Stage 4 – Damo takes 3rd in the Hills
Today was the mountain stage at the Tour of Friendship. 155km with two big climbs followed by rolling hills to take us to the finish. The start was very subdued as most people wanted to save energy for the climbs (survival) or to go for the King of the Mountains jersey. Once again there were a few mysteries with the distances as we were supposed to be hitting the killer climb at KM 120. When we arrived at KM 134 we thought maybe there really was no second climb and that we were only 20km away from the glorious feeling of crossing the finish line in a bike race. Unfortunately it was just a distance error as we were hit with a six kilometer killer climb with long sections (600m) of 20% gradient. Near the top of the climb we saw a sign that said 10km to go and I am not sure if I felt good or sick that we still had that much left.
Damian (on podium above) managed 3rd in the 30’s category which is a very good result. There are a load of great riders here and I was content with just finishing. After the group broke up on the first climb I managed to find David Pan and we rode out the rest of the day supporting each other to get us across the line.
Tomorrow is the final day, 120km of flat terrain…should be easy… but you never know.
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Date: May 5, 2010
Categories: Tour of Friendship 2010
