After a brief overnight stay in Lyon, we took a 1-hour morning train to Grenoble on Wednesday, July 17. Even though K had done his homework beforehand about transportation options, we still ran into difficulty getting tickets for our desired bus to Alpe d'Huez. Ensuring we made it to the Alpe on time was probably my biggest concern for the entire trip. But, after some difficulties due to the language barrier, we eventually got where we needed to be.
We had originally planned to stay in Grenoble, as we did a couple of years ago, then figure out the logistics for getting to the mountain on race day. However, after persistently searching for lodging options on the mountain at the beginning of the year, I lucked into a condo through Homeaway that we could get for the desired days. I was beyond thrilled, as I really wanted to stay on the mountain to avoid the logistics nightmare that I knew getting on/off the mountain on race day would be.
While settling into our condo, we were able to watch the individual time trial of today's stage on television. Then, we headed out to enjoy the atmosphere on the mountain in the evening. I felt so very lucky to be here. Here's the view from our condo:
Our mini-podium:
We awoke to a rainy morning on Thursday, July 18, so we opted to stay in until the rain passed a short while later then we entered the masses already getting into their positions to watch the race. Here are a few sights from our walk through town as we headed a short ways down the mountain...
300 meters to the finish:
OPQ team bus with spare bikes and tires:
1k to go!
I can't get enough of this view:
Go Andy!
We eventually settled in at switchback 1 of the 21 famous switchbacks on this mountain and were positioned right across from the Norwegians who had set up camp in that area.
And, then it was time to wait. First up is the publicity caravan with their decorated vehicles and freebies for the crowd:
The caravan typically precedes the riders by about an hour, so it was time to wait some more. The great thing about the route this year is that the riders were going to make the climb twice for the first time in the Tour's 100 years (much to the sprinter's chagrin, I'm sure), so we were fortunate to see them twice and see how the race unfolded from the first to second climb.
A few highlights from the first climb...
Loved to see Jensie as one of the top few riders (as the oldest rider in the peloton, he's not letting age slow him down one bit):
I love Andy!
The Sky train with Movistar and Saxo Tinkoff in tow:
The gruppetto with Cavendish, Greipel, and World Champion Gilbert:
The motorbike with the time to the leading groups displayed was our first indication of how the race was unfolding as the riders approached for the final climb:
Unfortunately, Riblon was quickly approaching and would eventually overtake him at about 2k to go:
Porte escorting Froome up to the summit:
Voeckler in his usual huffing and puffing style:
Morabito showing appreciation for the support:
And, there goes the gruppetto again. Just in time before the rain started, too.
We made it back to our condo relatively quickly and enjoyed our dinner on the balcony...all the while people and cars were trying to get off the mountain. Been there, done that. No, thank you.
Again, I'm super happy that K humored my desire to come back to do this stage again, even though it is still a difficult stage to manage in terms of logistics. I can't fully describe what the atmosphere on this mountain is like - it's amazing! Tomorrow we leave the Alps and head to Paris for the weekend. There's more Tour to come! Allez, allez, allez!
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