Aime FR, July 7, 07

Sorry everyone, but I couldn't resist the opportunity. Normally I would be inclined to follow the sign, but I'm here to climb some mountains, so I have to go to the left instead.

Last night the woman at the hotel reception desk informed me that the Col de la Madeleine was nearby. I had been interested in riding it, because I read that it was one of the more difficult climbs, but I had not found it on the map. I checked again and found it. By the way, the picture above is along the climb.

Another thing along the climb is steepness. NON-STOP STEEPNESS!!!

And that's where I'm heading off in the distance.

It still looms around many, and I mean many, bends.

Mont Blanc, yet again. It looms too.

Just another picture along the way.

What this ride is turning too!

Did I mention that it's steep?

Ooh, ah!

My bike made it anyway!

Yeah, I did too.

I gotta tell you, that was the most difficult climb I've ever done in my entire life. It was only 16 miles, but I felt more beat down than likely any ride I've ever taken. That includes after riding 140 miles a day on PAC Tour.

O.K., so I haven't trained much for these hills before leaving Cincinnati, but I was riding decently before I left. I just did a 110 mile hilly ride with Dino two weeks before I left.

Some shots from the top.

A little more about this climb. When it's in the Tour de France, it is an Hors Categorie (HC), which is above classification. That means it's hard. One of the hardest. I can't argue with that!

Here's the profile.

I took this picture while eating dinner at a restaraunt on the hillside.