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Last Updated: 2 Apr 2018 - 8:45:17 PM |
Hi all,
Still in Spain and I cannot get my computer on line so I guess these pages will be a little late, it is so frustrating. We are being managed this week by a former Director of US Postal Dennis Gonzalez a Frenchman and a really good director. He stopped with "The posties" last year after 6 years with the team and is going to manage us when we race outside the Benelux countries.
9-14 May Vuelta a Asturias 2.3
Stage 1 Prologue 5.8 kms 15' 24"
Yeah!!!! 5.8 kms but all up a 20% hill. My legs just blocked and I lost over two minutes to the winner. It's obvious that they want a home winner with Spaniards filling the top ten places. I was far from the last rider with some guys losing more than 4 minutes.
Stage 2
The rain is so heavy here at the moment it is forming rivers on the road. When I went back to the car for my cape they asked if I needed a snorkel. I discover today that a Cat. 4 climb in Spain is similar to The Wicklow gap only 5 kms longer. Today we have 3 cat 3 and 2 cat 4 and I get over them better than expected but when we hit the last 20 kms it flattens out and I am back in control. I never come out of the first 15 riders during the run in with Van Haecke glued to my back wheel, I love this, The bumping and barging, the swearing in 5 different languages and all at light speed. We hit the last corner in about 8th wheel. Michel narrowly misses a crash between two Banesto riders I go left and wide jumping a sliding Pinarello in the progress. Michel 9th and I 14th but I felt really strong and that is the important thing right now. Henk Vogels wins after a superb lead out from his Mercury team.
Stage 3
Nice wake up call this morning with "the vampires" (UCI drug control) banging on the door at 6am. Got up went down to the lobby and waited for my test. Had my blood taken, ate a croissant and a coffee, and back to bed for an hour. Could not sleep again and a pity because this was a really nice hotel and I was having a great nights sleep. These blood tests are a real pain but I am in favour of them pity they can't pick a better time to carry them out though. Very mountainous stage today with 3 cat 2 and 2 cat 3, Hung on well until the last kms and then just cruised home in the groupetto. Rain, rain, rain.185kms, Winner Angel Edo.
Stage 4
Today's stage finished at the top of "The Alto del Viso", Average gradient of 14% for 7.5 kms. Pretty savage end to a pretty savage day with 2 cat 2 and 1 cat 1, We have nicknamed the climbers "the smurfs" because of their size and when they let loose on those climbs it's just bite your stem and hang on. We are climbing Cat 3 climbs at 40 kph on the big ring. I stay in the front group until the climb to the summit and then came home with a large group. I have a sunburnt head from the strength of the sun at 2000 meters it's impossible to wear a helmet on the very steep climbs, but I take it from the car before the descent starts. At least the weather is coming good.
Stage 5 175kms 2* cat.2, 2*cat 3 mountains
Really tired today but I am determined to finish this race. Dennis our manager told me that the big mountain stages in the big 3 tours are no harder than the last few days so I feel good about getting through them. Today is D-Day for the leaders, a similar finish to yesterday but with a 10 km climb to the summit and a little steeper at an average gradient of 15%.. There is also the obstacles of 2 cat 1 climbs and a Hors Categorie climb (out of category) to contest. I am feeling really good today probably because the end is in sight and so many riders have stopped, or been eliminated for being outside the time limit. This is the hardest mountain race I have ever done and the quality of the field is motivating me. Surprisingly I tackle the climbs today with the real climbers and stay on Virenques wheel all the way up the 28km Hors cat. climb. You think you are nearing the top until the cloud breaks and you look up to see the lines of spectators and cars many hundreds of meters above. I grit my teeth and dig in. Over the top I grab some newspaper put it up my jersey and begin the long descent to the next Cat 1. and then the next one. I am still in the front group but all hell breaks loose on the last climb of "The Rannoiro". Time to take a back seat and concentrate on getting up this thing. 39*23 all the way from bottom to top Relentless that's is the only word I can think of as I climb to the sky. I dream about a long cold can of coke and promise myself that when I get to the top I will savor that cold feeling as I am exploding with the heat. My concentration is broken from time to time with kids running beside me asking for my hat or my bidon I want to tell them to "You know what" but the demand for oxygen does not let me get the words out. I pass Joukov from Big Mat dying a thousand deaths from going too hard at the start, then Danny Pate from Saeco in a similar condition. This climb is unreal. I finally get to the top and one of the Coca Cola girls hands me that Coke, my prize for 193 kms and 9000 meters of climbing, but it's all I want, and I take it slow, after 3 more I head to the car. Olano has lost 8 minutes on the final climb along with Etxebarria and a host of other stars.Joseba Beloki (Festina) takes the laurels and looks to be in command with the yellow jersey firmly on his back.
Stage 6
Last day, Festina set a fast tempo from the start and come under constant attack from the other contenders. Again very mountainous with 2 cat 2, 3 cat 3, and 1 cat 4, climbs. 170kms, but I gain motivation from the fact that it is the last day and I am sure to come out of this tour with super condition. There is a cat 2 climb 10 kms from the finish and the field goes to smithereens. Nearly half the field have abandoned from the original 180 starters at the start last week in Oviedo and we finish today back in Oviedo to an enthusiastic crowd lining the finishing kms. It was a good experience and I am happy to finish. Edo wins his second stage, Beloki the overall. Tomorrow up at 5 am for the 500 km trip by car to Madrid then home by plane to Belgium. I have 1 day rest then a kermesse race and then I am off to the Tour of Japan. Just enough time to do my washing.
Talk to you all later,
Morgan
IrishCycling.Com: Would like to thank Morgan for allowing us to share his diary
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