Stage Distance: 205km
Total Distance: 1152km
Stage 7 saw us finally hit what the tour is most known for and the part I am most dreading, the mountains. We started the day in Montpelier and headed towards Albi in the French Pyranees with the toughest climb of the day being the Cat 2 Col de la Croix de Mounis. This was our introduction to what was to come over this and the next two days.
Again the Mistral wind had it’s part to play in making this an even tougher day than it should have been however at least today the scenery made up for the extra effort as we approached the mountains, a place I always love to be.
As expected the climbs proved tough for me and though not the last rider in I was never that far from the back of the group. I hate being so far back but there is little I can do about that. You miss a lot being so far back, you miss the camaraderie of larger groups of riders, the support that brings and you miss a lot of the recuperation time for the next day.
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