PERSKINDOL SWISS EPIC 2016: STAGE 4

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BY: Melanie Alexander

Published: 18th September, 2016

Following our navigational waywardness on stage 3 our overall ranking fell outside of the top 60, meaning that we would start in the second start pen. 

On previous days this had been set off 15 minutes after the first group, but in addition to the 6 day Swiss Epic and Swiss Flow there is also an option to enter for 2 days, the last 2 days, and these riders would set off between pens 1 and 2. So it was that whilst our usual competitors rode out of Verbier at 9am we didn’t set off until 9:30. Melanie and I started at the front and for a short time had only the lead out moto ahead of us before a couple of male pairs passed us. By the top of the first climb we were catching the slower 2 day riders for whom this would clearly be a big undertaking.

The first downhill was greasy in places, a change from the dusty dry trails of earlier in the week but not too alien for us. A few short sections of flatter technical trail then farm tracks and into another big climb, shorter than on stage 3 but still with 1400m vertical. We were riding strongly at this point and setting a good pace up the climb. Two thirds of the way up we filled our bottles at the feed station and as we set off we felt it start to rain. Initially this was quite pleasant but as we neared the top at 2146m the temperature dropped and the moisture on our clothes and skin made it feel colder still. 

We stopped at the peak and pulled our waterproof jackets on. We were both wearing arm warmers and vests plus our cycling jerseys but dropping down the singletrack it was pretty chilly now that we weren’t working so hard. Our hands were starting to go numb too, I had to stop at one point to feed Melanie a gel since she couldn’t open one herself and operating gears and dropper posts had become challenging. This was a shame as the descent was a technical singletrack delight, with rocks, roots, short rises and steep drops almost like something you would find in the UK but with far more elevation to lose and 15km in length. 

At one point I heard a scream from behind as Melanie’s rear wheel attempted to pass her front, but she controlled the slide and kept it upright. Not so on the next bit of trail where bike and body opted to take different trajectories and for a moment I was worried she might have hurt herself, but once untangled from a fence and her bike she was soon back in the flow and laughing about her slide.

A second feed station shortly after, then into the final climb of the day. At only 500m it looked pretty insignificant on the stage profile compared to the monsters we’d been riding, but with fatigue setting in from our bonus stage 3 and energy levels dropping due to the cold it was a hard 500m to scale. 

Towards the top a gently descending fireroad lulled us into a false sense of security as we could see Verbier ahead of us. With less than 1km to go we were faced with a wall of dirt ahead of us and resorted to pushing our bikes the final few metres into Verbier.

A much better result than on stage 3, we at least stayed on course, but we were well behind the leading mixed pairs who had got over the peak before the temperature dropped and rain started. The cold certainly affected us, Melanie was actually looking forward to the climb simply so she could warm up.

One more stage to go, then the finishers’ party. 

I hope they have Cider.