Day 01 // Let's Go Round Again

Words by Stuart Downie

Photos by Alex Duffill and Tomás Montes

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LET’S GO ROUND AGAIN

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The brazen buzz of freewheels slices subdued chat between the riders gathering under the warm glow of the ornate lamps lining the square beside San Sebastian’s town hall. It’s not until the final wave is ready to roll out that the sound of waves from the bay behind us can be heard echoing back. A street cleaner beeps nearby, its brushes hit the tarmac, and we’re swept away into the Basque hills.

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The morning passes without event. We’re glad to see Sergey Shulubin weaving his way up the first climb, having steadfastly stuck to fixed gear. Kudos. After the Start Parcours, most riders seem to take a similar route to the first Control Point, CP0. Lucas Strittmatter forges his own path, which looks to cost him a little time but the race is really very young here and if there’s anything to learn from following an ultra it’s that making early predictions is a fool’s errand (but it is also quite fun). Registration favourite Jamie Lowden has lived up to his promise and is carving out a nice little lead for himself. 

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The bright greens of the Basque hills, the verges of those trademark steep climbs fragrant with wild mint, give way to more open vistas. Rolling roads trail off to the horizon, toward CP1. En route to Parcours 1 dusty deep reds and browns, rocky terrain adorned with the bright red fruit of the dog rose and the dark blues of the sloe berries growing on blackthorns at the sides of the road. A day of many parts, and this is just the start.

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A little later, at the first passive control point, Franck Gabarrou (042)– who has been moving very quickly, dancing up the climbs in a manner reminiscent of much-loved Frenchman Julian Alaphilippe – stops quickly ‘for comfort’ and a tapa de jamon. Allez, Gabarrou! Former pro rider Maxime Agut (080) turns up moments later, and when we ask how it’s going, he merely shrugs: it’s going. He takes a look at his phone and leaves, something strange strapped to the back of his bike. When we see him later, at CP1 we get a close up: brown packing tape holds his trainers to the seatpost, to save his road shoes later when a bit of hiking is required.

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TRIANGLE OF SADNESS

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To put it lightly, there are some frowns to turn upside down. When riders undertake a race of this ilk, they will be presented with a series of problems to solve. This extends to the organisers, who today found out that the planned CP1 location had been double-booked, leaving no accommodation for our volunteers or control point for our riders. This has never happened before – contingency is to find a new location and share that information with the riders. Unfortunately, with CP1 being so close to the start, there’s not a great deal of time to share the news and unfortunately a few riders fell foul of this last minute change, having to ride back to CP1. Fortunately, the new CP location is on the route to the original CP, 12km closer, so even when it’s missed the distance is not insurmountable.

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SLOW RUSH

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There are different ways to discern a rider’s demeanor, from the way in which they don a casquette to their pedal stroke to just how they navigate a CP, but sometimes it’s hard to tell. Ariane Bouchard (008) arrives and seems in good spirits but immediately tells us she’s never doing this again. She’s a fan of riding and touring, and undertook TPR as a challenge, but maybe isn’t enjoying it as much as she’d like. She’s getting through the climbs with the help of a little speaker in her vest. The go-to is Madonna’s Like a Prayer – a great choice. 

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Hélène Fromenty (052) turns up a little later, smiling wide. She’s second woman into the CP, but hasn’t been looking at the tracker. Hélène has been enjoying the weather and the scenery, and even rode a little extra gravel. A little later, TPRNo3 rider Leyla Serbouti (072) turns up with a smile, gets her stamp, turns round and rides out – one of the fastest turnarounds we’ve seen so far. She’s keen to see Parcours 1 before the sun sets.

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Two riders come in within moments of each other, both having missed CP0. Race Director David Ayre is on hand to deal with the situation, giving them two options: carry on and be removed from the GC, or turn around and go back to CP0. Ian MacNab (056) is swift in response: it’s not going to happen. Tobiask Viskum Hogaard (115) has also missed the CP, and his response is a non-verbal fist bump. Both riders are happy to carry on with their Pyrenean adventure without having to turn around.

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Conor McKenzie (027) has also missed CP0, and we see him on the road before CP1. He’s turned back in the direction of CP0, but he says he’s not sure if he’ll continue, planning to get to Pamplona to consider his options. He reckons he’s lost 6 hours, which is a lot more than 30 minutes, but as Thomas Boury (109) says when we later see him at CP1 – the Pyrenees rewards patience. We hope Conor carries on with the adventure, there is still the finish ahead. Tom Cooling (116) also missed the passive CP, blaming his skim-reading of the manual. He made good progress in correcting his mistake, not letting it pull him down.

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Alvin Escajeda (003) had his phone on airplane mode when he reached the original CP and found it empty. Not ideal and he’s understandably disappointed, but he moves on quickly. A couple of beers take the edge off and he’s back on the road, looking up. The race is young.

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Nicole van Batenburg (087) also missed the change and comes into the CP as the third woman. She’s disappointed to lose time, but that emotion shows an underlying competitive spirit that we think will not be extinguished by the detour. 

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We leave CP1 with about an hour to sunset, just as former media team member Michael Drummond (081) arrives, shortly followed by another former colleague, Tom Probert (117). A heartfelt reunion ensues, with high spirits and positive attitudes the perfect way to leave the CP to catch riders in the last light on the next Parcours. 

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Burning bright at the back, David Hutchins (030) is our Lanterne Rouge. David bent his rear mech and later shipped his chain into the spokes of his rear wheel, necessitating a trip to Pamplona for a new rear wheel. We saw him running from bike shop to bike shop in search of the right parts, but he made it back on track by mid afternoon. Last we saw him, David was having a well-earned nap en route to CP0, and still stood a good chance of making CP1 before the time cut.

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