Pico del Teide, Tenerife | Spain | 2095 metres in altitude | 32.82 kilometres | KOM 1:31:38 hrs.
Tenerife is a favourite training destination for professional teams. They use the plateau at Pico del Teide for their altitude training - in some months, the Parador de Cañadas del Teide hotel is fully booked by the pros. The landscape at the foot of the volcano, Spain's highest mountain at 3715 metres, is spectacular: a barren, largely uninhabited stony desert. On the way from the coast to the plateau, however, you cross green forests. Cycling here is particularly enjoyable outside the tourist season - when there are no cars or buses to disturb you. Of course, you don't reach a summit, but only a point below the volcano.
Giles Drake (40), Liverpool | United Kingdom Segment 707733*
Englishman Giles Drake flies to Tenerife every February "to escape the grey, cold British weather", as he says. He loves long climbs and wanted to compete virtually with the professional cyclists on the Teide: "If you look at the rankings and see the pros on them, you can compare yourself to them in a way." He underestimated how much the thin air at altitude would affect his breathing: "When you get above 2000 metres, your performance decreases and breathing becomes more difficult after Vilaflor. Apart from that, I would say that some of the open sections and the wind can make it difficult." He also remembers the many bends in the middle section. "I remember focusing a lot on speed and power, but also how glorious it was at the top, a very warm day and a bright blue sky once you'd climbed through the clouds." Giles rides cross and gravel races - a very different kind of exertion, but "the tough races certainly teach you to persevere".
*Because there are sometimes several segments on a climb, we mention the number of the segment (example: 9387933 means www.strava.com/segments/9387933). We have taken the altitude information for all segments from Strava, even if it is imprecise
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