Haute Route Day 6: crush les noix

‎Today we raced bikes. 

After a week of uphill segments and off-the-clock descents, ‎today we finally raced 100km without stopping and regrouping at the top of every climb. Two big climbs followed by two proper descents, and some real pedaling time in the valley between.

They say there are no hard climbs, only hard paces. Fact, verified. Today we started with a 19km neutral downhill - straight into a 15km climb up la Chaussy at 8.5%. It's ridiculous and everyone goes full gas, so I cat at a conversational pace and wathed them go. It was hard to do, especially when the single-speeder passed me... but I could keep the group in sight just enough to know I would re-group with them at the top (first descent was nuetralized)

I suffered up Col du Madeline with a group of 6,  knowing the descent was live, followed by a long false-flat downhill through the ‎valley. Our group whittled down to 5 and we drilled it, with a very efficient pace line for 20km. 

A few others joined us after the feed zone at 109‎km. Instantly the paceline became less efficient, with complaints that we were "going a bit too fast". I knew the complainants, from their company up Croix de Fer yesterday, and significantly higher placing on GC.

It pissed me off a fair amount - here we are on our first actual "flat" section in the week, and we were traveling at low 30's on a false flat uphill. I was in my element, but I can't exactly sit on their ass up every climb and say "excuse me, your climbing a touch too quick for me, slow down"... screw that, this is bike racing.

So we hit the bottom of the Saisses (15km) and I attacked. The climbs were getting progressively less steep today and this on was 6.5% - I was in my big guy element.

I rolled over the top with a rather large gap, having caught a few on the way, grabbed a coke and two handfuls of potato chips (what's good for the mind is good for the body sometimes)‎, and set off down the 20km downhill to the finish - and 5 minutes on some our group at the line.

Felt awesome to finally "race". I think it's because I shaved a mustache this morning in homage to our french voyage. Beers, the whole speed goat team, and lots of happy stories are enforcing quality of life this afternoon!