I saw recently on a club member’s strava the ride up of the Olympic (?) Distance guys - crazy crowds… pure FOMO!
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I have been in the town several times outside race week in the summer (and will be back there next week). There is enough going on with endless throngs of cyclists to keep one entertained via socialization with other cyclists in restuarants etc.
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I did the registration a couple of days in advance at the top of the mountain and then dropped of my run gear at T1 in the morning (or the day before when we could drop off the bike, I can’t recall). Either way my stuff was in a bag in T2, and they did transport back by gear from T1.
As Dev commented - Bourg is a mecca for cyclists from all over so every night there were people out and about. The small amount of time I spent at the top of the mountain I did not find that appealing vs the valley - shops, restaurants, etc.
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From past trips, I did not see anywhere that I could swim at the dam at Lac Du Verney on a regular day but it appears on the east side right after you ride across the bridge, there is a spot that one could swim from.
I want to try to do a solo self supported short course version of the tri when I am there next week. Alternatively I can swim in the 25m outdoor pool in Bourg D"Oisins assuming it is not a shit show of kids and tourists randomly floating around. Also is the water like 13C or more like 15-18C. With the heat wave in france, the water in that lake will just get colder as snow from higher elevations all melts and fills up the dam with freezing water
The swim in the Lac du Verney is forbidden at all times except for the triathlon.
I guess they don’t want us sucked into a hydro dam turbine. I thought is was something like that!
With the Marmotte course so close to 180km I wonder if anyone has attempted an AdH iron distance from BdO.
I think you’re trying to bait me. In 2007 I embarked on a solo marmotte, but halfway down the Croix de Fer to St. Jean du Maurienne, the road closed and I have to climb back up to around 1700m from 800m or so to Col de Mollard…then from there, to St. Jean then to St. Michel, ran out of food and water on Telegraphe because it was Sep and literally everything was closed, but managed to get into a Pizza place in Valloire, ate 1/2 of a large pizza with Coke, climbed Galibier drinking two more bottles of coke while eating the other half of the pizza that I got rolled up in tin foil in my jersey pockets, crested Galibier, and then proceeded to almost bonk again on the dowhill by barrage du Chambon…pulled in to Bourg d’Oisins and looked at the 22 switchbacks and said, “fuck it, this is insane I am finishing this tomorrow” got up at 5:30 am the next morning on the bike at 6:30 did a 1:08 ADH climbs, came down by 8:30, packed up and got in my rental car, drive to Geneva and made my flight back to Canada with a 50 min to spare. No way I would be able to tack on a swim and marathon
My story may be getting better than reality 18 years later so in case I lied above, the story from 2007 I found here:
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When I stayed at Bourg last year I went to go in the pool and swiftly thought against it. Instead I cycled a little bit outside of the town, walked down a path and swam in the gorgeous Lac De Buclet. Much nicer, gorgeous scenery.
OK I am trying to find this lac de Buclet which I did not know existed. Do you just take the dirt path beside the river and follow it . Can I drive/bike there (It looks like a dirt road?). What is water temp like. Can I swim with no wetsuit? (I assume no in which case I have to pack one)
No, there is an actual road that runs out the back of the town to “Le Lac Blue” so you can drive/bike there, then it’s a little bit of a path up to the actual lake. I cycled, then just left my bike and bag next to the lake where there was a family (I presumed no one would be around to steal it)
I did this in August and didn’t wear a wetsuit, the water was a nice temperature.
I found lane swimming in France a bit of a pain.
Strange rules, aggressive locals, etc.
Then there was a pool in Geneva where I tried to use paddles… apparently that was a big nope.
To be fair, I can’t use paddles at my pool here in Liverpool. Not sure why, can only think they have caused an injury in the past
Haha, the only person to steal your bike while you swim at that Lake is probably the ten posters on ST who read this thread!!! So we know who to track down if my bike get stolen at that lake while swimming there!
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I did the race 2 years ago. Plane, train and bus to get there. I stayed at the top. I hired a bike and a wetsuit for the race.
Great race. Fantastic physical challenge. After the race I stayed in France and did a 10 day cycling tour which was awesome fun.
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Absolute nonsense. Can injure someone in the pool without paddles. Should we cut off our hands to swim?
Some geriatric probably complained they “look dangerous” and got them banned.
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What was the date you are going to be there Dev, need to update my calendar.
PS What size frame do you ride again?
Where are you located these days?
I am in Bourg D’Oisin until Sunday morning (24 Aug). Long story but had to change my plans due to family stuff, so the gradiouse Alps + 70.3 Vichy got compressed into 3.5 days of Alps riding only .
But damn, I need to do this every year. I left work mid afternoon Wed and was already in Bourg d’Oisins having climbed les deux Alps + 1/4 ADH + 30 min transition run literally before my team back home in Ottawa got going at work on Thu (OK, there was not much sleep involved). But I really need to do an extra long weekend every year of this…this place is just “cleansing for the soul”
Some observations that I already confirmed:
Doing these climbs a few weeks from 60 is way harder than at 19.
First time out there, I was riding with a 42x21 (2:1) and nothing seemed that hard…now I have a rental with small gear of 34x34 (1:1 ratio) and every time it goes over 7% it feels like a wall
10lbs of extra mass over my last time here in 2016 is not helpful with the decline in aerobic capacity…I need to get on the cabbage and water diet, but this is what happens when you swim 20km per week and barely bike 150km and shuffle 30km vs on the weekly 2km swim, 350km bike, 60km run program. All that time in the pool is not helping me on these hills.
Descending these mountains on a disc brake equipped rental make racing buses and cars down switchbacks way more fun (don’t ask me why I am acting like a 19 year old when I am supposed to be a responsible on the verge of being retired human…life is just worth living)
Descending on 30mm tires at 50 psi just feels so much better than 19mm tires at 130 psi !!!
So I am going to see if today (Fri) I can convince my buddy to maybe consider the Marmotte Loop minus ADH and save that for Saturday. It would be my longest ride in distance since 2015, as I have not ridden longer than 4 hrs in a decade. Let’s see. Once we go down the backside of Croix de Fer, at that point you’re committed to ride the valley from St. Jean to St. Michel, and go up Telegraphe, get a pizza and cokes at Valloire and then slog up Galibier North side…I am likely typing up an adventure novel that my legs and heart can’t handle though !!!
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