220 km, 2900 vertical meters and 5900 cal on the longest day I ever spent on the bike. That was really long.
It all got off to a great start. Transfer to the start of the course, everyone leaves, groups form. Just another morning in the Ardennes.
I came along with the first group, which always left me behind on the climbs, but I always caught up again on the descents and even overtook. This worked because the climbs were only about 3-5% and the guys can not descend, or always left the momentum. At the first stop I left it at that and continued my pace and there we arrived already in Luxembourg.
Area, but just also always up and down, but how. There is then below always a valley with a small river and then you have to go up again. That makes always equal to 150-200 meters in altitude. I still thought of Andy, there he could let off steam, but not for me. Well, at least we had no more wind. As you can see from the windmills, they no longer turn, they stood still, at least a little.
I didn’t know the rural Luxembourg at all, but it remains a nice memory.
On the elevation profile it all doesn’t look so dramatic, but in retrospect my Garmin reports 2900 meters of elevation, which is a lot.
You may not be able to imagine how to manage such route with such altitude differences. Well, at some point you just drive, see that you have enough to drink and eat and watch your fellow travelers.
That some on such “journeys” then no longer have themselves under control then also occurs. Suddenly loud shouting, Roland I overtake you now and Monti spurts past me on the left, to then immediately pull over to the right and disappear in the ditch. Boom. I still look back and the group he came with took care, so I can continue. Completely absurd we ask ourselves and understand rather little.
At the end you see on the altitude profile, it goes down again and then finally up to the finish. The up, means still a last rise, already something violent with 11-12% in part and that after 219 km. As if from nowhere a sound, Beat I overtake you now and Monti shoots at 11% past both of us, to then abruptly slow down about 20m in front of us and just fall over. Boom.
From the 2nd fall he knows nothing until today and denies it.
That’s how it is after 220 km of cycling.
Here then the hospital behind the finish, praise God I do not need.
