Phil for my poor time.
Next stop was the 10km run which was 2 laps covering much of the ADH triathlon course. Off the line I knew I was in trouble hardly being able to breath with the altitude and my guts churning. Thankfully after a couple of km’s I was able to settle things down and just ground out the 10km. The legs certainly were not hurting but the lungs were not capable of any more. Rob Mohr ran a good strong effort to take out the 10km with a negative split.
Overall Adam K took out line honours with relative ease from myself. There were some other good battles with the swim often being the decider
Adam K
Me
Shannon
Rob Mohr
Iain Wood
To finish out time at ADH we sat at an outside café with burgers and pizza before rolling down the hill and back up Le Grave with a 30km climb. All except the Holy Hammer Murray Lapworth who extended his run to 2hrs while we ate.
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DAY 3 - EMBRUN TO LE GRAVE
THURSDAY, JUNE 30, 2016 AT 12:43AM
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Finally some time to breath and we did not need to extend the time cut today.
Run – 2.5km warm up
Aquathon race – swim ~1.5km / run ~5km
Bike – Embrun to Le Grave 112km (plus 8km tack on) incl Col D’Izoard + Col Du Lauteret.
Racing is always a fun part of Epic Camp and no mater how tired athletes are they always can lift for races. That is where the real mental strength comes from these camps.
Poor Adam K still does not have his bike (he’s be using a loaner) or his wetsuit and given he is fighting for yellow I wanted it to be a fair fight. Especially as he had already lost out on points from the swim race on day 1. So I decided to go non wetsuit for the swim. There was no issue with the temperature of the water but obviously without a wetsuit you are around 10sec/100m slower. Thankfully Lou was bang on the pace I could hold and I stuck to his feet like glue until he decided to go awol and turn at the wrong marker point (a jetty). He chased me down though and passed me so I got back on for the tow. Then it was decision time, Lou was going awol again. The sun was right in our eyes but I could still just see where we were supposed to be heading and it was not the way he was going. I decided to go solo without the draft and swim the best line. We came out together but had a massive deficit to Shannon. The run was 2 laps of the lake on a nice shingle track. I backed myself to catch Shannon no problems but she was not even in sight. After finding my feet in the first 1km I though I was running well and was working hard but the 2nd km I didn’t even crack 4min/km pace. As I passed the finish for the 2nd lap I think I was still 50sec down so I really upped the effort and started running ~3:50/km and I finally caught sight of Shannon but it was still a big gap. In the final km I put in a big effort and probably caught her with just a few hundred metres to go. I reeled off the last near 1km at 3:35/km pace. Far far harder than I had anticipated running. Shannon was 2nd and Adam 3rd. It sounded like Peter Mills has a blistering run average 3:45/km which is impressive.
Our ride today was shorter but more or less climbing all day long. The Philinator Phil Paterson made a suicidal move at the first roundabout of the day to attack on what was a 40km approach to the bottom of the Izoard. It was his only chance to get a KOM but he paid for his efforts on the main section of the climb.
There was some dubious behavior before and at the base of the Izoard which meant I was starting the climb well behind all the contenders. So I had two choices, get angry and chase them down or settle in and enjoy the climb. I chose the later and really had a nice time on what is a brilliant climb with lots of changing scenery, cool villages and a spectacular summit. I wasn’t really focusing on power at all but it ended up being similar to Mont Ventoux but how I got that power meant I was pretty fresh at the top – at least as Fresh as you can be after a 14km climb to ~2300m. It was another stunning day on the weather front. Probably mid to high 20’s and hardly a cloud in the sky.
The decent was just awesome. Nice wide smooth roads and not much traffic. I had a blast and caught up to one of our granny descenders Walter McCormack. He is one of several athletes on this camp who almost go uphill as fast as they go down. He’s a big strong guy though and has been 2nd on both KOM’s so far. We teamed up for the climb of the Lauteret which was a good 30km long.
For almost the first time of the camp we had some tail winds which was nice. So whilst the gradient was low we were tapping out a nice pace for not much effort. However once we got to the final 10km the wind turned slightly and the grades increased to mostly 5-6%. I was happy on the front just sticking to a comfortable effort but I can’t say I was suffering in silence. Every few minutes Walter would let out a groan of the slow torture he was going through. When I asked if we could stop so he could take a picture of me with the amazing snow capped mountains in the background he looked at me like I was some sort of nut job. He said if he stopped he seriously didn’t think he could get moving again. Finally we rolled over the top and our legendary support crew of Oli & Tim were waiting with refreshments and a nice piece of quiche. All that was left was a 10km decent to Le Grave where I blitzed past an entire tour group of ~30 who were clearly not allowed to pass their tour leader. It’s obviously different rules to epic camp.
Our accommodation at Auberge Edelweiss has the most amazing outlook over a glacier & rock face. We’ve just finished one of the best 3 course meals I’ve had in a long time.
Tomorrow is a broken tri up Alpe D’Huez. I’m looking forward to it.
The Bellwether performance of the day goes to Julian Stockwell after a bout of GI issues was back on his bike doing today’s ride solo and unsupported.
I’m still in yellow with the Holy Hammer Murray Lapworth in red for the over 50’s
Our internet over here has been very patchy to put it mildly but I have finally got some files up on Strava.
DAY 2 - EPIC CAMP FRANCE - VAISON LA ROMAINE TO EMBRUN
THURSDAY, JUNE 30, 2016 AT 12:30AM
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For the second day in a row I’ve had to extend the 12hr training window. It was another big one!
Run – 35mins easy group run
Bike – 170km Vaison La Romaine to Embrun + 40km tack on = 210km (bike file is up on Strava)
Swim – 3km very easy open water.
As they say in the tour de France today was a transition day between one big mountain climb across to the Alpes for the rest of the camp. Mt Ventoux, which we rode yesterday, is a bit of an anomaly being all by itself in the middle of Provence.
We opened the day with a very gentle 35min tourist run around Vaison La Romaine before back to our hotel in the medieval village part of the town (The hotel was La Fete en Provence – I’d recommend it).
After starting day one mostly as one large group the athletes had quickly identified their riding partners and a number of grupetto’s shot out the door early. Today’s profile looked up and down for the most part with a descent climb at the end however when you looked at total elevation of over 2600m within 170km it was a big day.
We rolled out with my garmin course taking us through the centre of the town which normally would be fine but today was market day and the stalls were all setting up as we came through. We were on and off our bikes, walking, riding on foot paths but we got through OK. If you ever want to ride in France you must get a garmin edge 810 where you can plot your courses on websites like ridewithgps.com then import to your garmin (remember to turn off rerouting and turn on turn guideance). It’s near on impossible to get lost but you need to check your routing does not take you off on any side roads!
After yesterdays epic climb where most athletes struggled like hell it seemed the feeling was today was going to be an easy day in terms of intensity. Whilst I didn’t really want a hard day I did not want a super easy bunch ride so I got on the front and rode ~ IM effort for 1hr to set the mood for the day. I wasn’t really sure what to expect on the scenary front today except I knew there was some sting in the tail as we got to Emrbun where we had been once before on camp. Again we were blown away by the roads going along side rivers, through gorges and over low gradient climbs. It was another stunning day.
With 30km to the hotel we turned off the main road and started a tough climb then traverse along the side of a mountain that overlooked a massive lake. I suggested we all hit the cruise button and take in a beautiful section of riding which is part of the iconic Embrunman triathlon. There were no complaints and with hardly a car in sight we enjoyed the vista’s on a country road.
By virtue of being in the yellow jersey I’m somewhat obligated to defend and make the challengers have to work to get it off me. Adam is obsessed with getting yellow and decided that given we had made good time today he would tack on bike miles. You accrue a point for every 30km and if you go above 200km you get 2 bonus points. We had 170km on the clock so the thinking was that today might be the only chance to get in 200km and if you are going to 200km you might as well go to 210km given the extra 10km will gain another point. I was a reluctant starter for the tack on as I’m here to enjoy the camp and whilst I do want the yellow jersey we are only at day 2. It was not a particularly enjoyable 40km with myself Phil and Rob Mohr taking 5min turns to get the job done. We were certainly in worse shape for the extra 40km and had to turn around straight away and head to the lake.
We closed out the day with a 3km lake swim which was quite possibly the slowest swim of my life but nice recovery all the same.
It was another big day but I’m feeling OK. With all the climbing in and out of the seat and the smooth roads your butt does not get as beat up over here. Day 3 tomorrow see’s us hit the Alpes with the Col D’Izoard which I’m really looking forward to.
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DAY 1
TUESDAY, JUNE 28, 2016 AT 03:56PM
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We didn’t have internet access yesterday so here is the day 1 report. No files yet either. I’ll add these as soon as I can.
Swim 3km sea swim incl 2km race
Bike near Aix en Provence to Vaison la Romaine ~170km with 3300m climbing incl Mont Ventoux.
Run 10km cruisey run at Vaison la Romaine.
Holy crap that was a big day at the office. As Lou DiGuissepe, who has been on multiple camps, said “that was the hardest opening day ever”.
This morning we met at 5:30am in the lobby for a 30min drive to a beach for a 2km race then tack on until you reach 3km or 50mins (whichever comes first). After swimming at the beach on Friday for 1.2km sans wetsuit in calm conditions I’d told the troops it would be pretty straight forward. However the water has dipped by at least 2c (was probably ~16c) with some really sold chop. We had buoys conveniently to give us a 1.2km lap however due to the chop I couldn’t see a bloody thing. So much so that on the first lap I went to the wrong buoy at which time Shannon got the jump on me after sitting on my feet. About 700m later I caught back up and it was a drag race to shore. I got about a body length but then made another navigational howler and had to chase again. The final 100m was side to side stuff and without a clearly defined finish I stupidly stopped at the beginning of the stones but Shannon pushed out of the water to take the win. Adam K, who’s gear has not arrived, braved the waters for a brief time but is was not to be and hyperthermia would have ensued. John Ballard looked like he did have hypothermia with his sleeveless that I had incidentally said should be fine. Finally it turns out those buoys were markers for some fishermen who turned up towards the end of the swim with tail ender Zarnia Morrison taking an earful for being in their space.
Everyone was nervously excited about today’s ride which included Mont Ventoux. The course profile showed the huge lump that is Ventoux but did not really give credit to the 112km approach which included continuous up and down including the Col du Mars @ 600-700m .
I opened up the ride at a tempo that was too hard for me and probably too hard for many in the group. But it is epic camp after all not easy camp. With today being navigationally a difficult stage I had my garmin permanently on maps so was riding by feel but when I did look I was seeing Half IM power. That would come back to bite me later in the day.
This riding in the approach to Bedoin which is the base town of Ventoux was spectacular. Loads of beautiful villages, some great climbs and smooth roads. Adam K, myself and Peter Mills (who is celebrating this camp as his 50th birthday present to himself) were doing the lions share of the work - as we should have being the stronger riders.
It was bloody hot (at least for us kiwi’s) and we were battling strong head winds most of the day. I was actually a little concerned that Ventoux might be closed. In retrospect most of us did not drink enough as the wind was drying us off all the time. When we rolled into Bedoin I was feeling pretty spent but still optimistic of a strong climb. My plan was to start conservatively on the easier grades at the bottom, steady through the forest to the 13km mark (of 21km) and then ideally bring it home well in the final 6-7km above the tree line. Based off my training I was thinking that if I started ~260w and built to 270w that would “easily” be doable – that’s around Half IM effort.
The opening km’s are low grades before you hit the forest. The total climb is around 21km at an average grade of just under 10%. Given the opening ~5km is much less than 10% we had very long periods of 10%+. Everything was going to plan on the power front but my HR was too high due to the heat. I passed Adam K to hit the lead midway through the relenting grade of the first. My god it was tough, there was no respite to recover, it was 9-12%+ all the way. Towards the top of the forest the wheels started falling off. I was praying Ian or Julie our support crew would be there and they were. I wanted to stay off coke but I knew if I did not get sugar fast I was not going to make it. So I stopped and Adam came past. The rest of the climb was torture. From sitting at 270w earlier I was struggling to hold 200w, it was pure survival. My guts were a mess, my legs were full of lactic acid, I had impending cramps and was beginning to weave over the road. Walter passed me with a km to go and I did not have the fight to go with him.
When I made the summit I was a total wreck and had to sit down for a long time. I had overheated and my stomach had shut down. I was in a dark hole and had been taught a good lesson on how to deal with a long, hard hot day. I think my time was around 1hr40 with the best time on Strava being 1hr flat I think. Had I rode a strong ride I think sub 1hr30 is doable. As usual with mountains I have a new respect for the Tour riders who “race” up there.
I was so smoked I did not enjoy the descent as much as I should. I was almost falling asleep on the bike at times. It was incredibly fast but great smooth roads.
On arrival Adam and I did a bit of a Zombie 10km run around town. We were sitting ~4:45/km when not sight seeing and we finished the run by checking out the medieval castle about out spectacular hotel. I have a bit of a rule of not running slower than 5min/km and will stick to that as long as I can.
It’s 10:30pm now and time for sleep. I’ve only been averaging 4-5hrs a night since leaving NZ 5 days ago but I don’t think tonight will be a problem getting some more.
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PROLOGUE EPIC CAMP FRANCE - ALPES 2.0
FRIDAY, JUNE 24, 2016 AT 01:31PM
With Scott steeping aside after our last camp in Canada 2014 it’s time for me to uphold the Epic traditions this time round…….. I can’t wait. As you will see as each day unfolds the camp route is BRUTAL, especially the opening few days where just finding time to write a blog is going to be a challenge.
Why France and why now?
There’s lots of reasons to come back to France but the seed for this camp was that I’m turning 40 in a few days and I wanted to be doing something I enjoy on the big day (not that I don’t enjoy being at home with the family though!). I also enjoy having projects to work towards to ensure I get my butt moving most days. Whilst Kona 2014 was a debacle of a race the journey getting there was rewarding. Much like that build up I have spent a good 6 months specifically preparing for this camp. There are no races hanging over me to hold back for so this is a real chance to see how hard/fast I can push up these mountains.
From an organizational and financial point of view France camps are not a “hard sell”. I mean who does not want to come over here and see those amazing mountains we see every year in the Tour.
One challenge for all of us on this camp is not getting too carried away with the numbers. On our past European camps we haven’t really had power or strava to match ourselves against like we do these days. It has just been the crew going head to head largely running on instinct. So whilst power meters might help us with pacing it does take out some of the fun.
Hopefully many of the other campers are going to blog for bonus points and share what it is like on the inside of the camp. We’ve got a great mix of ages and abilities on this camp with more females than ever. That, I think, will have a positive impact on keeping some of the boys in line.
The red jersey will be hotly contested amongst a number of keen and able 50+ year olds sadly without Molina leading the way. The yellow will be interesting with some new young blood and experienced campaigners locking horns.
Our route will unravel as each blog comes out. We start in Aix en Provence on Monday with a swim race in the Mediterranean before racing up Mont Ventoux. To try to even things out on the climb we’ll have a power to weight ratio race on the climb to give the big boys a chance. After checking out the swim location and riding the riding the first 20km of the day 1 route this morning we are in for a good opening.
What do I want out of this camp?
I’m really looking forward to “competing” on the climbs I don’t think I will be at the front but hopefully not too far back. Most other camps like Canada and Italy I have used the camps to gain fitness. This time the camp is my main target for the year and I want to test myself pretty much to the limit. I’m in “good” shape, not the same great shape I was before Kona but on the bike I’m not too far off. My swim is well under par and my run is always OK.
With the help of the awesome Ian & Julie from Pyrenees Multisport http://pyreneesmultisport.com I’m hopeful that I’ll have less to stress and think about each day.
It’s time to do and get my first glass of French wine for the camp. It was bloody hot today, garmin said 36c which might have been a stretch but I easily got through 2 bottles of water in 40km.
I’ll be reporting back once day one is done and dusted.