A Ridge Too Far … And Then One More

I learned something very important about myself on yesterday ride (63.86 miles and 2,849 feet of climbing): Age and injuries have finally caught up to me … and I have limits.

Damn … I don’t like this whole limits thing one bit. But it’s true.

Yesterday’s ride was my 7^th consecutive day of riding, the longest ride of this trip and a ridge or two too far (and high). I blame my impatience. And the whole age and injuries thing.

I was going to take the 10:37 train from here (Tournus) to Macon and then do a loop that includes the Tunnel du Bois Clare. The tunnel is about a mile long, a former railway tunnel and the longest bike tunnel in all of Europe. And then, on to Cluny where there’s an old abbey, and then up and over two big ridges to get back to Tournus.

It was 9:30 and I was ready to go. And (of course) impatient. “What the hell,” I told myself. “I might as well ride to Macon, it’s an easy 25 Ks along the river. I think that will make it a 55- or 60-mile ride.

It was actually 30 Ks to macon, but easy and quite pleasant (there’s that word again). From Macon, I headed west over some rolling hills to the tunnel, and it was pretty darn cool. Here’s a video I shot …

I was the only one in the tunnel when I shot this and suddenly …

The lights went out!

“Damn, this is going to be interesting, trying to navigate my way out of this in the dark,” I mumbled. I could see the light at the end of the tunnel. It looked really far away. Dark tunnels are definitely spooky and it seems the further you go into one, the more disoriented you and your brain and bike become, and the walls get narrower and narrower and start closing in on you! I think what I just wrote is the definition of claustrophobia. Or dark-tunnel phobia.

I clicked into my pedals, started rolling and … the lights went back on. Thank goodness for motion sensors.

There was an incredibly steep hill right after the tunnel. I was in my big chain ring and it was too late to switch to the smaller one … and I barely made it up. I think it was at this exact moment, as I struggled to catch my breath at the top of this dastardly steep hill that age and injury caught up to me.

And the climbing had only just begun.

Here’s a shot of the Chateau Berze, near the tunnel …

On to Cluny, and then the final 35 Ks, which included climbs over 2 big ridges. I also rode through the town of Chardonnay. I had no idea there was a town with this name. I thought it was a region here in Burgundy or a kind of grape. It might be all three.

I made it over the second ridge, barely, and the final 5 Ks into Tournus were downhill. I was exhausted and it was a kind of total body, dehydration-induced exhaustion. I drank an entire 1.5 liter bottle of Volvic (my favorite French mineral water), showered (I was quite stinky), ate a banana, apple and some almonds, and fell into bed, too tired to nap.

And so, today, in a concession to age and injury: 33.5 miles and only 1,265 feet of climbing. However, it was one of the more scenic rides of this trip and I felt pretty good after the ride. I guess I need to learn my limits. Here’s a video and a couple photos from today’s ride ……

And here’s a portion of the Site Medieval de Brancon …