The main event started today. Probably about a hundred riders including some pros. After about 4 miles, the fun began with a 5 mile climb, average 13%(read steep!). Then on to col de Aravis (20 k) and lastly on to col des Saises ( 14K). The point is, it was more climbing in one day than I have ever done(9000ft) and at the beginning of the last climb, disaster struck as I started to cramp. I now have new found sympathy for all my patients who whine about their nocturnal cramps! I watched matt disappear into the distance and my world of pain began. All I could hear was Phil Ligget in my ear yelling "he's cracked"and Paul Sherwin describing how I was calling for more power from the engine room. Those voices however were drowned out by Richard Thompson singing "Fire in the Engine room" which was more the case. I was doing alot of thinking on those last 10K, mostly about how to convert MPH to KPH to calculate how much longer this sufferfest would last. Thinking however was overshadowed by the pain in my back (the Jens Voigt trick of saying "shut up back" just didn't work!) and at last I finished.
Final thought for the day: Mr. Ibuprofen deserves the Nobel Prize in medicine!
Good night!
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