Tue, 4 August 2026
Vertical Climbed: 597 meters (1,959 feet)
Vertical Descended: 592 meters
Rating: 3
A long, mostly Zone 2 ride today, in homage to Sigrid Ytterhus Haugset’s extraordinary breakaway across the Jura in yesterday’s Tour de France Femmes.
The temperature rose steadily throughout the ride: about 20°C at the 20-kilometre mark and a solid 30°C by the finish. There was a little Zone 3 and 4 riding over the Col de Cochette, but otherwise I remained more or less below my VT1 heart rate. I completed the 100-kilometre loop in just over four hours, at an average speed of around 25 km/h.
The heat remains a problem. I had planned to leave at 7 a.m. and return by 11, but getting ready took longer than expected. At the moment, the temperature really begins to ramp up from about 11 onwards.
It had been a long time since I last rode over the Cochette. It is a short but fairly sharp little climb: roughly 8% for a couple of kilometres from Villard Hery. My time was only just outside my personal best of 10:55, although that dates from 2017, when I was already past my prime.
That previous effort came during an epic ride that also included the Col du Cucheron and some gravel madness over Montendry. I would like to repeat the Montendry route, but with around 2,000 metres of climbing it is a big day out and not really compatible with this year’s heatwave.
At the summit of the Cochette, a group of women cyclists were discussing marginal gains like “bra-maxxing”, or whatever the latest controversy from the professional peloton is called.
After descending, I took a different route through La Trinité, whose name always makes me think of a slightly dodgy spaghetti western. From there, the route was largely flat or even gently downhill to Pontcharra, followed by the new riverside cycle path towards Crolles.
So, what exactly is bra-maxxing?
It has become a subject of considerable discussion ahead of today’s TdFF time trial. Apparently, some riders have been accused of using padded sports bras to fill the space behind the handlebars. The idea is to create a smoother shape, encouraging the air to flow around the body rather than striking the waist and thighs directly. Over a time trial, the resulting aerodynamic advantage could supposedly amount to several seconds.
Whether this represents ingenious marginal gains or simply bra doping is a question for the UCI.
Dry, 20C at 7h40, 30C at 11h40.
