Colle delle Finistre
My first “true” climb in the Alps from 2018. It hit my mind in May as one of the most epic attacks of it’s day by Chris Froome in the Giro d’Italia. He launched off the front of the peloton as they hit the dirt roads about ?Km up the climb. An audacious attack meant to wrest the Maglia Rosa from Mr Yates and deliver a knockout blow to his other rivals…and it was sublime. I knew I was going to the Alps and that I simply had to ride this new legend.
The reality is that I’d slept in Charles deGaulle Airport waiting for my train to Grenoble, sat on a train for a few hours, drove a few more and rode a bit of a climb across the valley from Alpe d’Huez, slept a bit, drove a few more hours to the start….which is the long way to say – not my best day! I knew that when the little cyclo-tourist woman passed me just before the dirt started. She was chatting away to her friend as they pedaled on by. I was stoked to see the water stop.
I started in Oulx for a downhill start to my ride. I stopped for a cafe and croissant in Susa and felt completely happy! On a solo vacation and riding in big mountains. Delerious at the prospect of climbing a big pass and then another.
The climb hits hard from the base, jumping above 10% in the first couple hundred meters and it rarely lets off the rest of the way. If memory serves I was rolling on a 52×36 and probably an 11-28, maybe a 30. It was 2018, so i was still pretty strong, so the 28 seems plausible…but I hope it was a 30. That I was smart enough to bring a 30.
The switchbacks start about 2 miles up, 23 in a row over the next mile. 2 more miles of pavement bring you to the previously mentioned water stop and the end of the pavement. This is where Froome attacked, 4 miles and 2000′ from the summit.
I finally stepped out of the “climb like you’re serious” mindset on the dirt and just enjoyed the experience. Views like the one above are truly a gift…very far from my everyday. Then I heard the bells…
Cows! A big ‘ol herd of cows 2/3rds the way up the Finiestre. It was awesome! At the end of vhe video you can see the top fo the climb at the edge of the blue sky, a bit of the pass visible high and center left a bit. Still a long way to go!
I trudged on. The road gradually opening above me. As “proof” of my fatigue, I averaged 215W for the 2+ hours it took to climb. Quite a bit below what I’d consider acceptable at the time, although I find that my power is typically awful on long climbs, especially at altitude. Not sure why in general…but this was notably a function of pre-ride travel fatigue.
Above is from the top or pretty close to it. 2176m of climbing fun.
Bomber descent, respecting the mountain and not going too fast. Then onto the Sestriere climb, the “easy” summit. It wasn’t too bad really, but I was pretty cooked by the time I found a little restuarant serving lunch in the quiet ski village. A final plunge down to my start town and the day was done. Not impressive by the numbers, it still ranks as one of my all-time favorite rides and a definite top 5 climb all time.
The 411:
