Day 11 - Col du Tourmalet

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Today was to be our climb of the fabled col du tormalet, a lazy 100km + loop through the Hautes region of the Pyrenees.

The morning started much the same as usual with Chambo and myself saddled up and waiting while the others buggerized around. Even the everready man Hamo was lacking a little bounce, claiming his climb to Hauticam with Lionel, Ronnie Corbett (ako-Andy) and Sim the day before had been difficult and he felt a bit weary. Interestingly there is not one bit of strava or GPS data to support this claimed ride- very dubious.

Anyway we rolled out of town eventually and headed to the holy sanctuary of Lourdes.

Lourdes is a beloved shrine for many christians and reportedly where the Virgin Mary appeared in the 1800 hundreds on 18 occasions. It was truly an amazing sight to see 100's of people in wheelchairs and alike, being brought before the grotto for blessing. To add weight to its credibility , our very own Craig Williams who has been severely debilitated by a previous injury, today appeared to 'walk on water' by working at the front for the entire day. 

After departing Lourdes we headed to Bogneres-de-Bigorre where we pulled up for a much needed espresso and refuel. The town was busy preparing for Le Tour arrival the next day. I think many thought it had arrived a day early when the finely tuned Wagga Train sped into town.

> From here we began a gradual 10km climb to Ste-Marie-de-Campan, this would be the start of the Col du Tormalet.  A lazy 1268 meter rise over 16km and I was itching for the battle. Unbeknowns to the rest of the peleton I had I surprise in store, for tonight I would wear the illusive spotted leopard skin on the dies.

We pulled up briefly, some replenishing drink bottles, others like Simone and Hamo opting to drop excess baggage like there second biddon, food and socks. They all quickly scrambled aboard there machines and headed off, unsure of what lay before them.

I took my time to prepare, filling 3 drink bottles, stashing gels, bananas, tyres and camera equipment. I also grabbed some baguettes in case any passers by may need it.

I headed off. It was bloody hot.The road was basked in sunlight and not a breeze could be detected. Although I started late, it wasn't long before I came across the first of my team mates Ronnie Corbett and Chambo. To be be fair they were riding well. So as not to humiliate them I slowed to pass them. Chambo offered the obligatory $1000 bet that i'd blow, but I didn;t want his money.

The road weaved back and forth hovering between 9-12% gradients. Next victim was young Dim Green, an ex pro cyclist helping with our tour. He was quite a capable rider, but spent all his tickets the night before on a rampage playing Bingo.  It was something many of us were keen to try. 

Up and Up I climbed. In my sights next was Dr Ferrari, Dydey, Simone and Lionel. They were rolling turns trying to maintain momentum. As I came by one Muttered Veva Le Bris which I thought was a nice gesture.

Around the next corner was David 'just one more' Barn ill. Barndog was usually a great team player. He would regularly offer inciteful anecdotes from his old coach Tommy Redonicus and try and inspire us. Today though as I road by it was not to be. He muttered something about Johnny Marr and some character called Billy Moore, the heat was obviously getting to him.

Just a little further up and to my surprise was the ever ready man himself Hamo. He was sitting by the side of the road drinking Coca Cola with a large woman in a bikini. He never even saw me go by.

By now I was in the upper switchbacks, where the road side was a sheer drop and any mistake would mean be fatal. I road up along side our youngest team member Dan but there was no one home. I yelled Dan are you ok? He turned his head slowly to reveal his sunken skull, his eyes were rolled back completely in there sockets-he was blind! He suddenly veered towards the edge of the road no doubt trying to end the pain. I raced toward him and grabbed him before he plummeted over the edge. I lay him gently on the side of the road and gave him a bagget and a bottle of coke I was carrying  in my jersey for just such a thing. I said sorry Dan I must keep going, you will be ok. And with that I lept aboard my Willier and headed for the summit.

With only 2 switchbacks left I had to rein in Craig, with the Virgin Mary riding shotgun it was going to be tough. On the the last corner with 500m to go I pulled along side him. He turned to me with a sereen smile and said ' may The Lord be with you' and pointed up the road. With that I accelerated toward the giant statue atop the summit. The crowd was going crazy!

It was like time stood still as I crossed the finish line. I lay down on the grass and awaited my team.

When I woke up they were all there. They were all clapping and giving me Hi 5's. Hamo went and wrote our signature trade mark - Wagga x 2 across the road just past the summit. This would be clearly visible to all on the TV coverage.

The rest is a blur of a rapid decent to the Luz-St-Sauveur for a quick lunch and then on home to watch the end of another tour stage at our local establishment.

This turned into a very interesting evening, but , thats another story......

For some great footage of our Col du Galibier decent check out this YouTube video and turn up the volume!
Click on this link if you can't see the video below http://youtu.be/cauhdq6PjPQ

Yours Truly

Brys the mountain goat Shaw