Hola!
Nice to wake up on Spanish soil for the 1st of our 7 days cycling on the Iberian peninsula. Today was going to be one of the toughest but most spectacular as we take on the Cantabrian mountains. I would be setting new personal bests today for the longest & highest climbs.
We left the hotel a little later than planned at 08.24h due to basically faffing around. I think the weather was the main contributor to that, it was pissing down. I gave the safety briefing and stressed the difference between pedestrian crossings and roundabouts here in Spain. Very few people know that in Spain the outside lane of a roundabout always has the right of way. Crazy I know, but true!
I wasn't even round the 2nd corner and I had to stop to take the specs off. The Garmin was wet and difficult to see on it's own but through wet sunglasses it was impossible. The puddles ensured my feet got wet pretty quickly, it wasn't pleasant at all. This was the worst weather we had encountered on the trip, I was wetter than an Otter's pocket!
The first 36 Km to the refreshment stop was pretty flat so we just stepped on it and powered through the rain. We were having some fun sprinting for the 50 Km/h speed limit signs that tend to appear on the outskirts of the built up areas. It was good fun and took our mind off the rain. I knew the 1st stop was at a service station and in Spain that means coffee. We were very happy to arrive and practically ignored the support van and headed straight into the cafeteria.
It was only a further 30 Km to the lunch stop but we were warned that there was a major climb and then descent before it. After lunch would come the big one which I guess is why lunch was so early today? On the 1st climb which took us up to 611 M above sea level young Zander took this photo of what turned out to be the village we had our lunch in. A spectacular shot, good job Zander!
We were heading south west and the rain fortunately was heading east so eventually we were able to dry out on the move and enjoy this magnificent scenery. Lunch wasn't ready when we arrived, the support crew had just pipped us to the spot. I was in the fast group today and we had made great time so we went for another coffee to take the pressure off them. All of us except Shane that is, he is like a mountain goat and left us for dead on the climb. He sailed past the village and missed lunch. Maybe he was pissed off because I out sprinted him earlier? :-)
After refuelling we set off to tackle the big climb. The weather was nice now but it was cold, I was glad we were climbing, you can keep warm when working hard on the bike. Everyone was going along at their own pace because we knew this climb was a monster. We reached an altitude of 1,355 M which is basically 4,500 ft. That is 100 M higher than Ben Nevis. Fortunately the road meandered below and in between the snow covered caps around us.
The climb started at an altitude of only 157 M and measured over 36 Km in length. Hard to imagine I know but it was amazing!
I kept plodding along at my own pace and stopped to take photos every now and then but after seeing the photos from some of the others there is no point in me posting mine. Here is another one of my favourites from today......
From left to right: Kevin (he cycled Day 1 and rejoined this morning) welcome back Kevin. Big David (another mountain goat) and Vinny. Vinny might even be the oldest cyclist we have but he is easily one of the best.
Another cyclist to join us today is Patricia, she was in our group this morning and I had the pleasure of her company on some of the climb after lunch before she got away from me. Another powerful cyclist and better photographer than me, check out this shot!
For as much as I enjoyed the climbing and was happy that I was actually able to do it the end of it was a beautiful thing indeed. After every big climb comes a glorious descent and I planned to take advantage of the dry roads, nice weather and the energy I had left to try and catch some of the guys that left me for dead on the hill. I did that, got to David and had Vinny, Steven & Allan in my sights but then around 6 Km from home the ground started to rise in front of me again. I thought the climbing was over but I was clearly mistaken. Well, it wasn't really a climb but it was uphill for about 1 Km and it was enough to slow me right down.
I got to the hotel and exchanged congratulations with the guys. We all agreed it was the best day any of us had ever had on a bike. Grace absolutely loved it and was rewarded with a nice de-grease and wash. The mudguards will be coming off tonight as the weather should be sunny from here on.
Huge respect to Shane who beat everyone hands down today and claimed a stage victory for the Irish.
Distance covered 131.8 Km
Climbing 2,287 M
Moving time 06:33:53
You can see a graphic reconstruction of the route here https://www.relive.cc/view/994271672
Summary:
After a bad weather start it was simply stunning, a day to remember for sure.
Difficulty rating 7/10