FROM THE RACING DIARY OF A BIKEPACKER LUBOŠ SEIDL: IBERICA TRAVERSA #6
26. 07. 2019
Day 9 Sunday 21stApril 2019
Pamplona –Saint-Jean-de-Luz 111 km / 2.013 m superelevation, time on route11:02
We slept just fine, there was nothing to disturb us. We both woke up a few minutes before the alarm clock. We were still lying in the sleeping bags when the door swung open at 6:28 AM and there was a lady in the security guard uniform looking into the hall and asking what we were doing there. There followed a debate in Italian-Spanish, which I did not interfere with. She said we had triggered the alarm by opening the door and the municipal police were on the way to us. When she understood who we were, she reported by wireless that everything was OK and asked us to leave the area within 5 minutes. We put on our clothes in a hurry and pulled everything out in the car park where we packed everything. I had never packed so quickly and efficiently during the whole race. The lady was so kind that she advised us where to wash our bikes and we went.
My rear wheel was squeaking incredibly. I had a look at it there was a free motion from one side of the fork to the other. I couldn't tell whether there was any bearing at all. It is was almost impossible to freely rotate the cassette. Oh my God, I hope it does not fail the last hundred kilometres before the finish line. On the day before, we had agreed with Nikola that we would make the day a sightseeing demonstration ride and arrive at the finish line together. And now this... We set off and rode into Pamplona that lies on the way of the pilgrimage to Santiago. It was Easter Sunday so the pilgrims had already set off. This was also reflected in the infrastructure, and there were sweetshops offering breakfast open all over the town along the route to Santiago. We went into one, had a coffee and some croissants and shared a two-litre bottle of Coke. After breakfast, we passed through the historic centre of Pamplona, took the compulsory selfie at the last CP6 and left the city.
Just outside the city, the route rose up the hill, at the top of which was a former military fort, where we had originally planned to bivouac. Somewhere below us, we heard the sound of a police car beacon, and we joked that they're coming for us when they had such a fast response time that they responded at 1:00 at 1:28. When we reached the fortress, the paparazzi Andy was already lurking there. We spewed at him a sequence of last night's experiences and rode on. I could not ride very fast. I had to ride very carefully down all broken downhill trails and I could never stop turning my feet. The only moment when the bike was not making any sound and worked somewhat normally, was when I was going uphill using one of the three lightest gears when the wheel was stabilized by the pull of the chain and was turning normally.
We were in the foothills of the Pyrenees and near the ocean and this was reflected in the nature of the landscape. Also, the character of the villages was quite different, much richer and you could see that there was lively tourism. Normally, I would have used my all-in gear there and enjoy the speed in a slight descent. However, in the situation, I winced every time I heard a new shrill metallic sound. It was already clear to me that the rear axle had broken and the bearing jammed (in random order) and the wheel was spinning only on the fixed axis screwed into the frame. It had probably started the day before when I had replaced the brake pads, thus changing the orientation of the axis against the frame and it had got worse in subsequent descents when I could already feel that the bike was wobbling a bit. And the last "drop" was the evening storm, mud, and rinsing in the fountain. On top of that, the load of the loaded bike…
When we left the bike path, there was only the last hill to the border with France. It was so steep that I could hardly push my bike, but for me, it meant that I could spare the bike, so I welcomed it. There are some strange places/facilities in the hill. Some sort of mini fortifications or rather gun posts or original machine gun nests which might have served for border protection. We crawled up and found ourselves standing on a forest trail above the beginning of the descent. We studied our mobile maps to verify that we were really standing on the border with France. “We have just ridden all over Spain from the south to the north! Wow!” When we realized that, it was really a GREAT feeling. We congratulated each other.
There was only the last 6 km downhill ride and then a 10 km journey through a few villages to the sea ahead of us. We went down and the descent was not a piece of cake at all: wet terrain, roots, mud, slippery round stones, stream crossings. I almost wanted to cry for the rear wheel… I did not want to end there… I had to make it to the finish line. Then Nicola said 14. "It's now or never, the bike is as good as done and I can get there on foot if necessary." I persuaded myself. I released the brakes and ignored the noises below me. The bike held somehow and suddenly we were on a tarmac road. I kept the pace that the bike was able to withstand and we rode through one village after another. Nicola counted down every kilometre. About six kilometres before the finish, he reported a bike service by the road saying I could visit it after the race (if it wasn't a public holiday).
Four kilometres before the finish, Andy joined us on his bike, shooting a video of us and taking pictures, and I had no idea why he was laughing when my bike emitted one of those horrible sounds again. Nicola reported 3, 2 and I could see the joy and euphoria in his face. I was also excited that we were going to make it but I just couldn't enjoy it and rejoice. But I was also moved by everything we had gone through and what we had achieved. I just imagined it a bit differently.
Last kilometre. We were already in the historical centre of Saint-Jean and just had to reach the lighthouse on the ocean shore. I finally released all that stress. Nicola and I grabbed hands and crossed the finish line together.
Great. We are there. We have done it. We have ridden across the whole Spain and seen places which most Spaniards fail to see in their entire lives. It was wonderful, we greatly enjoyed ourselves and besides our experiences we also have a new friend we can rely on.
Friendship is more than victory! Thank you, Nicola!
Lucas was waiting for us in the finish. He had withdrawn from the race somewhere near Cuency and had to be back behind the teacher's desk before his Easter holiday was over. We had a photo taken together with Nicola in front of the lighthouse and the ocean using all the cameras and phones we had and then we all moved to the restaurant (which, as I learned later, caused confusion among everyone who was watching our finish using trackers on the Internet) We called home and I finally heard my children after two weeks.
After dinner, we picked up our civilian clothes from Andy's car and moved to the hotel where we had a room booked. It was still light and we did not have to go anywhere, so we took a shower and went for another dinner and finally a beer in the hotel restaurant. We watched the tracker and saw that Alex was somewhere beyond the Bardenas Reales in front of the wind turbine ridge quite a long way from Pamplona. Jessee was just entering the desert. We expected that Alex would arrive the following evening and Jesse in two days in the morning.
Nobody else continued in the race. The other two Italians, Stefano Cento and Piero had given up in Cuenca and continued on the tarmac road, more or less copying the route to the finish line. Stefano Cento and Nicola were friends from the same club so we knew they were planning to arrive after Jesse, as Jesse deserved to finish fourth and it would not be fair if they arrived before him.
Nicola decided to wait for Alex, and I had a week to depart from Bilbao 180 km away, so I had two days off at the finish line to wait for Jesse, and then move along the ocean to the airport without any hassle.
Alex arrived a day after us, we both greeted him and then we went to sit and chat. After half an hour, Alex got up and left for the train. Nicola left an hour later.
Jesse incredibly mobilised his strength, and the last night he rode across the desert to his destination without bivouacking. He arrived at 2 AM on Tuesday. I went on my squeaking bike to greet him and accompanied him to the finish. I was really glad for him. I think he was also terribly exhausted but he had never doubted that he would not finish.
Stefano-Cento and Pier arrived on Tuesday before noon, and April with her Mum arrived from Madrid. We all had lunch together with Andy as a definite end of the first year of the Iberica Traversa adventure 2019 and then we went home. Stefano Cento and Pier continued to Italy on bikes, and Jess and I went along the coast to San Sebastian, where Jesse flew to Portugal to visit his uncle, whom he has not seen since his childhood. I continued to Bilbao on my own.
Summary
The race was an honest bike route. The track was extremely demanding in the first half due to the superelevation and technical sections. The second half was more rideable and faster. However, the weather made the second half perhaps even more difficult than the initial part.
As regards the most common question of comparison with the Czech 1000 miles adventure race I can answer that it is very comparable, but each race has something special. I dare not judge whether one of them is harder or easier. It is similar.
Spain is a beautiful country; the people love cycling and they are great fans. This is also evident on the roads, where drivers are extremely considerate and give way to cyclists and leave enough space when overtaking them. I thought maybe there was a death penalty for restricting a cyclist, but in such a case they would probably not have laughed and cheered at me ☺
The landscape was varied and picturesque, not many countries can offer that. We saw samples of the nature of almost all continents - the Amazon forest, the Grand Canyon, views of Fuji, the Sahara, red stones like in Australia and European forests. Fortunately, there was no Antarctic. Even though it was so diverse, I still prefer mountains that are green and I need trees and grass. Simply a countryside similar to ours ☺
Bivouacking is easier here, because Czech forests are full of gazebos, haylofts and forest sheds which look almost like a hotel. In Spain, it was worse, but sometimes there were abandoned buildings and sometimes some campsite with a shelter.
It is necessary to be careful with water because there is not much of it in the nature. However, the contact with civilization was quite frequent on the route, so water scarcity can be dealt with somehow.
Technical details and equipment
I would also like to add a few technical details and a few words about my equipment for bike packing fans, hobby makers and bike connoisseurs.
Bike: Specialized Epic Elite Carbon 2014
Shifting and gears:
SRAM GX 1x12
34 / 11-50 (Sunrace)
SRAM EAGLE X01 chain (only 30% wear after the race)
Brakes: Shimano XT
Tires: Continental RaceKing ProTection 29“ – 2,2“ (tubeless)
Saddle: Brooks B17 standard (it is a miracle)
Grips: Ergon GP3
Triathlon handlebars: Profile Design T4+ AL
Dynamo: Shutter Precision PD-8X Disc
Dynamo-based charger: Supernova The Plug III USB
Bivouacking:
Sleeping bag: Cumulus X-lite 400
Sleeping mat: Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite
Bivvy bag: Mountain Equipment Ultralight Bivi (emergency only)
Sleeping T-shirt: Kilpi Flyn-M
Down jacket for bivouacking: Kilpi Palilion-M (testing piece, Winter 2020 collection, 270g of instant warmth for good price)
Clothing:
Shorts: Kilpi Pressure-M
3/4 trousers: Kilpi Vigar-M
Warm trousers: Kilpi Otera-M
Leg warmers: Kilpi Teak-U
Jersey: Kilpi Septima-M
Long-sleeved T-shirt under the jersey: Kilpi Divide-M
Light winter-proof jacket: Kilpi Airrunner-M
Rain jacket: Kilpi Hurricane-M
Jacket: Kilpi Joshua-M
Socks: Kilpi Refton-U
Knee-length socks: Kilpi Panama
Gloves: Kilpi Redbud
Warm gloves: Kilpi Nedel
Headband: Kilpi Bandi
Neck gaiter: Kilpi Darlin
Hat: Kilpi Runhat
Cycling shoes: Specialized Comp MTB
Bike helmet: Ecoi Corsa Light
Camel bag: Kilpi Cadence 10L
