Transmaurienne Vanoise 2024

Introduction

This is my first time participating in this event. I didn't really know much about it in advance apart from what their web page says: http://www.transmaurienne-vanoise.com/

The race is surprisingly cheap: €500 with boarding and one meal per day. And the living quarters are nice and spacious. I have four beds, a kitchen and my own loo.

The stages are split into two locations but it's just a 20 kilometer drive in between so no biggie.

We're racing high up in the mountains. The stages start at 1300 meters of altitude and we cross over peaks way over 2000 meters high.

I was put in the M45 category. Yeah, no M50, and M45 is from 45 year to 54 year olds. And I'll me 54 this year. Lots of youngers to race against in other words.

Race stats

Type: UCI Mountain bike race

Length: 5 stages / days, third stage shorter XCO race

Location: Val Cenis, France

Bike and setup: Lapierre XRM (120mm/120mm suspension) with Maxxis Aspen 2.2" tires (1.5 bar)

Gearing: 32T up front, 10-52T in the back

Stage 1

The stage started of with a real long climb as you can see by the profile map. First on asphalt, then a mix of gravel roads and some singletrack. And when I say "started" the climb started at the spot where we left the start box, literally from the first meter. I really don't like that kind of shock start. First part of the climb I held about 310W, then down to around 280-290W towards the top.

Here I should describe some of the "singla track", or rather hiking trails, that came up high in the mountains of this stage. It's sort of hard to explain because I've never seen anything like it in any of the other stage races that I've done. One section at around 40 kilometers was going by the side of the mountain. So mountain face on the left and sheer drop on the right. Now I'm used to riding in that kind of terrain and it doesn't really scare me all that much. But this trail, while being hikable, was not rideable at all. Everyone went of their bikes and started walking. This was on flat terrain so not uphill or anything. And I could see below still walking kilometers in front of me. And not only that but the trail was so narrow that you could not really lead your bike beside you either because there was not room for it. It was no fun, not even as a challenge, and it ruined my mood. I checked my Gopro footage afterwards and we were walking for about 25 minutes all in all.

After the walk it was hard to get into a competitive mood again.

I finished the stage in 11th place.

Today's anecdote: A guy with an AXS dropper post (electrical) ran out of battery and had to bike the last 15 kilometers of the stage standing up as the dropper post would just sink to the bottom as soon as he sat on the saddle.

Stage 2

Even longer climb to start the stage of on this second day: 18 kilometers and it took me 1 hour and 40 minutes to get to the top. I felt I kept good speed all the way up. I found a good group and a guy ahead of me paced me all the way up.

We crossed a glacier close to the top of the mountain. That was cool. About 20 meters across snow.

Very nice downhills segments which obviously were meant for mountain bikes. Rather high roots and tight switchbacks. Technically very difficult but entertaining.

I was quite happy with the tracks on this second stage until the end of it when we came to a another hike-a-bike section. This time because the track was very narrow and extremely steep.

After two stages of lots of walking the heel of my left foot now has blisters that hurt.

Finished the stage in 12th place. I actually thought this stage went better that the first so was surprised to be back in 12th place.

Overall in 12th place as well.

Stage 3

The last three stages all had a new starting village, Aussios. It was just 20 kilometers away from Val Cenis so I just threw my bike in the back of my car and drove there in the morning. No biggie.

Starting time for my category was 11 o'clock. It was really warm.

Third stage was a bit different. It was four laps of an XCO track. Now there were no A or B lines like a typical XCO track, but it was plenty technical anyway. Crazy amount of altitude gain as well: 250 meters per 6 kilometer lap.

The stage was extremely hot and I managed to run out of drink after three laps so stopped at the refreshments station and filled my bottle with coke. They were not ready for that and coke went everywhere!

Finished the stage in 9th place. I'm up to 10th overall now. Ninth place is 5 minutes ahead, and the dude in 11th is just 5 minutes behind me. Anything can still happen!

Stage 4

Stage 4 again started is Aussois. We did the same start loop and decent as in the XCO race the previous day.

Ahead of the stage the race organizers sent out an email warning of extreme temperatures and saying that water replenishment was allowed outside designated zones. This was obviously only applicable to those riders who had teams behind them handing out water bottles. I did decide in advance to be careful with my drinking and to stop at all water stations.

The first uphill went well and I picked up some places, then the old XCO downhill from the previous day went okay as I already knew it. Then, however, we got to a part of the course that I had not seen before, and then on a technical downhill it happened: I saw a rather large rock covering the right hand part of the path so I moved to the left side. However there was something there in the grass which I snagged my left pedal on and I went flying over the bike. Luckily I had my saddle down so I didn't get too far. On the left side of the trail there was a steep 'ravine' and I managed not to fall into that, while one of my competitors held onto my bike and prevented it from falling of the edge.

My Garmin bike computer went flying and I had to re-attach it. Managed however to put it into indoor mode so I missed logging about 10k of the stage.

At first I thought I was completely unharmed but then I noticed that my left leg had gone hard into the levers on the left hand of my handlebars. My knee and lower part of my thigh muscle were hurting. I did manage to continue the stage but the next day I woke up with a very stiff left leg that would not turn a complete revolution of the pedals.

Surviving the crash without injuries was one thing but crashing like this totally took my self confidence away for all the technical stuff on this stage. And it turned out to be the gnarliest of the stages so far with crazy downhills. This meant I was off the bike and walking a lot, something that always ruins my mood.

I did still manage to finish the stage in 10th place. Ahead of tomorrow's last stage I'm still in 10th place overall, just one minute behind 9th place, but 11th place is also just one minute behind me.

Stage 5

The fifth and last stage again started in Aussois. It was quite short at 37 kilometers with almost all the altitude gain in one long climb.

I started this last stage with just a single minute to gain on 9th place but also just one minute to lose to 11th place. That means all was in play and it was a stressful situation.

We got the same email as the previous stage warning of high temperatures. But, for some reason the race organizers decided to start this stage at the hottest time of the day: at 12 o'clock. We speculated about the reason for this and came to the conclusion that it must be because they had planned a party of the evening and didn't want people to leave the venue before that.

We started a slightly longer uphill on asphalt, gravel, and asphalt again, compared to the previous stage. with a similar downhill to the previous stage. I had gained back my confidence from the previous stage and the downhill parts went better as I was brave again.

However, then it happened: About one hour into the stage, a couple of kilometers into the long climb, at a super-steep section I saw my heart rate jump 30 bpm up to 190 bpm and stay there for the whole steep section. I've had this happen before in races and usually if I just take it easy for a while my heart will go back to its normal rhythm. But even when I slowed down a bit it stayed high. After about 20 more minutes of this I decided to stop altogether and get under the sade of a tree. I sat down and waited for my heart to start beating normally again. After 15 minutes of this, and no change, I decided to abort the race. I bicycled and 10km back to the start, very slowly, and still my heart was 30 bpm above what it should be. Not until I had sat down in my car did it drop down to normal.

Result: DNF

Alpentour Trophy 2024 - 4 day stage race on MTB - Sixth place on General Classification in M50

Result: 6th place in M50

Race stats

Type: UCI Mountain bike race

Length: 4 stages / days, last stage is a shorter hill climb time trial

Location: Schladming, Austria

Bike and setup: Lapierre XRM (120mm/120mm suspension) with Maxxis Aspen 2.2" tires (1.5 bar)

Gearing: 32T up front, 10-52T in the back

Intro

I participated in this race for the first time last year, in 2023. When I took part then I was in a bit of a lull motivation-wise and had had a terrible Beskidy Trophy just a few weeks prior. I did very well in Alpentour and finished in 5th place (Alpentour Trophy 2023) I really enjoyed it and wanted to come back for more. Last year I did it at the end of my European trip, this time at the start. The stages this year are very similar, only the track for stage 1 and stage 3 have been swapped around.

Stage 1

Last year on this stage (which was stage 3 in 2023) I had the strategy to go out hard to get on some good wheels for the first 20 kilometers, before the big climb, and then to do the climb at my own pace. I made the same plan for this year and it felt like a good way to go.

From the start of the stage I was feeling slightly nauseous. I don't know if it's the altitude (Schladming is att 800 meter above sea level), the heat (it was hot), or my energy drink powder. I threw away the rest of the stuff after the stage and went shopping for new.  This feeling persisted throughout the stage making me drink very little. At the end of the stage I had barely finished the entire 900ml bottle.

Things still started off well. Up until the start of the climb I had a good group who were pulling me along. There were three M50 riders around me. I later figured out that the fastest of these guys finished in third place. So I was actually in third place there for a while.

Going up the hill I let everyone go and just kept my own pace. The three M50 guys did leave me behind but I kept pace with some other guys. Among them a young elite Danish guy from Odense cycling club. I did get passed by a few guys coming from behind but the situation seemed under control and I was pushing good watts (about 280W up the long climb). Going over the summit, where it's the steepest just before the top, I was about 2.5 hours into the race and really hot. There's a feed station at the top (at the 40 kilometer mark) and I took a minute just to pour water over my overheating head and body.

The downhill after the long climb is purely on serpentine gravel roads. My legs were really tired at this point and in a few turns where I tried to put the inside leg out in case the bike drifted I noticed that that leg started cramping up immediately. I had to be very careful but managed to keep rolling down the hill without having to stop to let the cramps pass.

The last climb, at the 50 kilometer mark, went really slowly. I noticed later on Strava that it had taken 2 minuter longer than last year (17m compared to 15m). I was very cooked at this point.Three M50 riders passed me here. However I was not as cooked as the previously mentioned Danish rider however: I caught up with him while he was lying across the path. He had heat exhaustion and/or cramps in the legs. But just as I overtook him he got back on his bike, overtook me back, sprinted ahead... And just another few hundred meters further on he had to sit down on the trail again. He actually caught up with me again on the last bikepark downhill.

All the stages end with a run through one of the bikepark downhills that end in central Schladming. I don't feel very quick there but actually caught one of the M50 riders who had previously passed me. He said: "You're quicker than me here, just go ahead and pass". That's never happened to me on a technical downhill before. Made me feel good.

I finished the stage in ninth place in M50. However just a minute or so down on seventh. So not too bad for a poor day. I was actually 4 minutes quicker than last year on the same stage.

https://www.strava.com/activities/11696479960

Stage 2

The second stage was another warm and sunny day. Not as hot as yesterday however. I got into the starting grid about half an hour before the race start but, unlike yesterday, I ended up waaaay back as a lot of riders had packed in before me.

I had changed my sports drink mix and had no problems with nausea today. Good!

The first part of the stage I spent a lot of time overtaking but getting into the steeper part at around 5k there were still riders packed across the road so went a bit slower that normal. 

Right after that steep part followed a short descent on loose gravel roads where I was passing cyclists on the outside of turns. This felt quite daring but perfectly in control. Good feeling that.

On the flat section right around 10k I got a good group and we went TTT style on asphalt catching groups that were ahead of us. Perfect!

The first climb, up until 22k, went well. Watts looked good. Still passing riders going up here. At the top of this climb there's an alpine station, a big house with a restaurant and plenty of tourists. You have to run up some stairs and then ride (if you dare) down stairs on the other side. Then it's downhill across a bunch of cow pastures (be careful not to ride through cow poo) and down gravel roads. The technical descent went well and I was still passing people here.

Second climb still felt good and I was fresher than yesterday. However on an flat asphalt road, right around 45k into the race, where we had just gone downhill for a long time, I was in a nice group of four riders... and then all of a sudden a strong cramp in my right back thigh muscle. I hoped it would go away but I had to stop and wait for it to pass. Just a few seconds though. But I lost the group. Just a few hundred meters further ahead there was a replenishment station and I stopped and filled up on drinks and took some snacks. Then the cramp had passed and I could go on,  however a little slower than before to be on the safe side.

After this followed the third and quite long climb at 50k. This climb became extremely steep at the top. Here I felt I was going really slow at around 200W, but still passing some riders. I noticed that I had another M50 rider on my wheel and this worried me. I really wanted to cross the finish line ahead of him. Towards the middle of the climb my watts dropped to below 200, all this while my heart rate was still around 160bpm. The M50 dude went ahead and I thought I would never see him again. However, just then we got to a super-steep part of the climb and he had to get off his bike and walk it. I managed to get up it (thank you 32T front chainring!) and I put some distance on him.

Next downhill went well and now I had no one around me. I could see no one ahead and the other guys that had been in my group had fallen behind. I could not see the M50 rider either. I was feeling quite tired at this point but pushed hard anyway up the last climb... And then it happened again! Cramp in my back right thigh muscle. I got off the bike, waiting for it to pass, but realized that I was losing time so I started walking while I was waiting for my leg to stop cramping. This just took a few seconds and I was on my bike again.

We finished with the bikepark downhill again and I managed to post my quickest time ever there. This is really hard when you have 4.5 hours of riding in your body and your brain feels like melted cheese. 

Finished in sixth place on the stage and this means I move up to seventh place overall. And the M50 dude that was behind me finished one minute after me.

https://www.strava.com/activities/11704731501

One thing I'd like to mention is how well my Shimano brakes have been working. If you've read this blog before you know that I've had problems with overheating brakes. I've had SRAM brakes on my bikes for the past 10 years. This time Shimano XT with biiiig cooling fins. No problems with overheating whatsoever during this race.

Stage 3

Here's an update a couple of hours before the stage start. It's been raining and storming all night. I've decided to change tires to wider and knobblier ones. 2.35" Maxxis Rekkon instead of 2.2"  Maxxis Aspen.

The weather forecast had predicted rain and cold weather for stage 3 but this never materialized. In fact in the start box it was warmer than the previous days. There was a german gentleman next to me Ralf Kropp, with the number 601 (so M60), whom I had a very interesting discussion with. He had ridden Cape Epic this year and finished 2nd. We talked a lot about mountain biking. Very friendly fellow with lots of experience.

Up the first climb Ralf was first ahead of me, then I caught him, he caught back up, and we traded places up that climb a few times. At the top I we had some 6-7 cyclists just ahead of us and I decided I did not want them ahead of me blocking in the next descent. So I sprinted over the summit and threw myself down the next downhill. This turned out to be an excellent move as it was very tricky with grass and wet roots. Overtook a few cyclists going down and didn't see Ralf for the next three hours.

Up the next climb I was feeling less perky and approaching the summit I noticed that the same M50 guy, 505 Wolfgang Steinbach, that I had battled yesterday was catching me. I increased my speed and as it got really steep towards the top I managed to put some distance to him. Next downhill was a built downhill track with berms and I knew I would have an advantage here so went as quickly as I could. I felt inspired noticing that I was quicker than my competitors going downhill. At the bottom it went steeply uphill again towards the middle point of the stage. I looked down after a while and saw that Wolfgang was just starting the climb so I had put some good distance on him

At the top of the third climb, as we approached the halfway mark, another M50 guy, 554, caught me and overtook. I was surprised as this was the first time in the race, all three stages, that I had even seen this guy. I talked to him and turned out he was Christian Siebert, who had been far ahead of me in the first two stages. This led me to the conclusion that I was doing well in this stage.

Next followed a long but boring downhill on gravel roads. I caught up with Christian on the next asphalt part but as soon as the second to last climb started he was off again. He looks about 1.50m tall and like he weighs about 50 kilos.

Fun thing then happened just as we went down the second to last descent, with about 10k to go: Ralf (M60) caught me and he seemed to be very fresh and had excellent legs. I got on his wheel and we kept company for the last 10k. He really helped me along there and raised my motivation. Thanks Ralf!

I finished the stage in sixth place and now managed to pass Wolfgang Steinbach and took over sixth place in the totals too.

Stage 4

Stage 4, which is a pure hill climb time trial starts in one hour. I have a 1 minute 20 second gap on Wolfgang who will be chasing me. Wish me luck!

Fifth place on the stage. Sixth in general classification.

Wolfgang turned on a road bike with gravel tires, no suspension, and looking very light.

Everyone started in 30 second interval with the quickest in GC last. That means that Wolfgang started 30 seconds ahead of me.

I caught Wolfgang already after 6 minutes and then just held him behind me for the rest of the stage.

I finished the hill climb 4 minutes quicker than last year.

Chiang Mai Winter Adventure 2023

The Stats

Days of cycling: 23

Total distance covered: 1846 kilometers

Average per day: 80 kilometers

Total moving time: 115 hours

Average rolling time per day: 5 hours

Strava KOMs: 5

Crashes: 0

Days of rain/wind/clouds: 0