Sunday 5th October 2008 was a day I'll never forget. As the sun was rising over the lake at Zahara, in the heart of the Grazalema Natural Park, I set off to see how many times I could ride the Category 1 climb up and over Las Palomas in one day. The climb starts below the pretty white village of Zahara de la Sierra at 471metres above sea level and 13 kilometres later you're at the top, some 1357metres above sea level. My circuit, of 39 kilometres, takes me along the lakeside to Zahara, over Las Palomas down into Grazalema before descending back to the lake for the next lap.

Lap 1. 8am. A chilly start to the day in Andalucia along the lake, as there is not a cloud in the sky and the cool night air lingers on waiting for the sun to rise and warm/wake the valley up. As I start to climb I notice a hot air balloon taking off from the edge of the lake. I climb at a nice steady pace trying to make sure that my legs don't start to burn or my breathing doesn't become too laboured. I reach the summit at 9.30am and am back at the van by 9.50am to start my second lap.

Lap 2. 9.50am. As I approach Zahara I start to pass riders from El Burgo and Lucena clubs. Back on the mountain I can see groups of riders ahead on the road and I have to fight the urge not to chase them down before the summit. The game plan was for endurance not for racing these other club boys, however, as a couple of El Burgo club riders came past me with 4 kilometres to go (local rival club to Ronda) I couldn't allow them to beat me (all decked out in my Ronda Club kit) to the top. I jumped on their back wheel and over the next few kilometres the pace increased gradually and with a kilometre to go I rode off the front, crested the col and with a rapid descent into Grazalema never saw them again.

At the end of Lap 2 Claire met me with a bowl of pasta and some energy drinks. I took a 30 minute pit stop to eat, have a stretch, top up the drinks bottles and grab a few more energy bars.

Lap 3. 12.15. After lunch my legs felt a touch heavy for the first few kilometres but I was soon back on the climb and spending a little longer than usual out of the saddle trying to keep some sort of momentum. This was by far the hardest climb as the mid day sun shone down on me, draining me of energy and with the absense of any other riders to focus on, the climb seemed twice as long as before. Nearing the top I start to feel a little tightness in my right calf which I try to stretch out on the descent.

Lap 4. 2.20pm. I'm joined by Alistair on the forth lap, who is out with us for two weeks triathlon training for Ironman Australia. After a 20 mile run in the morning Alistair politely declines the invitation to join me for the complete lap and as he turns round to ride back to Montecorto at Zahara, I start to climb my old friend Las Palomas once again. This time round the legs are feeling heavier than ever and my right calf is getting worse by the minute, my pace has dropped off completely but I manage to keep the wheels turning to the top for the final time. I descend down through Grazalema and back to the lake to complete my forth and final lap at 4.30pm.

There was time for a fifth lap before sunset but the tank was empty and in the back of my mind I was already thinking about the coming weeks training with Alistair, afterall, I still need to be riding (working) next week.

Total distance 154.5 kilometres.

Total time 7hrs 51mins.

Average speed 19.7 km/h.

Calories burnt 6847.

Metres climbed 3749m.

So, will 2009 see me better this record or not? Only time will tell!

TrackBack URI for this entry

Name

Email

Website

Comment

smaller | bigger

Write the displayed characters

Add Comment