Pyrenees Challenge Blog

STAGE 5 - Tuesday 30th September
Bagneres de Luchon to Oust - 114 kms - 3460 metres

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 Oh my god, we have been tested!  Today started off ok with our first climb, the Col de Portillon for 9.5km and up to 1320m with a 7.3% gradient which wasn’t too bad. It was a scenic route through St Beat on the river Garonne which was used to guard the valley route into France from Spain.  There is a 14th century castle that looks over the town too so plenty to look at. 

However another two climbs before lunch got to all of us.  It was one of those days of demons and darks thoughts.  But considering we were climbing 3460 metres it was to be expected.  It was also day 5 and we all felt the pain in the legs which translated directly to the head!

The Col de Mente at 1349 metres for 9km with an 8.8% gradient was the leg burner and the pain was exhausting!…and then we had to do Col Portet D’Aspet for another 4.5 km at 1069m with a 9.7% gradient. We were told ‘this is a hard stage’ but they all were!

Lunchtime couldn’t come quick enough.  After lunch we thought we had a gentle climb just to finish the day off but this wasn’t the case.  The Col De La Core was written down on our info sheets as 9km’s.  It turned out to be almost 15km’s which was mentally disturbing!  It wasn’t as steep as other climbs with a 7.0% gradient up to an altitude of 1395 m, but because it was day 5 (only half way) and our 4th climb of the day it hurt real bad. 

Once at the top we got our thermals on as it was almost like winter cold.  The descent was on an old narrow road. We rode through Seix, a county town of the lower Salat Valley where there was a vine draped 15th century castle.  We then headed down to the town of Oust where we’re staying tonight and here we will ejoy a big dinner!

Overall, we’re feeling it now.  It’s taking its toll on the legs, lower back and head.  It’s a really hard day tomorrow so psychology will play a big part.  Will keep you guys updated. 

Warren + Lawrence

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 30th, 2008 at 11:08 pm and is filed under Pyrenees Cycle Challenge. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.