It is really tough. It feels like there is an elephant on your back, you feel flat, your legs feel weak, you're really tired, you have a hard time breathing and it's painful. At this altitude everything is so much more painful. If you overextend yourself just a little bit, especially when you're in a technical section and you have to put out a lot of effort just to get over something, the moment you're over it you're in trouble and it takes a very long time to recover. |
It was a complete surprise. I've been racing him all season, and he's never really been in contention. |
We started climbing together and the moment he started riding I realized that he meant business today. So he made 4:30 on top, and I couldn't believe it. |