Wednesday 24 February 2010

Mallorca - Part II.










Part II. :

Day 4.:
Ohh, yes! Rest day! The rest is sweet after a hard work... but where is the hard work? Aaa... Okay, the rest is necessary before the hard work! Doh!
I was awake around 7 o'clock, I quickly managed my "house jobs", cleaned the bike and washed out my dirty clothing. I had a breakfast and after I visited my "local" gym. Short walk on the beach in the sunny weather with a coffee and I prepared myself my active REST! :)
I went in Palma. The island capital is 25 minutes away from the hotel with the local bus service. Thanks God, I brought my earphone with me, I had to use it, because the bus was full with austrian pension people ( between 60 and a death) and I reckon this people all entered a challenge , it called " shout over each other in a small place"....local nursery stuffed with the wrong age group... Anyway, Mr Paul Oakenfold helped out me!
First of all I visited the old part of the town and I had to realized nothing changed since last year. Really nice old buildings stuffed with more and more expensive shops (Channel, Gucci...) and really nice cafeterias and restaurants everywhere. We are out of season, but everything full with tourists. After I had a good look around I started my "bad" mission!
Everybody knows, what is pleasure and good usually it is illegal or bad for you! But everybody has bad habit .... and next my usual (85%?) healthy lifestyle. I like "bad" stuff... one is my weakest point is the "good" food... american food... it means Hard Rock cafe! Where you can have a good food and a great time on the same place! :) Yes, I had a huge fatty, unhealthy, stuffed with sugar american meal! And after I felt myself really satisfied, because I know I worked for it! :)
After I stuffed my stomach full with lovely "shit" I came back in the hotel, I had an our sleep and before dinner I did 45 minutes KB ride on the beach.

Route: beach up and down
Time: 0:50
Distance: 24km









Day 5.:
And the training has been started! It was my first hilly day! I got a green light and I could to start to go up! :)
The day didn't start easy. I got a front puncture on the cycling path after 20 minutes. I had a think for a moment, should I come back in the hotel and change my tub or try to fix next to the road... 3 seconds later I filled up my front tub with Vittoria pit stop. It was a bit funny, I think I couldn't fix ever my tubs with Vittoria pit stop, but all the time it gives me little hope... but now it worked... I thought it worked, because I had to realized after 45 minutes I still have a slow puncture. Okay, not a problem, I had two Co2 cartridge with me, but no pump. Hmm... risky, but why not! :)
First I climbed up the Soller, I had a quick look around from the top and I speeded down to the village on the other side. After I started the day second and longest climb. From Soller up to Puig Major. Basically on this climb your elevation is nearly 900m. It is a really good climb with a lovely landscape. After the top short downhill and I turned my stem to sa Calobra's direction. It is a small village next to the see, 12km from the main road. First you have to climb 2,5km and after the real roller coster starts. Sa Calobra means snake. Basically little road leads down to the coast around with 50 hairpins. 12 km long road on 5 sqm place. Quick photos, and I borrowed some german cyclist's pump, because I still had a slow puncture but I hadn't any more Co2 cartridge and my pump had a rest day in the hotel's room. After I climbed back to the main road... 10 km long climb with 710m elevation!
The next station was Inca, where I arrived really quickly thanks the great downhill! The next climb was the Orient and the Col de Honor, but unfortunately my front tub given up finally and I had to turn way to home. I had a spare tub with me but no pump... luuzer... I did couple of interesting bike handling technic with my flat front tub, but I got back in the hotel in one piece!

Route: Platja- Palma- Soller - Puig Major - Sa Calobra - Inca - Palma- Platja
Time:6:00
Distance: 155km
Ascent: 2725m



















Day 6.:

What I missed the day before I did today.. I climbed the Orient and the Honor and I fell off.....
Sunshine and wind, the program was usual on the morning. After breakfast early start. First station was Orient. Orient is small village surrounded with hills. Clean fresh air, beautiful landscape and two great climb. Col de Orient and Col de Honor. Everything went well until the top of the Honor. I realized that somebody stolen the hill's sign! :( Asshole! I remembered from last year this roads around here are really slippery because these are from white tarmac and covered with moss. If we take this two things and plus add a brand new front tyre and a little water flow on the next hairpin... the effect is: I FELL OFF! Shit! I taken the third hairpin on my ass and my right brake lever.. ohh my poor brand new Hudz... died!:( But the most importantly nothing major happened. After this little accident I visited Valldemossa and on the way back I climbed the Soller from the other side. On the way up rain started to piss down. When I got on the top I was full wet. I did the downhill really carefully, one accident is enough! On the way back I thought one and did a sharp left turn in Bunyola and I climbed up the Honor and the Orient again from the other side. On the way back the road turned to Paris Roubaix stile under my wheels in 60km/h speed but thanks God I managed this fatal error.

Route: Platja - Algaida- Orient - Bunyola - Valldemossa - Soller - Bunyola - Orient - Algaida - Platja
Time:5:58
Distance: 154km
Ascent: 2192m







Day 7:

Flat! That was my note in my training plan. Okay... I nearly did it... 1621m flat!
I started the day with a good old Llucmajor, after I road around the Randa and visited Petra and flow down on the Mallorcan Route 66 to Arta, climbed up to Capdepera and I road out the Punta the Capdepera. I checked the lighthouse and the local cats. On the way back I climbed up the Capdepera's castle and counted 11 cats. It was easy until this point. The way down to Capdepera was a bit fishy... 90km under 2 hours 20 minutes... back wind? I got the answer 10 minutes later! Yes! Wind... and not the type what we call breeze or zephyr... The way from Capdepera to Manacor was so so.. but when I turned on the way home from Manacor... hmmm... was interesting experience. On the way half I thought something wrong with my GPS, but I had to realize unfortunately everything is correct, just I moved really slowly. The way back to the hotel was a real fight, but I worked for a dinner and I had a double portion cake! :)

Route: Platja- Llucmajor- Randa - Montiri - Petra- Arta - Capdepera - Punta de Capdepera - Son Servera- Manacor - Villafranca - Casa Blanca- Platja
Time:5:55
Distance:174km
Ascent: 1621m


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