- Distance: 162,82 km
- Vertical Ascent: 3.449 m
- No. of Named Cols: <TBC>
- Start Date & Time: 2019-10-12, 10:30
- Start Location: Amélie-les-Bains
- End Date & Time: 2019-10-13, 03:34
- End Location: Puivert
- Time Moving: 10:58:04
- Moving Average: 14,8 km/h
- No. of Stops >3 Minutes: 17
Data: strava.com/activities/2785020412
Waking up splendidly refreshed, in room 27. Morning ritual, including a clean shave. Re-dressing my slowly healing road rash. Packing up everything, making sure nothing is left behind. Feeling really great — decided to complete both, Parcours D and E. Should be doable, yet still leaving later than intended: First had to say “au revoir” to everyone at the Grand Café de Paris;
When I rode Parcours C before, it was early evening turned pitch-black night by the time I descended towards La Bastide. I had singled-out this particular village myself as a location to visit, but couldn’t appreciate much in the darkness during this first ride-by. Today, cloudy to mildly overcast skies meant bright and beautiful light, the early autumn colors of the hills around me made it difficult to stand by my principle of reducing paused time (i.e. time “spent” on taking photos).
Now, with Parcours C turned D and direction inverted, the ride up to La Bastide was comparably easy, mostly constant but low gradients, some undulations, no big hills or steep ramps. Keeping good hydration levels, I proactively refilled my bottles not long before reaching the hilltop village.
Asked a few locals for a bar or café. They told me, yes, just follow that main street (alley) … ended up being guided, personally, on foot, by an old lady, right to the doorstep of a restaurant/bar that deserves its own blog post, and I might get around to it once I find the card/receipt with its name … suffice to say, they improvised a small menu, because anything less would have been below their standards. And, again, I “invested” a lot of time in (re-) fueling, socializing, living — instead of racing the TPR.
Leaving La Bastide was slow, not least because of a Dalmatian enjoying an early afternoon nap right in my path, only giving way after some friendly words and a cuddle. Can’t let an opportunity to pet a cat, dog or horse slip by.
The remaining climb up the Col de Palomère (between Cat. 4 and Cat. 2) I enjoyed the views and stopped at a massive tree (again) trying to spot the sea on the horizon — again without success. But the view of the road ahead was beauty enough in its own way.
While climbing I stopped a few more times to take pictures, or simply to enjoy the scenery. Once, I was clearly daydreaming, because I had trouble readying my iPhone in time to snap a decent picture of a band of beautiful black horses. They were wild or roaming wild, and certainly unaware of how much I like being around them …
I usually consider myself rather confident on road descents. But since the crash/slide in the first hour of the first day, and then my near miss on the punctured ride into La Massana some nights ago, I carefully wound my way down Parcours D. Especially aware of lose gravel, leaves and debris, I descended the D13 (“Route Départementale No 13”). First through Valmanya and to the “passive CP” for Parcours C+D, then further through the meandering gorge/valley towards Finestret, now, in bright daylight, I could take in the stunning views and intentionally revisit some places that appeared so different in the dark.
Although already firmly established as the “Lanterne Rouge”, past time cut and finishers’ party, I had set my sights on finishing, true to the official race rules and itinerary. This included not only riding all the different parcours, but also to report back to the TPR helpline with individual number sequences from Code Books:
To successfully complete an event like the TPR, or any “Brevet” for that matter, race organizers provide a small card on which to collect stamps of “Control Points”. “CPs” may be dedicated checkpoints or supply stations staffed by actual race personnel. Often they are shops, gas stations or hotels where regular staff is made aware of the race and stamp the cards of passing riders. If manned CPs are not an option, “passive” controls can be used: in the case of this first edition of the TPR, “Code Books” had been placed at specific coordinates for riders to find — similar to “Geocaching”, if you follow my thoughts here … anyway, I think you get the picture …
Sun was already low in the sky, but weather had turned ever brighter, and forecast gave hope for a rather warm, rain-free night all across the region. After traversing the wide valley of the river Têt around the town of Prades, I re-provisioned with some fresh produce from an old farmer’s roadside stand. My way to the start of Parcours E would pass a number of old bridges, with their stone arches spanning streams and rivers in the valleys below.
The ascent to Col de Jau (classified as “Hors Catégorie” on Strava) had practically begun when I turned right off the N116 at Marquixanes and left the Têt valley. Officially though, Parcours E started on the northern end of the medieval town of Mosset. So, at the only open bar in Mosset, I ordered two strong espresso and as many beers and decided to complete Parcours E, continue a bit further towards the return route and sleep somewhere around Puivert — all deep into the night.
A quick search via Booking.com turned up a B&B with raving reviews, which I booked immediately and e-mailed my host I’d be arriving late at night. Assuring me in their almost immediate response that this wouldn’t be an issue gave peace of mind and proved a valuable commitment to have.
The final HC climb from Mosset to Col de Jau is close to 900 meters straight upwards — I went full gas, yet had a lot of fun, sometimes laughing, at other moments cussing and swearing aloud in the night. At the col sign I stopped to take a photo and change into warm kit, when I heard a jingling closing in on my position.
Half-naked, without a jersey or jacket, grabbed my helmet and turned on the headlamp. First I saw a white horse about 10 m away, staring at me. Next thing, two dogs appear, tiny bells on red collars, tails wagging … and the more alpha of the two goes right for my food bag, tearing at it.
In a combination of dominant “NON!” and staying calm all the same, tried to dress and defend my kit and provisions … certainly took an extra 10 minutes to ready for the descent — but not without sharing a small anchovies pizza evenly between both dogs and myself.
Continuing Parcours E meant riding mostly unmarked roads with lots of freshly applied gravel — remember, chip-seal, more chip than seal — in preparation for the winter. Passing those tiny countryside villages on a bike was a quiet pleasure. Downhill, no pedaling = no noise, neither from drivetrain nor from the spokes, just the tyres and the wind.
After finding and reporting from the Code Book for Parcours E, right by the side of an enormous boulder, my own almost noiseless night ride continued over rolling hills and through woods, accompanied by the sounds of tiny streams and waterfalls, of cowbells, and the ever-present hooting of owls.
Next, Col de Garavel, the third categorized climb of this ride was only a Cat. 2 on Strava, and by now, merely its name left an impression — did it so clearly invoke images of the rough and dusty roads I’d just passed.
The official itinerary now led me via an old road closed to general traffic, right into the small town of Escouloubre that, if anything, stirred pictures of J.R.R.Tolkien’s Bag End. My imagination ran wild, while I silently skirted front porches, narrow corners, a pony dozing at the roadside, half leaning against a stone wall. I wondered how this place looked in daylight, if I’d ever make it here again.
Maybe it was my thoughts drifting away from the immediate task at hand (steering my bike safely over roads of varying quality), or it was me getting tired, or a combination of both … on another curvy descent I hit a tiny piece of rock, and there’s the next pinch flat! Making use of my last spare Tubolito, the repair didn’t take long, even that late at night. But it reminded me to try and fix the perforated orange-colored tubes at the next opportunity, so as not to be caught off-guard, without ready spares in a more hostile environment — demanding climbs and their corresponding descents like Tourmalet & Co. were still ahead!
Time had progressed to long after midnight, when I entered the last third of Parcours E, taking an unexpectedly sharp right turn up a narrow mountain road. But time had also wiped most clouds off the night sky, with the close-to-full moon brightening up my path and drawing sharp shadows everywhere.
Nearing two in the early morning I was clearly growing tired, but the road wound on seemingly without end, and either fog or low-hanging clouds covered all open space I was passing through. It was an eerie feeling when Parcours E eventually ended on a nondescript tarmac road in the forest near Belfort-sur-Rebenty. The road, actually the D222, continued into he dark, slightly uphill, and I had plotted my course along its path, following a number of switchbacks through the forest, until eventually emerging near D613 that would take me closer to Puivert.
This last stretch of my ride felt most exhausting: although the air around me was was warm and by now the fiery red CAAD12 “FrankenBike” rolled easily on smooth roads, it had been a long day and night. I was really aching for a stop and to just sleep. When around 03:30 I reached the small hamlet where my B&B was situated near Puivert, the host, Pete, had been waiting and ran outside to welcome me. Even with me arriving this late, Pete made me feel right at home at the beautiful cottage. As always, it took me a while to “settle”, wash some kit, before going to sleep. And it would be a short night’s sleep.
