The 2016 Haute Route Series came to a resounding conclusion on Sunday as the 350-strong peloton in the Haute Route Dolomites Swiss Alps rolled into Venice to conclude seven days of "ride like a pro" racing in Switzerland and Italy.
The final stage of seven days of fully timed, ranked and authorised racing, that took the peloton from Geneva to Venice, was dominated by two climbs to end another hugely successful Haute Route season, starting with the Passo Giau and then the Passo San Boldo.
The Giau was the last big test of a week that has seen riders from all over the world tackle 21 cols amounting to 21,000 metres of ascent over 900km on the road.
The joint stage winners today, Britain's Mike Cotty and France's Nicolas Raybaud, both Triple Crown riders, crossed the line hand-in-hand - a nice sporting gesture to round off the three weeks of racing. Then it was the roll onto the finish at Conegliano before the procession into Venice. The overall winner was Lucas Schwarz of Team Innsbruck while the top woman was Ireland's Stine Keyes riding for Team Punto 5.
The third edition of the Haute Route Dolomites Swiss Alps has been another extraordinary week of cycling with largely beautiful weather and numerous highlights, among them the Individual Time Trial to the Passo dello Stelvio and ascents of iconic cols like the San Gottardo and the legendary Passo di Gavia.
"I feel like a champion - it's a great achievement," said the 41-year-old Brazilian lawyer Marcelo Goyanes at the finish. "My family are here... I think they are proud of me, I hope so." Goyanes did the Haute Route Alps in 2013. This time he was in better shape and easily exceeded his goal of finishing in the top 100, coming 33rd out of 350.
"I took more time to prepare myself in terms of mindset and body this time," he added. "The result is a great justification for all the training." And the highpoint? "There were so many best moments...maybe the Stelvio - the first time we did it at the end of Stage 3 - that was amazing," he said.
The Thai rider Tamrongkiat Sawatrungri, a 38-year-old agricultural machinery specialist, today became the first rider from his country to complete the Triple Crown. He did it despite battling what for him were exceptionally cold late summer temperatures in the Pyrenees, Alps and Dolomites.
"I feel proud. I cannot say anything," he said, clearly emotional at the finish. "I feel good. My wife is here and she followed me for all of the three weeks."
Forty-year-old Sydneysider Will Levy was celebrating a unique achievement, having become the only rider to complete every Haute Route event since the first one in the Alps in 2011. "I feel good...probably better than I did after the first one which was very hard because you never knew what was going to happen. It has been an amazing experience to go through from the beginning until now and on into the future."
What is Will's advice to someone thinking of taking on an Haute Route event? "The fitter you are, the more fun you'll have. It's not a Saturday or Sunday ride - you need to come prepared and the better prepared you are the more fun you will have," he said.
Benjamin Chandelier, the Haute Route Event Director, believes this has been the most successful Haute Route series yet. "This week has topped off a superb Haute Route series this summer," he said. "We have seen some incredible individual performances by Haute Route cyclists in the Pyrenees, Alps and now the Dolomites Swiss Alps.
"The weather has been almost perfect throughout, and it has been inspiring to watch these men and women conquering some of the most demanding mountains in the region. The Haute Route always demonstrates that no matter who you are, if you have the right stuff, you can get the job done."
Next year's Haute Route calendar kicks off with a brand new addition in the form of the Mavic Haute Route Rockies which will feature all the key "ride-like-a-pro" features of the European Haute Route events over seven timed, and ranked stages. It starts on June 24 and travels from Boulder to Colorado Springs. Places are selling fast, but you can secure your booking here.
0 Comments