www.montcyclingtours.com

Sea2summit challenge

Monty — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 07:36:15 +0000

John Kelly and I are overwhelmed by the generosity of all our friends who have donated so generously to the RedKite foundation. We sincerely thank you and your precious dollars will certainly be used for a great cause. We have been training hard in preparation for the Sea2Summit challenge which commences Saturday 19th November, just a lazy 238kms with over 70kms of climbing at an average gradient of 4%…OUCH !! It is going to be a tough day but we are both very excited and hope that we have done enough training ??!! Speaking of which, I recently spent 4 days in Bright with a number of mates and family , riding in the mountains. Sensational riding with Mt Hotham being the highlight, that climb is one of my favorites (see photo below) I then took my wife and daughter to Canberra to visit the in laws and was able to get a few more solid days on the bike. Canberra is as a great place for training with hard dead undulating roads through the countryside.

I believe John Kelly has never trained so hard in his life ! His biggest training ride was 20 laps of Kew Boulevard, 280kms which took him 12 hours , the guy is a machine !!!

There is still time to donate through our home page

http://www.everydayhero.com.au/Montcycling_Team

We are riding this challenge with our thoughts and hopes for all the kids with cancer.

Wish us luck !!

Monty and JK

Redkite Charity ride

Monty — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 03:28:22 +0000

On 19 November 2011, my good friend, John Kelly and I , are participating in the Sea2summit challenge, arguably one of Australia’s toughest and most rewarding single day cycling event. We will commence in Merimbula on the Sapphire coast and finish on the summit of Australia’s largest mountain, Mount Kosciuszko, to help raise money for the Redkite foundation.

When John asked me to join him on this epic one day journey, my first thoughts were “gee, thats sounds pretty tough !”We have both climbed big mountains here in Australia and in France but nothing like this. To be honest, I had never heard of Redkite and the services they provide. I did some research and was very impressed with this organization and the amazing assistance they offer to those young people with cancer. I told John, “I’m in, this little ride is nothing compared to the journey these kids will endure !”

The ride covers 21 Category climbs with a climbing distance of 77.31Km, ascent 3079m with an average gradient of 4%. Overall distance 248Km, max elevation 2121m, total ascent 3820m, total descent 1742m.

Redkite has been providing real and practical support to children and young people with cancer and their families for over 26 years. Support is provided from the moment of diagnosis, through treatment and on return home to the community.

Currently there are approximately 8000 families affected by childhood and adolescent cancer in Australia. Redkite receives no government funding and relies entirely on the generosity of the community to provide these important services. To find out more, visit their website

http://www.redkite.org.au/

John and I would greatly appreciate your support on the day but we know that the kids with cancer and their families need your help even more ! Please find the link below to our home page where your kind donations will be well received.

http://www.everydayhero.com.au/Montcycling_Team

Cadel comes to Melbourne !

Monty — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 01:03:50 +0000

Cadel Evans returns to Australia to display his yellow jersey in his history making win in the Tour De France. An amazing achievement for an individual who has twice finished runner up in 07 and 08 and to eventually win is remarkable.

Having witnessed and experienced the race this year makes it even more special and one of the best tours for years. Cadel was more relaxed, comfortable with his team mates and receptive to the media which has not been the situation in the past. His preparation had been solid with wins in Tirrreno-Adriatico in March and Tour de Romandie in May. This was Cadels year and he certainly showed his strength and toughness in the mountains and his Time Trial in Grenoble was superb. He never wore the yellow jersey until the final day into Paris which meant less pressure for him and his team during the three week campaign.

There were many highlights of this years tour but I believe one of the smartest rides I have seen for years was Cadels win on stage 4 from Lorient – Mur-de-Bretagne. Cadel had to change bikes 15kms from the finish and his team mate, Marcus Burghardt, brought him back to where he needed to be. Then the veteran, George Hincapie, took over and set a fierce pace up the final climb and prevented other teams from attacking.

At the 500m mark, Cadel attacked, realizing that Thor Hushovd was still in the mix and could possibly out sprint them all if given the chance. Cadel was racing to victory on the drops into a head wind whereas Alberto Contador was sprinting on the hoods which I believe made the difference between winning and loosing.

It was a superb team performance and Cadels strength was evident on that particular day which set him up for the rest of the tour. It gave BMC additional confidence knowing that their GC contender was in good shape and a serious contender for overall victory.

You can not win the tour without a strong and dedicated team which included, Amael Moinard (FR),Brent Bookwater (USA),George Hincapie (USA),Ivan Santaromita (IT),Manuel Quinziato (IT),Marcus Burghardt (GER),Michael Schar (Swiss) and Steve Morabito (SWISS). These guys were instrumental in helping Cadel win the Tour de France in 2012.

Looking forward to venturing down St.kilda road on Friday to see Australia’s first ever Tour de France winner, Cadel Evans.

France – The last Hurrah

Monty — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 23:00:26 +0000

A Yell for Cadel!!!!

Yesterday’s win by Cadel in the Tour was historic, made even more special with us being in France to experience the Tour with Cadel and the 197 other riders that commenced teir journey through france, especially with us in the Pyrenees and the Alps. We went crazy with Cadel’s win in The Tour de France yesterday and it was a huge day in the history of Australian cycling. I am sure it has been well reported both at home and overseas; we waved the Australian flag proudly in our little village of Talloires on the shores of Lake Annecy.

Today was our final day in France and our final ride through the mountains of Col de Aravis and Colombiere – two famous climbs of the Tour de France in the Haute Savoire region, with Mont Blanc looking over our shoulders. Both are lovely climbs and not “leg shattering” like Ventoux or Alpe d’Huez. The temperature finally went beyond 20^oC so we were thrilled to feel the warmth of the sun on top of Col des Aravis. After purchasing a few pairs of alpine slippers, a couple of straw hats and some cow bells we descended back to Talloires.

Jen and Tom battled and won at the top of Aravis, John M found his mojo and also tackled the Col de Colombiere with great style and panache. His wish of climbing two famous Tour cols back to back during this tour had been accomplished. Well done John M. Unfortunately John K was unable to ride today due to a prolonged illness but was able to venture into Annecy to purchase a “ton” of gifts for loved ones.

Our final dinner was at “le Cottage” (French for cottage!!!) on the lake and it was a beautiful setting with the sun setting over the lake. It was thrilling that everybody enjoyed themselves for a seriously good French dinner, service, food and wine all first class and the setting…sensational.

Our bodies are all very tired, we have ridden over 700km and have climbed more than 12,000m (congrats to John M for taking GC). It has been a fantastic trip.

Tomorrow is a sad day as we all say good bye and go our separate ways. Thanks to Jen Trewhella, John Mieog, John Kelly and Tom Sullivan (and Cadel) for making this 2011 trip such a memorable experience.

Cheers

Monty

: A short break for John M, Tom And Jen at Col Des Arivais

The sceneray from the top!! Spectacular

A view Down onto Lake Annecy

A Final Dinner on Lake Annecy - Thanks Monty

History is Made – Well done Cadel

Monty — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 21:07:35 +0000

What an historic day for Australian cycling, Cadel Evans wins the Tour De France, how amazing ! No doubt most Australians around the world and at home who have any interest in sport would have been watching the time trial unfold in Grenoble this afternoon.

Our whole day was geared to sit in front of a tv somewhere and watch the race. Before we reached our objective we had to drive up and over the Galibier in thick fog (that mountain is a beast!) and then drive through pouring rain to our little village of Talloires on the shores of Lake Annecy. We arrived with plenty of time to get some provisions (namely local beer 1664) for the afternoon’s entertainment. It became obvious through the hotel lobby, reception and lounge area that we were Australians and cheering for our local hero, Cadel Evans.

Cadel and his team were superb during this whole Tour de France campaign and Cadel was certainly the strongest rider in the peloton and only fitting the he should win in such a fashion. We were all so excited by his victory that we decided to take a plunge in the lake at the curious wonderment and amusement of the locals. It was, at this stage, raining slightly and a balmy 19 degrees but the water was surprisingly warm, as was our enthusiasm and excitement. We have three nights here in Talloires and looking forward to riding through the Haute Savouir region.

Tomorrow is a procession for Cadel and his team in Paris but one thing is for sure, the Yellow jersey will be won by an Australian, congratulations Cadel Evans and the BMC team.

Going For a Swim in Lake Annecy After Cadel's Awesome Time trial

The Only People In The Lake - But Worth it

Annyone For Escargot

Sun, Sunscreen and Alpe d’Huez.

Monty — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 21:23:50 +0000

12 hours in Lycra, is that normal ? Probably not but this is the Tour De France and we were on Alpe d’Huez watching the final mountain stage finish of this great race and were not going to miss it !

Riding up Alpe d’Huez is always a thrill, particularly on the day of the race . We were certainly not alone as the whole mountain was gridlocked with cars, vans, trucks, people cycling and walking up the mountain. We found a spot only 50m from the 1km mark and marked our spot on a grassy hill and settled in for the next 6 hours and waited for the Tour to arrive. The weather was great which was a huge relief as waiting there for that long in cold conditions would have been miserable, but today, it was just right !

We all slept in the sun, ate , slept some more and before we knew it the Tour Caravan had arrived and we were getting bombarded with free merchandise left right and centre ! I woke from an afternoon siesta to see a very large Lion being driven by some crazy Frenchman up the mountain, welcome to the Tour. After we secured, 18 keyrings, 6 caps, 12 bags of lollies, 7 maps of Luxembourg, 3 bottles of water and a deodorant stick from the tour caravan, it was time to stand up and takes notice of the impending action.

Jen kept us updated all afternoon from the cycling central website on her mobile as to the current state of play in the race. Thanks to her, we were able to keep track of what was happening in the race every five minutes.

The roar went up the mountain and we knew the race leaders were not far away and before we knew it, they were in front of us and gone again. Cadel Evans did another superb race and it will be now down to the Time Trial to see if he can win. Simon Gerrans did a fabulous job today and we were surprised that he was so close to the leaders and flew past us solo.

We left the mountain at about 6.30 and rode up and over the Col de Serrene which is a beautiful little climb out and windy descent through treeless mountains. We eventually arrived back at La Grave at 8.45 , quick shower, beer and dinner.

Time Trial tomorrow, can Cadel bring back 58 seconds from Andy Schleck ? I’m going to bed now, it has been a long but sensational day.

Mont Cycling At the 1km Mark atop Aple D'Huez

Entertainmemt While waiting forthe tour

: Waiting for the Tour on Alpe D’Huez

: Ivan Basso Makes his final assault at stage 19

Part way down a challenging decent leaving Alpe D'Huez

So Close….yet so far!!

Monty — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 20:57:41 +0000

What a day, one of the biggest stages of the tour and we were right on the mountain, Col du Lautaret was going OFF today, the whole of Europe was on that mountain, how many will be on Alpe d’Huez tomorrow ?

The weather finally cleared somewhat yet it was still not the summer weather that we are accustomed to in France, 16 degrees is not exactly summer weather but “it is what it is !” Arm warmers, vest , rain jacket and legwarmers were required today as we climbed towards the Galibier via the Lautaret. Amazing scenery with huge mountain peaks, glaciers and thousands of people and cyclists moving up the road.

At 9.15 am we were stopped by the officials at Lautaret and were not permitted to ride the remaining 8 kms to the summit. I can certainly understand as there were literally thousands of people and the authorities had to control the amount of people on the mountain and protect the safety of the riders. We thought this might happen so we had plan B which was to descend approx 20 and climb Les Deux Alpes, a climb of 9kms, which was used in the Tour of 2002. Pretty tough climb of 7-8% and we thought we would reward ourselves at the top with a nice cup of coffee…aaaaahh No ! For some reason the French are amazing at food but very average at making coffee, why is that ? So after we wasted 2.50 Euros each for a luke warm , milky coffee, we descended back to the main road and climbed back up to our village of La Grave, 70kms in total riding which took 3.50 hrs.

We contemplated climbing the 11 kms back to the Lautaret in the afternoon to see the tour but the weather was looking dodgy and the amount of people up there would have made it nearly impossible to see the Tour at all , so ,we made the decision to stay in our apartment with the heater on and watch it on the TV…what a smart idea !

Andy Schleck was amazing, who attacks up a climb with 60kms to go with another monster mountain to come ? This was the ride of the tour and no one thought he would be able to stay ,away yet he did. It is now a four man race, Schleck x 2, Evans and Voeckler. Alpe d’Huez tomorrow after climbing the Galibier from the northern side, a much tougher affair !

Jen, Tom And John M at Col Du Lautaret

The endless line of campervans just getting ready for the Tour

An Encounter With The Infamous Devil

Jen And Monty at the end of the days ride

Arrival in the Alps

Monty — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 20:29:00 +0000

On the road again to spend the next three nights in the Alpes where the mountains sore into the sky and the air is amazingly clear and fresh. The eventual winner of the Tour will be decided over the next couple of stages, last chance for overall contenders to flex their muscles and we will be right there to see all the action.

As suspected, the drive took approximately 5 hours through windy roads, initially along the route from yesterdays stage. We eventually arrived at Le Bourg-d’Oisans at the base of Alpe d’Huez and had some lunch and bought some extra bike clothing because the weather is expected to be cold over the next few days. In fact the in joke is “Monty, next year you should schedule a cycling trip in the summer”. I have never known it to be this cold and wet during the Tour De France in fact it was only 4 degrees on the Galibier and snowing, look out for tomorrow.

Jen and John M. rode from Le Bourg-d’Oisans to our hotel in La Grave which is a 23km grind up the mountain with an average gradient of approximately 5%. In the meantime, the rest of us drove to the hotel and unpacked all the bags and got organized. La Grave is a small village 18kms from the summit of Galibier and is usually reasonably quiet during the summer months but not today. The place was full of people all getting ready to witness the Tour de France. The view from our hotel is amazing, we look out towards to La Meije glacier, jagged peaks covered in snow.

We had dinner in the hotel restaurant with approximately 40 other cyclists with the fire going and the heaters on…what’s going on there ? This is July isn’t it ?

Looking forward to climbing the Galibier tomorrow and seeing how far we get due to the weather. Also on the cards is Les Deux-Alpes later in the day.

Lavendar and mountains as We depart Provence for the Alps

Whoe are These Knuckle Heads

Definitely now in the Alps - A view from our hotel

More Rain – But So What

Monty — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 20:50:21 +0000

Beautiful rolling hills, endless vineyards, lavender fields and RAIN ! Who would have thought in the middle of summer we would have so much rain….. “C’est la vie.” But we had plenty of other options up our sleeve.

After spending 10 minutes this morning tucked under the awning of the local Pharmacy due to pouring rain, we decided that we should postpone our ride until the weather cleared. As we made this unanimous decision a huge clap of thunder roared above our head…yep, we are NOT riding today! As disappointed as we were, we still had the opportunity of driving up and over a few hills to see the Tour, which we eventually did.

By this stage the weather had cleared and we were slapping on the sunscreen, as Australians do, much to the amusement of our fellow Europeans lining the side of the road with us, did they know something we didn’t? The Tour officials and press arrived in its usual Pomp and ceremony with 5,000 motorbikes, 12,000 cars and 8,000 Gendarmes, why do they feel the need to travel at 70kms an hour through the crowds of people lining the road an hour ahead of the peloton?? “Je ne sais pas” (I don’t know)

The Tour went by in a flash and as we found out later the winner, Thor Husovld, averaged 46kms per hour – unbelievable. The crowd lining the road was amazing, here we were in the middle of rural France and we were three deep. People from all over the world, Dutch, Belgians, Spanish, you name it.

After we left the side of the road we decided to go for an afternoon ride, however, five minutes later, the weather turned – again, no wonder those Europeans laughed at us. After 30 minutes of riding, the decision was again made to terminate today’s ride and concentrate on our stomachs, fast becoming our favorite pastime and if you were here you would understand why.

Tomorrow we leave the “Department de Drome” and head towards La Grave in the Alpes, home of the big boys of the Tour, Galibier and Alpe d’Huez!

Le Tour Passes By

The Yellow And Green Jersey's In View

Vines, Olive Trees and Mountains

Its All About Ventoux

Monty — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 20:20:52 +0000

All good things must come to an end as we say to the goodbye to the village of St.Remy and head towards the Giant of Provence, Mont Vontoux. Every body thought it best we wear the Montcycling kit, so it was a sea of red in the van on the way north.

We arrived at the base of the infamous Ventoux – in the village of Bedion. We unpackrd the bikes and began our journey up one of the most celebrated climbs of the Tour De France. There is always a nervous energy when you begin to climb one of these mountains and your mind can, and does play tricks on you.. how long will it take? Have I done enough training ? will it hurt ? etc. By the time we started the climb we realized we were not alone, there were hundreds climbing the mountain along with us with the same thoughts and apprehensions as us. There were mums and dads with kids climbing old fashioned bikes with sneakers, old men with vintage bikes, mountain bikers, people with packs on that would have weighed 20kgs, you name it we saw it. We never felt alone, far from it, we were all in it together!

The climb is long and difficult with the hardest section in the middle through the forest which averaged 9% for 9kms…ouch ! The best way to climb Mont Ventoux is to be patient, ride tempo and try to enjoy the experience. We all made it successfully with much satisfaction, excitement and relief.

Every body is riding well and getting better and better. Tom is surprising everybody with his climbing ability, John K has a huge diesel engine and will go through and climb anything, John M was BOG today finishing strongly towards our village of Buis les Baronnies after Jen acted as his “domestique” after finally getting over her head cold and showing her true potential.

Tour tomorrow in the department of Drome and we will head out towards Nyons to see the action from the side of the road.

Mont Ventoux - 1912m Above Sea Level in Provence

Last 2km - 10% plus on the Mont (Moon) - Ouch

King Of The Mountain - Tom Sullivan

The Diesel Engine At The top of Ventoux - John Kelly

The Descent into buis Les Baronnies - John M & Jen