Day 7 - triple cols

DAY 7

From here on in we have a big day followed by a shorter, harder day

• Bike 122km with 3k climbing incl Cormet du Roseland, La Saises & Col D’Aravis
• Swim 1hr
• Run 10km incl 7x1km @ 3:50/km with 1min Rest interval.

As per yesterday I felt much better, perhaps the best of the camp as we set off today. I was determined today to be more competitive in the KOM’s as we had 3 big climbs.

After a 20km descent we were into the first climb the Cormet du Roseland which was 20km long. From the outset my legs felt so much better than every other day of the camp. I was able to climb with the same sort of power I showed back home. Adam took off from the outset but myself, JB and Walter were keeping him in check and as we were able to bridge over he punctured. I pushed on for a short period but decided it would not be right to take the KOM when the leader of the comp had punctured. It wasn’t going to effect the overall KOM as Adam has won every climb thus far but it would not have felt right. I was frustrated as I felt so good. There was certainly no team orders for others to stop and the others had every right to push on. When Adam caught back up I only held him for a short period but still managed to claw back most of the others by the summit.

For many of us this first climb today was the most stunning and enjoyable of the camp. The grade was nice, we had some shelter from the forest on the lower slopes then at the top the outlook over the snow covered mountains was just incredible.

Our 2^nd climb up to Les Saises ski resort was not a KOM so we all dialed it right back and enjoyed an easier intensity on some lighter grades. Some more food at the top and it was all on for the final climb of the day the Col D’Aravis.

I had not looked at the profile of the Aravis climb so was going to take it km by km but I could tell from the map it was shorter than the others so far today and did not get as high. Immediately as we kicked off the pace was strong and power was up but my legs felt strong. Adam broke away earlier and I initially climbed on Walters wheel with Peter Mills on mine. Then after a few km we had some respite with a gentle and technical downhill section. It was time to attack and put my good feeling to some use. I bridged over to Adam but kept several bike lengths as the grade went up again, regrouped then pushed past and kept going. I kept my power in check and always felt I had another gear to go to if required.

It was good to finally find my climbing legs and rough things up a bit. My average power for the climb was 278w despite some downhill sectons - that's much higher than anything else I've acheived on the camp to date. Adam was 2^nd up, Peter rode well for 3^rd, Walter 4^th and it was good to see Phil climbing better too in 5^th. I don't think anyone was too displeased that the mapping software I used overestimated the total climbing meters today but we still got 3000m of gain!

Our accommodation is just down the road from Le Grand Bornard at Chalet 4. The chalet is owned and run by Piet and wife who know exactly what we need as Piet did Epic Camp 2009 in NZ. They have done a incredible renovation on the place with an endless pool, gym and beautiful interior. It’s well suited for families for winter or summer breaks.

Today’s swim for me was a 1 point bonus for doing the continuous IM set for 3km (12x 100 IM / 150 free). It was done at an easy intensity but I made a complete meal of counting as I still had my watch set to 50m and we were in a 25m.

Finally I knew Adam wanted to do the 7x1km @ sub 3:50/km pace run main set for points so I joined him for that to ensure I stayed ahead in yellow. We did the reps out and back on the flattest section of road we could find but each interval was basically 500m gently downhill then 500 up. After working hard to find our rhythm from a very short warm up during the first 1-2 reps we soon realized that opening up the legs in the first 500m and being well ahead of pace was the best strategy then slowing as we went up the incline. The set ended up being pretty straight forward – hot and hard but not too taxing.