Back home in Texas

I didn't get a chance to update the blog over the last couple of days due to a busy travel schedule and spotty internet coverage in France.

We transferred from Annecy on Friday morning to ride

Alpe d'Huez. What a beautiful climb. It was totally different than Mt. Ventoux, with it's 21 switchbacks, you can see the progress you are making the whole way up the mountain. We had a great lunch at the summit, then bombed a descent back to the van at the base of the mountain.

Transferred the town of Privas where we checked in the hotel, had dinner and got ready for Saturday.

Saturday morning we loaded up and headed down the road a bit and unloaded our bikes for about a 30km ride to Bedoin which is where the climb to Ventoux begins.

Word was circulating that the Gendermarie's had already shut the road down just outside of Bedoin on the way up due to the large crowds already on the mountain. I decided to see for myself. While they did have a barricade up on the main road, some of us found a small pathway that worked it's way back to the route where we climbed back on our bikes and started heading up the mountain. I was able to ride to within about 2km from the summit where they did have it shut down. I came down just a little and decided to watch from there.

It was some spectacle, people from all over the world gathered to watch the fastest guys in the world climb Ventoux. When they came through, it was unreal how fast they climb such a grade.

After the finish, it's pretty much every man for himself to get down off the mountain as fast as possible. Bicycle is by far the best option, but close attention must be paid to avoid the drunk european pedestrians stumbling their way down the hill.

Sunday morning we took the TGV Bullet train into Paris. Headed to the Hotel Le Meurice which is where we watched the final stage overlooking the Champs-Ellysees. A perfect ending to a fantastic trip. Arrived in Dallas this afternoon.

Annecy Time Trial

Early this morning, I was allowed to ride the time trial course. For the most part the course was closed. It was great. The first 15 or 20km are fairly flat and you can really go, however at the 30km mark there is a short category 3 climb, the Col de Buffy.

While riding it on a regular road bike isn't too bad, I can't imagine trying to climb it on a time trial bike.
Afterward, we came back to the hotel and scoped out some good spots to take pictures of the pros.

While I was shooting the attached picture of Cadel Evans, he told the fan that he has plenty of time for autographs now that the GC is out of reach...lol.

The picture of Lance was right after he left the start house at the first turn.

Tomorrow morning, we leave Annecy and transfer to Alpe d' Huez where we will climb it and have lunch at the summit. Afterward we transfer to Privas for the night prior to Saturday's stage to Ventoux.

Annecy

We arrived in Annecy, France yesterday afternoon after transferring from Rochegude. We picked up the folks who are doing the second portion of our trip at the Airport in Lyon.
By the time we arrived in our hotel in Annecy, it was around five o'clock and I was pretty tired from the day I had yesterday, so we elected to take the day off off the bike.
Found a local laundromat and washed all my riding kits and explored around town for a bit before calling it a night.
This morning, we rode from our hotel here in Annecy to the summit of the Col de Colombiere which was the last climb of the day for today's Tour de France stage.
We had an added bonus to the ride when Chris Carmichael, who is Lance Armstrong's coach rode with us. He is a really nice guy.
The scenery was incredible and there were people everywhere. Just as I arrived at the summit, A storm was blowing in and I managed to make it under a patio umbrella along with dozens of other cyclists and spectators.
I didn't ride up with any raingear, or warm clothes, so I waited there until the storm blew over. It was actually pretty neat. Once it began to clear a bit, I carefully made my way down the mountain to secure a spot to watch the pros come through. I found a great vantage point at the 10km marker and camped out there.
After brushing up on my Spanish and Basque while chatting with some rather inebriated young men, the tour procession began.
It starts with the tour sponsors vehicle caravan which consists of everything from candy to tires. They throw samples to the crowds while flying down the mountain. (It's amazing what some people will do for a silly hat, or a small package of gummy bears while jumping in front of a fast moving truck!)
Then the motorcycle Gendarmerie come through along with the race leaders. It is amazing how fast these guys are actually going. Television does not do it justice.
Once all of the riders come through, they immediately open the roads back up and it is total chaos getting down the mountain. The best way by far is by bicycle. You can actually fly by all the cars which have to wait for hours to get down the narrow mountain roads. That was a lot of fun.
Attached is a picture I took today of Lance Armstrong and a few of the other leaders as they came through.
In the morning we are riding the 40km time trial stage. The pros will be riding in the afternoon.
It should be a blast.
KR

Finished Etape Today

I finished the 107 mile 2009 Etape du Tour today in nine hours. This was over what my time goal was, but I feel very fortunate to have finished within the ten our cut off.

This was the most difficult physical and emotional challenge ever accomplished, but at the same time the most satisfying.

My starting number had me in the very back cage, which meant that they started the clock at 7:00 AM sharp. I did not roll past the start line until nearly 8:00AM, so I had to

make up nearly an hour's time, in order to not be swept up by the broom wagons (buses), which were already lined up behind our start cage. (Not a good way to start the day.)
There was also a horrible crash on the descent of the first climb. A guy went over the side of the mountain and when I went by, they were loading him into the ambulance and had brought his bike up which was completely shattered to bits.

The first four climbs were very difficult, but do-able an I never felt that I would be in jeopardy of being swept and not making the cutoff time.

The atmosphere and scenery were amazing. I was either descending through lavender fields, olive groves and vineyards, climbing past breathtaking castles, or flying through the narrow roads of the small villages to the cheers of the locals.

All of this changed at around the 150KM mark. I went through our last feed station at the village of Bedoin and felt ready to finish this off.

I had around 22KM to the finish and I was feeling really good, and had not had any problems with cramping, or dehydration, even though the temperatures were into the upper 90's by now.

Leaving Bedoin, I make a left turn which begins the ascent of Mt. Ventoux proper.

The first few kilometers are fairly easy and did not seem to be too bad, however once the climb starts into the forest, it begins to get serious.

The road turns upward to 12% or more in a few areas and never seems to end. While it is in the forest, there seems to be next to no shade or wind, making it almost unbearable.

From the time I make the turn from Bedoin. there are some people already off their bike, either attempting to walk their bike up the mountain, laying in the bushes on the side of the road vomiting, or screaming out in pain due to cramps or some other ailment. It's difficult to understand the French, even when they are writhing in pain.

I labor on.

When I finally emerge from the forest section of the climb, I am totally out of water and I'm beginning to feel like shit. I arrive at Chalet Reynard, which is a ski station in the winter, however today it was to be used as the last water station for the riders. Of course in the French tradition when I arrive they are totally out.

Fortunately there is a small store there where I was able to fill my bottles and continue on.

At this point there I am only 6KM to the finish and I have come out of the forest to the most amazing views in Provence. There are couple of more kick ups, but since you can finally see the summit, they don't seem quite as bad as when your buried in the never-ending forest.

I stop briefly to snap a picture at the Tom Simpson monument, who was British cyclist who died on the mountain in the 1960's.

After this it's only around 1KM to the top, and with crowds cheering you on. it seems like a very fitting day to an epic ride.

I will also be doing the climb on Saturday, July 25th where we will be finding a spot on the mountain to watch the pros climb it.

I always knew that this was going to be hard, but until you're there, words cannot describe it.

Tomorrow, we are transferring in to Annecy, where we will be watching Wednesday's time trial stage of the tour.

KR

Day before Etape du Tour

Greetings,

It is currently Sunday, 9:15pm here in Rochegude, France.

We went for a 100k ride yesterday with a couple of moderate climbs and ended up at the village of Bedoin at the base of Mt.Ventoux. This will be our finish for tomorrow.

In the afternoon, we went to the Montelimar to sign in where they also had a huge expo with all of the tour sponsors and vendors, very cool.

Finished the evening with a great dinner.

Terrific cool weather. Went for an early easy spin this morning prior to the guys loading our bikes in the vans for tomorrow.

We watched the tour on french tv and relaxed at the pool this afternoon.

Another great dinner, watching the sunset from our room at the chateau over the alps.

Getting my kit ready for tomorrow.

4:30am wake up call... Etape tomorrow

Arrival in France

I landed in Paris Yesterday morning after an uneventful flight.
Took the TGV Bullet Train from Paris to Avignon. It was a really cool ride. (Very fast)
I was a bit tired and dozed off a few times as the French countryside flew by.
Got to Avignon around 5:00pm checked into the hotel and took a short nap. Five hours later I was wide awake. Took a cab into town centre where they were having Avignon fest. The streets were packed with people, bands and exhibits. It was really cool. I got a bite to eat, walked around a little, then back to the hotel for a good nights sleep.
Friday Morning...
The folks from Velo Echappe picked us up at the hotel for a short bus ride to the village of Rochegude.
Ted, the mechanic from Mellow Johnny's built our bikes up while we watched the tour on French TV.
Went for about a 2 hour spin in the rain over a couple of moderate climbs.
Had a great dinner and met all the folks that I'll be riding with the next few days.
A cool front came through and the weather is great now.
We plan on doing a nice ride tomorrow and a preview of the Mt. Ventoux. Probably about a 100k, then off to Montelimar to pick up our bib numbers.
I'll try to post up some pic's tomorrow.

Last minute preparations

Rode 100k in Weatherford, Texas on Saturday.
This was my last long training ride prior to France.
Went to Colonel's Bicycles afterward and dropped off my bike where they will pack it up for me for the flight on Wednesday.
I rode 40 miles this morning on my old Bottecchia. It's still a fun bike to occasionally ride, but probably not the best choice for climbing Mt. Ventoux.

1 week from France

July 8, 2009 6:00pm

This was my last Wednesday evening training ride with the guys prior to my trip.
I told them that I feel really bad that I won't be with them for next weeks ride, but if they look towards DFW Airport they might catch a glimpse of an American Airlines 777 heading to Paris.
The heat is still brutal here in North Texas, but we went for our usual 36 mile Monday/Wednesday loop at a decent pace.
I will probably do a 100K on Saturday, then it's off to Colonel's to have them break the bike down and get it boxed up for next weeks journey.
After that I plan on some easy spins on Sunday and Monday on my old Bottecchia. I think I still remember how down-tube shifters work...
That will probably do it for my training until I get to France.
I feel pretty good that I've put enough base miles in up to this point, I guess time will tell.

I better start packing...

KR

10 Days Out

Had an easy spin on Friday and a good long training ride on Saturday.
Woke up ths morning to a strange wet substance falling from the sky, I think they used to call it rain. Had planned for an early ride before the heat got too bad, but that wasn't the case. Decided to drink coffee, watch stage two of the tour and watch it rain.
It began to let up so me and some of the boys decided to give it a go.

1:00pm:
We leave from the Keller Town Center which is our regular meeting point. Get about two miles in and the rain starts again. However there's no lightning and it's not too heavy so we keep going. Ended up with about a thirty five mile recovery ride.
It was a good way to end the week.
Had a total for the week of 200 miles, down from 250 last week.
Will begin to taper the mileage off the next two weeks to get some recovery.
Time to fire up the grill this evening and prepare for my last full week before France.
KR

Two weeks out

July 2, 2009

Greetings,
My name is Jon Kobey Ratliff.
I'm a 47 year old guy from Fort Worth, Texas
I used to race road and mountain bikes seriously in my younger days,
(It doesn't seem like it's been nearly twenty years!)
Raising a great daughter, juggling a family and a career tends to detour one's ambitions of ever becoming a professional cyclist, that and the fact that I was never that fast even when I was younger.
I always had the dream of someday racing in Europe.
In a little less than two weeks I will be doing just that, well sort of.
I will be competing in this year's Etape du Tour amateur bicycle race which is 107 miles from Montelimar, France to the summit of Mont Ventoux which will be taking place on July 20th and will be the same route as stage 20 of this year's Tour de France.
While the pros will probably be completing this stage in around five hours, I'm hoping to finish within eight.
I have created this blog for those who are as passionate and crazy for this sport as I am and who might be interested in my thoughts leading up to, during and after my trip.
I would like to thank Gusti, Laura and Debby for their support and encouragement in my training and preparation for this trip.
I also want to thank the guys in the FCS Cycling Club in Keller for kicking my ass all over the roads of Tarrant and Denton County, Texas over the last several months.
You guys have definitely motivated me and pushed me to become a stronger rider than I ever would have on my own.
Doug and Rick at Colonel's Bicycles in Fort Worth, Texas for their long friendship and superb mechanical support.