Climb Preview: Col de Port…
Ascent over 11.4 km at a 5.3% gradient to an altitude of 1,249m...
The Etape commences in the provincial town of Foix on the A55 South, this is a little undulating but the excitement of riding in an 8500 strong Peloton will hopefully carry even me to the village of Terascon-sur-Arriege where the start of the climb of the Col De Port commences.
The Col De Port is a 17km second category climb (which will act as a leg loosener for events to come. However, it is a fairly narrow climb and one could well see there being some congestion here especially if riders tangle en route – something which can happen on these narrow climbs. The advice here is to ride this climb at an easily manageable tempo – this is not the time to put in really big efforts.
I think congestion on this climb is a big worry. With only 10k to the start of the climb there is very little time for the 8500 riders to spread out and in previous Etapes this has resulted in the rear of the peloton coming to stand still on the first climb. Not what you want with the 'broom wagon' hot on your heels !!
Following this Col is one of the longest descents seen in the Etape – 34km to St. Girons – the upper sections of the descent are quite technical, but it soon broadens out into a wide sweeping descent that will allow you to really open the throttle without digging too deep into energy reserves.
The Etape commences in the provincial town of Foix on the A55 South, this is a little undulating but the excitement of riding in an 8500 strong Peloton will hopefully carry even me to the village of Terascon-sur-Arriege where the start of the climb of the Col De Port commences.
The Col De Port is a 17km second category climb (which will act as a leg loosener for events to come. However, it is a fairly narrow climb and one could well see there being some congestion here especially if riders tangle en route – something which can happen on these narrow climbs. The advice here is to ride this climb at an easily manageable tempo – this is not the time to put in really big efforts.
I think congestion on this climb is a big worry. With only 10k to the start of the climb there is very little time for the 8500 riders to spread out and in previous Etapes this has resulted in the rear of the peloton coming to stand still on the first climb. Not what you want with the 'broom wagon' hot on your heels !!
Following this Col is one of the longest descents seen in the Etape – 34km to St. Girons – the upper sections of the descent are quite technical, but it soon broadens out into a wide sweeping descent that will allow you to really open the throttle without digging too deep into energy reserves.
Posted by Richard Allen
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