Today started out with a mass group roll out until we tackled the first col. This CCC has an even more special purpose than the typical CCC in that 11 riders from Dubai are riding in honor of one of their teammates; Lucy; that was fatally injured in a cycling accident not long ago. So they are challenging themselves in the same way they know their teammate would have loved to do in an event like this.
We were greeted with overcast skies which turned to wet roads and drizzle 5 km after the start. Luckily, this lightened up by 15 km and the roads dried up and skies were overcast for most of the day. The first few cols were steady by CCC standards and gradients were 6-8% for the most part. It did not take long before we were in the Cevennes national park region. We were greeted by gorges, rock formations, lakes, dams and special roads that only Phil could find for a CCC event.
At Feed #1, my bike got knocked over and the rear derailleur was bent, but of course rock star mechanic Jonny had my bike fixed in no time. It just meant I was at the tail end for a bit, but it allowed me to take in the scenery. Another note about Jonny, he built me a set of wheels Sunday night since my Mavics were Cantabrico’ed! Chris King hubs mated to H Plus Son rims. Sweet! They just took some ‘braking in’ this morning to wear the brake track down a bit, but by the afternoon, they were fine.
New wheels courtesy of Noble Wheels!
On the way to lunch, we descended a beautiful gorge road which had been ruined in many spots by heavy rains 2 weeks ago. Parts were washed away completely and other sections had run-offs all over requiring hike-a-bike and gravel riding skills. If it wasn’t for that, the road would have been awesome.
This road has seen better days
Unique to this trip is lunch stops. They harken back to the original cafe stops we had in CCC Alps in 2010. Logistically they make sense, and it helps to get warm food and some shelter with the more autumnal temps. Today’s hot meal was pasta - no complaints, it was a great mid-ride refuel.
After lunch ,we hit Col de la Lusette. I felt like I was back in Spain. It was an angry climb. 4%, 11%, 5%, 12%, then straight sections at 18% and switchbacks at 20% plus. Challenging for a first day for sure.
The temps cooled as we got higher and at the high point, Mt de l'Aigoual at 1555 m, temps were 4 degrees Celcius. Time for the Rapha hardshell jacket!
After a stop at Feed #3, it was more downhill but it started to rain, so now it was cold and rainy. It only lasted for a few km, but was still enough to cool things off.
The last 40 km of the ride was a sensory overload. Scenery was spectacular. Phil has nailed it again with this trip. I am looking forward to the days ahead as I kept thinking ‘unreal’ for the last hour of the ride.
Quite different having autumnal colors on a CCC event
Of course, there was one more col along the way with 12-14% sections, but the sun was setting as daylight is getting shorter as we near October, but the light was hitting the mountains in the right way and it made the gradients seem slightly less steep. And there was a climb to the hotel too.
It was a hard first day at 217 km ridden and 4500 m climbed. Tomorrow promises more of the same.
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