Lawrence cyclist competes in L'Etape du Tour
Jon Beyer embarked on his longest most
challenging race to date when entered the L'Etape du Tour on July 10 in
Gap, France.
The 23-year-old Lawrenceville cyclist finished the
191-kilometer ride through the Alps in the French region known as the
Provence-Alpes-Azur in seven hours, 49 minutes and 24 seconds.
Beyer placed 817th out of the 7,548 riders who
entered the 14th edition of the race, which is held on one stage of the
Tour de France, and earned a silver medal for reaching one of the time
goals in his class during the race.
"It was the longest race I've ever done," said Beyer. "In terms of the course, it was the hardest."
Beyer, a Princeton University graduate and co-founder
of the Trenton-based TerraCycle Inc. organic plant food company, has
prepared for the L'Etape and other races this summer since last October
by cycling through the streets of Lawrenceville.
"The whole Lawrenceville area is great for riding,"
said Beyer. "They're good roads and the drivers are pretty friendly."
Beyer took up cycling at 14-years-old and began
racing as a freshman at Princeton. None of the few hundred races he's
entered has come close to the L'Etape.
"It's a very unique race," said Beyer.
The size of the field alone makes it more
intimidating than most races. It took 25 minutes for all 7,548 riders
to cross the starting line.
The scope of the amateur race truly mimics the Tour de France.
"It's very humbling to ride on the same course (the
Tour de France riders) race on," said Beyer. "Just to get to ride such
a famous course it's amazing. For people who follow European racing,
these are the premiere climbs, to be able to race them yourself is an
exciting thing."
Given the size of the race Beyer did not have the time
to appreciate the setting, though he did enjoy the view the Alps
offered. The Lawrenceville rider did not take it easy on the course.
Beyer finished in the top 10th percentile and quite highly considering
he started the race well back among the riders.
"I was in the 5,000ths," said Beyer. "I wouldn't have thought I passed that many people, but I guess I did."
In a field of that size, Beyer never even saw the lead group. The winner, Blaise Sonnery finished in 6:00.33.
"It's more of a personal challenge," said Beyer. "You've got to dig deep and challenging yourself."
Everything about the race proved challenging even getting food.
"Everyone fights to get to the tables, get their food
and get back to their bikes," said Beyer, who said it was important to
eat properly to keep up the energy to complete the race. Of the almost
eight thousand riders, only five thousand actually finished.
The warm weather made staying hydrated during the race important as well.
"It was very hot that day," said Beyer. "It was 90 at the start, even early in the morning."
Aside from the heat and the other riders, the course
itself was challenging with three climbs to test the riders.
Riders had to overcome the 2,360 meter Col d'Izoard,
then the 2,058 meter Col du Lautaret and finally the 1,427 meter Huez
en Oisans before racing through the 21 switchbacks of l'Alpe d'Huez.
Since the L'Etape, Beyer has competed in the Tour de
Toon in Altoon, Pa, one of the largest pro-am cycling events in North
America.
Beyer also plans on competing at the Green Mountain Stage Race in Vermont and then the Hillier than Thou race in northwestern New Jersey.
Beyer described the Hillier than Thou race as a 100
mile race with a 10,000 foot climb, which he said was the closest he
would come to the L'Etape.
After those races, Beyer plans to take it easy in
September, before resuming training for the L'Etape next Summer.
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