Day Two - Open Sésame
At 02:21 I was back on the road, heading due south with the Mediterranean to my left and the growing presence of Pyrénées mountains starting to make itself felt to my right. There was plenty of climbing on the menu du jour, but that was for later as I first had to tick off the next CP at Rivesaltes, two hours of flat riding away just north of Perpignan. The previous year during Transibérica I had hit Rivesaltes at too-early-for-a-boulangerie o’clock and the same happened here so for the first time I took a photo of my bicycle propped against the town sign.
There wasn’t necessarily an obligation to get a stamp in my carnet de route at each CP, all I technically needed was proof of passage. A photo of my bicycle at the location with the plaque de cadre visible ticked this box. Nevertheless, the organiser’s preference was for a stamp to be acquired, and this was also mine.
Initially, I thought that this completed document could serve as a souvenir of the trip with as many stamps as possible documenting the progress of each day and the associated memories. In reality it turned out that the carnet de route served a much more tangible and immediate purpose which I was to appreciate more fully a few hours later.
A Principled Approach
On a similar theme, the standards that I set for myself when embarking on this ride also went beyond what was strictly required within the rules. The relevant obligations for on the road conduct can be summarised by:
Pass through the 61 controls and gain evidence of having done so.
Accompanying vehicles and support is authorised. However, these vehicles must not follow the rider or be a hindrance to other traffic.
Each rider must deem themselves as being on a personal excursion and respect the rules of the road and the environment. A helmet and high-vis vest are strongly recommended.
If it was all about the record then I could have arranged for a far greater level of support and reliance on others. But, as Skepta famously once said, “That’s Not Me”. I do respect that full support has its own logistical challenges and does not take away from the requirement to pedal all of those kilometres. For me though, I felt that ceding too much control would detract from my experience and take away some of the personal satisfaction. That self-supported cycling is so much more than a pure fitness test is a great draw to me. Finding solutions to problems and being responsible for all aspects of one's progress only leads to a more enriching and rewarding experience.
I still didn’t want this to become gratuitously self-restricting, especially if I were to deny myself from accepting non-crucial support from others that came about serendipitously. This could be termed ‘trail magic’ and my main prerequisite was that it wasn’t to have been solicited by myself or arranged in advance. I wanted to leave myself open to generous, spontaneous gifts and gestures from others, without relying on this.
Ultimately, I devised five principles that I would use as a framework to hold myself accountable to, and to illustrate to others the spirit in which I would be approaching this ride. My full justification is in this Restrap article and these principles are:
Above all, I will respect the rules and regulations set out by the organisers.
I will accept support and assistance from others but I will not solicit this or plan for it in advance.
I will take responsibility for my own logistics and on-the-road tasks such as resupply, sleeping locations and mechanical issues.
All forward travel will be under my own steam - if I am riding with others I will not draft behind them.
I will ride in the spirit of the Touriste Routier. I have a performance objective but this is also an experience I want to savour, completing in a manner that I can personally be proud of.
In the Restrap article I wrote the following:
“If I can look back afterwards and be satisfied that I have upheld these principles to the best of my ability, I can be satisfied that I have taken on this challenge in the way I believe befits the purpose of embarking upon it.”
Six months following completion I can be more than satisfied for having lived these principles, and am glad to have laid out explicitly in advance. These helped to frame the ride as more than just a performance goal at all costs. I am therefore proud to have fulfilled my obligation to myself and to hopefully have demonstrated that performance and principles can go hand in hand.
Open Sésame
The day’s first (and only) boulangerie came at Prades, another place I was familiar with, having visited the town’s Lidl twice previously during Trans Pyrenees Races in 2019 and 2023. Memories from TPR, which I have done three times, would be a common occurrence over the next two days, with few elements of this Pyrénéen traverse being completely new to me.
[16/06/2025, 06:36:19] Bella Molloy: Flan and double croissants will get you through it ! Go well Samuel!
[16/06/2025, 06:36:43] Kishan: breakfast calories going right!
I was now on a western trajectory, following the valley road that would insert me into the belly of the Pyrénées, rising from sea level to 1,500m. Just before this false flat became a proper climb I had the next CP at Olette to take care of. At this small village I entered a bar, La Cigogne, and opted for a breakfast Cornetto to accompany my third coffee of the morning (this still being 07:30). “Est-ce que je peux prendre un tampon pour mon carnet de route” was becoming my stock phrase as I presented said document to the patron.
In French, some objects (tangible or otherwise) can be described as a sésame. As in ‘open sesame’. It turns out that my carnet de route could be described as one of these. A door opener and conversation starter which led to numerous cherished interactions and kind gestures. I’m far from a luddite and I think there is scope to modernise some aspects of this event, but if digital brevet cards or validation by GPX alone is to be at the expense of human exchanges then that would be a shame.
After granting me my stamp, I asked the bar owner how much I owed him.
“C’est cadeaux” (It’s on the house).
“Pourquoi” (why)? I enquired.
He just shrugged.
I gratefully accepted this generous gesture and told him that I would remember this the next time I pass and that his kindness would be repaid, if not by myself then in the ‘what goes around, comes around’ way.
Porta Puymorens
The first true climb of the Tour, to Mont Louis, was stiffer than I had expected. It led me towards the peculiar Spanish enclave of Puigcerdà which I was to dissect. I’m not quite sure why this place exists, encircled by French territory on all sides, but all followers of the Tour de France will know that a brief excursion into a neighbouring country is almost obligatory for a true Tour.
I was soon back on French turf though, climbing again towards the Col de Puymorens, with a CP en route at Porté Puymorens. As I was ascending the manageable gradient, I came across a sign for Porta which I presumed was Catalan for Porté so hopped into the next bar for my stamp. As I felt almost obliged to purchase something if I was to ask for my tampon, I ordered a can of Orangina. This left me €3.30 lighter. Good job I was to pick up the odd freebie if a simple canned drink at each CP was going to cost this much. If the bar in Olette charged similar prices, it was a very generous gift indeed.
Ten minutes after having resumed the climb I was to realise that not only was this an expensive Orangina, but an unnecessary one. The sign for the real Porté Puymorens emerged and I thought it best to get another stamp, this time in the correct place, to not risk complications later with verification. Not willing to continue paying extortionate amounts for small quantities of soft drinks, I asked for my stamp in the next bar without an accompanying order. The remainder of the climb was pleasant enough, with the gradients of 4-5% posing no particular problem.
Double Climb, Double Ice Cream
The long descent to Ax-les-Thermes followed and just after at Savignac-les-Ormeaux I pulled into an Intermarché for a feeding that would take just over half an hour, including (in a fine example of multitasking) the recording of this voice note recapping the morning’s action and previewing what was to come:
It was another hot day, but we weren’t quite at canicule conditions (yet). Nevertheless, by the time I had traversed the Ariège valley, skirted Tarascon, and arrived at Vicdessos where the Port de Lers/Col d’Agnes double header begins, I was in need of a refill of fluids and quick refreshment. I picked up two Cornettos and a Calippo to keep me amused whilst making my way up the Lers, which I thought I knew from TPR in 2023. My recollection wasn’t so great though as it turned out that this climb is a lot more pitchy than I remembered. Plenty of sections where the gradient ramps up to 10%+, interspaced with more gentle ramps.
[16/06/2025, 17:38:16] Samuel: Quite liked Lers in the end. Nothing like I remember if from TPR 😅
By the time I reached the Etang separating the descent from the Port de Lers with the start of the upper section of Col d’Agnes I had the urge for another Cornetto to accompany me for the remainder of the climbing. A mango one I seem to recall from the lakeside restaurant. On the descent from Agnes I almost ploughed into a deer who chose the precise moment of my passing to dart across the road. Better than a bear emerging I suppose (non aux ours is all over the road in this region).
Valentine Dine
I was familiar with the supérette in Aulus-les-Bains having consumed a large gateaux de riz there in 2023 so returned this time for a stamp. It now being mid-afternoon I set about confirming my accommodation that evening. Before starting, I had identified several options between this point and Bagnères-de-Luchon, where my route had me skirting briefly out of the mountains and back in via the Garonne valley where I would start a back-to-back series of the most renowned Pyrénéen climbs. There was a more direct option of linking Aulus-les-Bains with the Col de Peyresourde (the subsequent CP) via Portet-d'Aspet but I made the choice to accept 25km extra distance to save 1,000m climbing. After checking which accommodation options remained available, I settled on an Airbnb with instant confirmation and self check-in at Cier-de-Rivière around 85km away which mostly involved following the valley downstream before gently turning back towards the mountains.
The rest of that afternoon and early evening passed relatively smoothly, although I find this moment in the day to often be quite challenging as there is always the temptation to be counting down the kilometres. Earlier in the day, when you may not know exactly where you will be sleeping that night, just concentrating on enjoying the riding and focusing on the next intermediate objective comes much easier.
6km before the Airbnb there was a Carrefour Express at Valentine which served as the ideal location to fill my belly for that evening and stock up for the next morning, as it was likely I would have to do a fair bit of climbing before encountering any open commerce. Considering my projections for the first two days, I found myself at the optimistic end of the range, which was a confidence boosting start. I was still conscious this was just the start though and it was from this moment that my sleep patterns had to become established and sustainable.
Ne lâches pas trop les chevaux
Arriving at Cier-de-Rivière before 20:00 permitted me to settle into my preferred stop early, start early rhythm. I will come to explain the reason for this in the coming days (although listening to today’s recording will give some insight). Despite being conscious of my need to remain efficient on the move, I still spent nearly 2 hours 30 minutes not moving during the day. I knew that this could be improved. I recognised that the need to acquire my stamps at CPs, and sensible management of the heat would necessitate an element of additionally stopped time. Regardless, throughout all of these stops I hadn’t sat down. I kept on my toes, both figuratively and literally. All of my feeding had been done (and would continue to be done for the rest of the trip) whilst standing, usually multitasking, or whilst moving on the bike.
Meanwhile, at some point during the day, this message had dropped in my inbox:
“Bravo pour ce debut, avec fabrice nous suivons votre progression, belle moyenne pour ces 600 premiers kilometres.
Ne lâches pas trop les chevaux tout de suite, gardes en quelques uns pour les alpes.”
This was Phillipe Humoz of course. A really nice message to receive, but I was now confused as to how much I should be unleashing my horses. I didn’t realise that this was the sort of thing where half-measures could be applied (?). Anyway, I felt my effort to this point had been sustainable and that I was keeping plenty of horses in the stable to trot out later.
I was in bed by 20:30, ready to make my daily audio diary entry and the outlook was mostly positive as I was looking ahead to hitting the real Pyrénéen big guns and hopefully bumping into Bella as I passed her turf. Here is what I had to say:
[16/06/2025, 20:50:38] M Serafin: 180km left into the high Pyrenees - well done! Clever move with ice-creams.
[16/06/2025, 20:55:46] M Serafin: Bonne nuit
16 June 2025
CPs: Rivesaltes, Olette, Porté-Puymorens, Aulus-les-Bains
365 km / 4,685 m
15:06:37 / 17:34:58
DotWatcher Commentary: Traversing mostly Ariège today with 10 ice-creams consumed and I nearly hit a deer!
