Last year a friend and I spent a memorable week road cycling based out of Bourg St Maurice. This year, the plan was to return to see the Tour. Unfortunately, he wasn’t well, but the plan was adapted to catch up with some other friends who were already planning to be there in their camper. The following is the message about Friday’s adventure on Cormet de Roselend that I shared with my friend who couldn’t make the trip…

Hi Pal, I didn’t text you from France, as I figured you might not want to be reminded of what you were missing, however, I have to share this story, as I think you may appreciate it? On Friday, we woke up in La Grave after a poor nights sleep under canvas in thunderstorms. The plan was to roll down the valley to Bourg D’Oisans, and ride Alpe D’Huez, before lingering over coffee until my mates had packed up their campervan and finished their lazy cooked breakfast. I would then hop in and we would drive together over to Cormet de Roselend.

The plan was foiled by a landslide near La Grave which closed the western Lauteret. No choice but to cancel the ride plans and jump in the van the long way round. In a 1980s VW van with no A/C this was not pleasant. Trundle is the word as we limped up to the Col de Lauteret, down to Briancon, over to Montgenevre and eventually to Bardoncchia. Once there, I realised that with a little foresight I might have cycled over the Lauteret and the Col de L’Echelle straight to Bardonecchia quicker than the route Google maps took us in the van!

We stopped in Italy for snacks and to watch the Iseran stage, where I sympathised with those suffering up from Bonneval, as we did last year… Then we got back in the van and drove through the Frejus tunnel and down the Maurienne valley to Albertville. At which stage I realised I could have ridden over the Galibier and met them in St Michel de Maurienne!

We got to Albertville just after the stage-wrecking storm had blown up the Tarentaise valley. The plan was to drive up to Cormet de Roselend and wild camp in a good spot to see the next days stage. Having missed 3 riding opportunities that day, I wasn’t going to miss the fourth. I jumped out the van, got kitted up and told my buddies I’d see them at the top. Spinning along the Beaufortain valley, I had a 25mph head wind, so my theoretical easy warm up translated into a 155bpm grind. At the foot of the climb proper, the thunder started and large rain drops began to fall. I donned a gilet and dug in, wondering whether I was doing the right thing, but knowing that my friends would be waiting for me!

As I relaxed a little, I realised that the climb is perfect… a steady 7ish% for 12km, 2km false flat to recover, another 5km at 7% and then the final km at 3% to encourage a sprint finish between the campers parked up at the top tooting airhorns and shouting “Allez Allez” at the mad Englishman in the darkening rain!

My buddies had parked up next to the colmarker and pulled out their awning, so I could bivvy, sheltered by the van on one side, the Col sign on the other and their awning above. I rigged a blanket up to shield my camp bed on a 3rd side from the incoming storm, and after a slice of cold pizza and a wet wipe shower hunkered down.

Cowbells from the nearby herd, coupled with thunder rumbling every 15 mins or so meant that perhaps 2 hours sleep was achieved, as temps dropped towards 4 or 5 degrees. Rising with the sun around 0615, I was surprised to see the van behind us was loading up ready to go, despite having the best spot on the mountain. About an hour later, as a few more brave souls began packing up, we heard the news that the stage had been re-routed from the only other cyclist I saw on the mountaintop. He’d camped with his wife and kids halfway up and was just riding up to see the top before heading home. I don’t know if I’ve ever felt such a sense of anticlimax before? That said, the previous day lived up to the spirit of the week we had here last year, and I hope my sharing it with you provokes good memories rather than the disappointment that you couldn’t make it this time.

Brilliant 🙂