Today was day one of the Raid ride and began with a gentle ride down to the start point in Hendaye, Spain. We got our 'passports' stamped at the tourist office (a condition of being officially registered for the Raid ride) and we were off on our 160 km first day.
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| There are some great buildings in Hendaye, here is one! |
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| The ten of us doing the Raid ride. I continued with my pursuit of the goal of swimming in the Indian and Atlantic oceans, and the Mediterranean sea in my three week journey! |
Out guide says today was an easy day - if so, I am a little concerned about tomorrow and the next three days! It was a solid 160 km with 2500 m of climbing, mostly in short power climbs but with a couple of slightly longer cols included. For me, it was punctuated by another unneccessary fall, landing again on the hip I hurt in the fall in Australia - pretty uncomfortable but no real damage done, I don't think. Some amazing scenery, impressive architecture, great roads and several terrific descents!
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| Village square in one of the many small Spanish and French towns we rode through. |
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| A restored, original 2CV Citroen! |
We are currently in a hotel (Au Bon Coin) above the village of St Christo, and reflecting on today while being slightly (!!) concerned about tomorrow. Tomorrow's day is short on kms (only 130) but big on climbing (near 4000 m) with the Col de Marie Blanc, followed by the Col d'Aubisque and then the Tourmalet. There are some other, smaller cols too but not worth listing in comparison to these three!
It will be an interesting day, with the goal of leaving early and just maintaining a steady tempo through the day. It will be about 7 hours in the saddle with a stop for lunch making it an 8 or so hour day.
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