The Hills Are Alive...
Our guided bike tour began and finished in the city of Pau, and we spent three days in Luchon, St. Lary and Viscos - all great towns with charm, picturesque surroundings and great cycling trips.
Daily routes included some of the most beautiful and brutal climbs in the Pyrenees. We climbed four of the five cols of stage 15 a few days before the pros came through (we rode them over two days, while the pros knocked them out in one), and watched two Tour finished and a start. We climbed Port de Bales, Superbagneres, Portet d'Aspet, Col de Mente, Col de Peyresourde, Col Pla d' Adet, Col d' Aspin, Col du Tourmalet, and Col du Solour/Aubisque. Most of these climbs had steep sections, many over 10%, and to do a few of these climbs was tough enough, but several in the same day at race pace like the Tour riders... absolutely mind blowing.With the exception of the roads along the Tour route (tons of RVs and campers) and the Col du Tourmalet (very popular with cycling tour groups), we had most of the climbs to ourselves. We wound our way up lightly traveled mountain
roads, rolling over spray-painted names of riders from previous Tours. The scenery was spectacular, with green meadows, wildflowers and snow-covered peaks in the distance - it was like a movie set from "The Sound of Music." We rode past waterfalls, waited for grazing animals to cross the road and had the satisfaction of looking back over miles of switchbacks from the top of the cols. As beautiful as it was, it was tough. There was probably a lot that I missed while I was staring at my front tire, slipping into a climbing coma on some of the more difficult climbs.Partying Tour de France Style
Watching a stage of the Tour is like attending a huge picnic, party, parade and sporting event combined - something that every cyclist should try to see at least once. As the riders are preparing for the start, the tour caravan begins its drive of the entire course, with costumed people tossing hats and other samples at spectators amidst loud music. The caravan doesn't look out of place at the start or finish lines, but it's an odd sight driving along narrow mountain roads. At the stage 15 finish line in Loudenvielle, we joined hundreds of people on
the grass in front of the TdF jumbotron to watch the progress of the race. We saw Vinokourov get his last stage victory of the Tour before he was kicked out. Similarly, we watched the stage 16 finish on Col du Aubisque, where Rasmussen earned the yellow and polka-dot jerseys for the last time. And we were there to watch Team Discovery's Alberto Contador and Levi Leipheimer seal their positions on the podium.
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