My friend/athlete Leah told me that the Alpe d' Huez triathlon was one of her favorite triathlon races. As I was searching for routes for our France trip, I realized that we were able to cover the entire bike course from the race. With our Airbnb located at the base of Alpe d' Huez, all we needed to do was ride towards the lake (near the town of Allemond) to start the bike course. With our athlete Bara in town from Czech, we headed out in the morning and warmed up our legs with a flat start to the ride.
For the actual race, the start for the L (Long) distance is at 9:30am. This gives time for athletes to bike to the swim start at the lake as the race expo/finish is centered around Le Bourg and the village of Alpe d'Huez. The distances for the L race are:
1.3 mile swim
73 mile bike (10,500 feet elevation gain)
11.9 mile run (1,150 feet elevation gain)
One we got on the course, the next 10 miles were fast as it was a gradual descend. The road was a bit busy as it was on a main road but there was a dedicated bike lane. It was then time to (finally) start climbing.
The first climb was the Col de la Morte.
Distance: ~8.8 miles
Elevation gain: ~3260 feet
Average grade: 6.9%
Elevation at summit: 4500 feet
I really liked this climb. Anytime a climb doesn't include grades over 10%, it feels manageable as I can settle into a good rhythm. The climb went through a village to start and then the road made its way through a forest with a few switchbacks. We finished the climb in the town and we were treated by a welcoming party for a new building for the mayor. As we were filling up our bottles at the natural water fountain, some of the locals started talking with us (in English) and they offered us food and drinks and talked to us about their village (they were really proud of it).
For the next 17 miles, we rode through some beautiful scenery. There were a few short climbs (but nothing steep or long). The valley was very quiet and we saw very few cars. This was one of my favorite routes and I could not stop smiling.
Next it was time for our 2nd of 3 major climbs. This was the Col d' Ornon (from the south). While this looked like a gentle climb, it was kinda annoying. It felt like a constant false flat on the exposed road as we went from a village into the forest. The scenery was beautiful but the climb felt more difficult than the Morte climb, even though it was much less steep. There was a natural water fountain in the village for us to fill our bottles before we started the climb.
Col d' Ornon climb:
Distance: 9 miles
Elevation gain: 1939 feet
Average grade: 4%
Elevation at summit: 4485 feet
After a fun descend back to the town of Le Bourg, it was time for us to make our final climb up Alpe d' Huez and tackle the 21 bends. This is a tough way to finish the triathlon the final climb is the toughest and it comes at the end.
Alpe d' Huez climb:
Distance; ~8.8 miles
Elevation gain: ~3600 feet
Average grade: 8%
Summit elevation: 6070 feet
I have to agree with Leah that this was an absolutely beautiful course. And because we rode a "triathlon" course, I did a short run off the bike (my first brick since Embrunman). I have had this race on my bucket list for some time now so I hope to check it off sooner than later.
