This is the nearest the average rider can get to understanding what it’s like to take on a high-mountain stage of the Tour de France. On Sunday 9th July 2023, the 31st edition of L’Étape du Tour will take place on the same route as Stage 14 of the Tour, from Annemasse to Morzine.
Around 16,000 riders will line up to face 157km of Alpine roads, with 4,100m of climbing, including the Col de Saxel (4.3km at 4.6%), Col de Cou (7km at 7.4%), Col du Feu (5.9km at 7.8%), Col de la Ramaz (14.3km at 7.1%) and Col de Joux Plane (11.6km at 8.5%).
It will be brutal, as it always is. I know this because I raced – OK, completed – the 2022 version that weaved its way from Briançon to the top of Alpe d’Huez. Myself and a huge contingent of fellow Brits – 35 per cent of entrants were from abroad, with the UK leading the way, followed by the US and Belgium – did battle with 167km of roads, taking in 4,700m of climbing.
In the run-up to that event, I prepared myself by tracking down experts in training, nutrition, hydration and race-planning, along with a selection of former pros, and squeezing them for advice that would help me make it through the ride (and give me material for my new book, Riding With The Rocketmen, available in all good bookshops).
There were streams of tears, streams of sweat and a sparseness of laughter. But there were also strategies and snippets that will hopefully hold you in good stead, should you be heading to the start line of the Étape this July.
1. The heat will be on
One of my most brutal memories from last year’s Étape du Tour was climbing the 2,067m Col de la Croix de Fer. I hadn’t felt too bad on the Col du Galibier, but that ascent began at 8am when the sun remained relatively passive. Come the Croix de Fer it had adopted a much more fierce persona.
There’s every chance it will be the same this year, with temperatures higher at the roadside due to heat reflecting off the tarmac. So try to acclimatise – by training in the heat back in the UK, you’ll enjoy a series of adaptations that are conducive to peak performance at the Étape.
I visited the heat chamber at Silverstone race circuit, where sports scientist Abby Coleman of Precision Fuel & Hydration told me, ‘The key adaptation is an increase in blood plasma volume, which elicits a lower heart rate, which reduces the strain on the cardio system, so your perception of effort is down. In many ways that’s linked to dehydration.
When you dehydrate, water is pulled out of the bloodstream through sweating. Blood plasma volume decreases so less blood is pumping around the body and less oxygen reaches the muscles. With repeated heat exposure, the body compensates by boosting this plasma, which helps you maintain a higher intensity than at the start of your heat training.’
That’s the theory, but most people won’t have a heat chamber in their back garden. Fear not. ‘Indoor training helps as you don’t get much of a windchill, apart from when using a fan, although you can also do what some crazy cyclists do, which is run a bath with the doors closed and ride beside it on their turbo trainer,’ says Coleman.
It’s not so crazy if it will help you get over the Joux Plane. And, as I tried a few times, you can reserve that bath for after your ride. Research by Neil Walsh of Bangor University showed that moderate exercise immediately followed by a 15-minute bath in 40°C water over six days, where bathing time rose by five minutes each day, resulted in a 4% improvement in 5km time-trial time in the heat.
The good news is that heat adaptation happens pretty swiftly, with five to ten sessions resulting in a lowering of core body temperature and onset of sweating earlier.
2. Book dinner now
Most people carefully plan what food they will take with them on the ride, whether it be gels, bars, rice cakes or whatever. But what about your meal the night before the event?
Last year, my carefully structured nutrition plan came unravelled when I couldn’t find anywhere decent to eat on the eve of the Étape, thanks to every restaurant being packed with cyclists ordering large plates of slow-release carbs. It resulted in a fast-food farce that was a long way from optimal in terms of fuelling for one of the biggest rides of my life.
To rectify the situation wouldn’t have taken long. A simple search of supermarkets and eateries near to my hotel would have done the trick. If the field’s expected to be large – as it will be – book ahead if you can.
3. Check your iron
While I was accruing knowledge for my assault on the Étape, I found myself spending time with Ineos Grenadiers in Andorra at a training camp – them training, me watching. There, my guide for the day as we shadowed Ben Tullett up a 30km climb was coach Adriàn López, who revealed how the riders underwent blood tests at the start and end of the camp to monitor physiological adaptations. This got me thinking.
Back in the UK, I undertook a blood test with sports performance company Forth Edge. The results were ‘normal’, apart from the one that I really didn’t want to be ‘not normal’ – ferritin. Ferritin is a blood protein that stores iron, so its level in the blood indicates whether you have iron deficiency. Iron is essential for making red blood cells to carry oxygen around the body.
This was useful information to help me prepare for an extreme event when I didn’t have the opportunity to train at altitude. The test cost around £60 (forthedge.co.uk) and I started on an iron supplement, backed up by several large steaks.
4. Recce like a pro
‘Look at the maps in detail,’ Andy Hampsten told me. I’d tapped up the 1988 Giro winner as he won a stage of the Tour that featured the Galibier, Croix de Fer and Alpe d’Huez. It pays to spend time unpicking the gradients of each climb, planning your pacing strategy and generally becoming at one with what lies ahead. VeloViewer is a good option here.
Hampsten also extolled the climatic virtues of a lightweight gilet or jacket for descents, and the sunburn-beating benefit of a good sunscreen.
‘When racing I used an alcohol-based option called Bullfrog, which I still use,’ Hampsten recalled. ‘It’s clear, tingles a bit but it really works – I never get burned. Just keep it out of your eyes. The soigneurs would also load us with wet sponges, which I’d place on the nape. You have a lot of nerves there and it’s close to the brain, so really helps with cooling. Now I take a wet bandana and fold it in half to make a triangular wrap. I keep the bulk of it on the back of my neck, loose so it’s not choking, and it cools nicely.’
5. Sleep for success
Team Sky’s sleep practices, including employing staff to carry the riders’ portable air-conditioning units and other sleep accoutrements between hotels, made headlines as part of the theory of marginal gains.
‘Good sleep is without doubt the most fundamental aspect of effective recovery,’ says Dr Ciarán O’Grady, performance coach at Israel-Premier Tech. ‘We work with Italian company Manifattura Falomo, which provides quality mattresses and pillows, to ensure that riders sleep on consistent surfaces every time they move hotels. It’s not easy to ensure that beds at race hotels are good quality, so making sure the riders are sleeping comfortably and effectively is a big boost for their recovery.’
Of course, most budgets won’t stretch to hiring a sleep stooge to carry a mattress and read lullabies each night, but if you fail to sleep well, studies show that you’ll suffer from decreased speed and power output, reduced reaction times, inhibited cognitive ability and an impaired immune system. In other words, you’ll ride slower, are more likely to crash and then will take forever to heal.
Here are a few tricks to help get some decent shut-eye: eat around 40g of slow-release casein protein around 30 minutes before bed (a small pot of cottage cheese or natural yogurt is good here); turn the room temperature down to between 16 and 18°C; fresh air helps, so open the window slightly; wear ear plugs and an eye mask to cut out noise and light pollution; and consider stuffing your usual pillow in your bike box – it could help you to acclimatise to unfamiliar surroundings quicker.
6. Break it down
However you look at it, 157 Alpine kilometres that rack up over 4,100m of climbing equates to one long day in the saddle. Which looks even longer if you picture the challenge as a whole. Instead, follow the advice of Noel Brick of the sports and exercise psychology department at Ulster University and see it through a narrower lens.
‘It’s a common tool, but chunking really works,’ Brick said. ‘Breaking down a difficult part of an event, like a climb, into a smaller distance helps to focus your attention on the moment, which helps you to pay attention to the practicalities. Am I sticking to 200 watts? Am I drinking every ten minutes? Do I need a gel…?’
Brick also suggests a sort of parabolic model of chunking. We’ll use the Col de Cou, the first of the three Category 1 climbs at this year’s Étape, as an example. It’s 7km long and averages 7.4%. In your mind’s eye, break this down as seven chunks of 1km, but count up to halfway and then down, so one, two, three, four, three, two, one. This has the effect of giving you an extra psychological nudge.
7. Be accountable
When I met bike-fitter and former physio to British Cycling Phil Burt, he hammered home to me how I wouldn’t reach my goals if I wasn’t accountable.
Burt said, ‘I remember when sports psychiatrist Steve Peters came into British Cycling and brought in what he called “holding the mirror up”. A rider would sit with him, telling him their problems and he’d say, “Is that a real problem or is that just you? I think we’re focussing on the wrong thing here. The problem isn’t your coach or kit, it’s you. You’re externalising failure.”’
Burt believes this lack of accountability is a major hurdle to progress. Self-awareness is a key trait of successful athletes.
‘At British Cycling, we had “what it takes to win” plans,’ he added. ‘On a big whiteboard, we’d state, “What is the goal?” This is where we are and this is where we need to get to. How steep is that curve? If you have four weeks and need to add another 150 watts, it isn’t going to happen. Goals must be achievable but challenging.’
In short, be realistic with your Étape ambitions. Assess truthfully where you are at and build a plan that is achievable. It might mean ditching your ambitions for a podium place, but you’ll enjoy the ride all the more.
8. Final considerations
One of the last-minute hurdles that I nearly clattered into was obtaining un certificat medical. This medical certificate is mandatory for any organised sporting event in France and is basically a document saying you’re fit to race. In theory, you can get one of these from your doctor. In practice, it proved impossible. Eventually I coughed up £65 to an events organiser who sent me an official certificate from a doctor, whom I’d never met, saying I was fine to ride all day over mountains and in oppressive heat in another country. It’s a mad system, but that’s how it works, and it’s unavoidable as the organisers cross-check certificates at registration.
Also, pay attention to the gearing on your bike – is it time to get a dinner plate-sized sprocket on your cassette? And think about how you are going to get your bike to France. A lot of money and preparation can go to waste at the hands of airport baggage handlers, so consider hiring the best bike box you can find.
I went for a solid Bike Box Alan (bikeboxalan.com), which had the dual advantages of being virtually bomb-proof and not requiring me to remove the handlebars of my bike, meaning less time faffing at the other end. At around £600 they’re not cheap to buy, but with hire prices starting from around £40 it was a worthy investment to ensure peace of mind. Finally, be sure you know how to get from the finish of the Étape back to the start. Last year there was a shuttle bus, but I left it too late to book, which meant it was full, and it resulted in me having to… well, that’s a story for another time.
• This article originally appeared in issue 141 of Cyclist magazine. Click here to subscribe