Super! Thanks a lot! 
Out of curiosity, how are you planning your taper and what kind of form (TSB) are you planning before the start? I am currently in a rest week, before doing two relatively big weeks (24 and 20 hours), reducing volume from about 5-7 days before the start. Hoping to have a TSB of approximately +25 at the start.
For the HR Dolomites in 2022 I did a two week taper, which proved to be a bit much as my training in the weeks before wasnt that much.
Iām not following any structured training plan, nor am I planning anything that detailed! However, Iām going to start tapering off on Monday/Tuesday of next week. I have a final small push this week, likely ending with a 15-16hr week, including a 7h day on Saturday.
Iāve reached my reasonable CTL/TSB ālimitsā of 13-14hr weeks and peaked around 95-96 TSS. Itāll probably get pushed to 100 by end of this weekend, with fatigue being a bit higher. Iād have had to add more volume to get it pushed higher, as more intensity wasnāt happening, especially with the heat/humidity weāve had.
Plan for taper is to stay in the 8-10hr/week range and keep up the intensity.
Same as sasa, Iāve not been on a specific structured plan, just a rough fatigue and life stress dependent 10-15 hours a week with similar CTL in the 90s. Iāll be bringing the volume down after next week as well + adding in heat acclimation since San Francisco summers are generally 15 degrees C and overcast for us. Given that itās a seven day event, Iām fine with coming in a bit flat and working my way into it.
Iām honestly more concerned about being so burnt out from riding that itās not an enjoyable experience v. being a spot or two higher on GC. I took it all a bit more seriously last year at Dolomites, but slept poorly throughout and ultimately got sick from the travel and lack of sleep. It was nice to barely slide into the top 10% despite that, but it was clear in retrospect how little I actually cared about GC; simply spending a week hanging out with a teammate in the mountains was far more rewarding.
Not saying Iāll be tootling, but definitely more looking to have a memorable trip to the Alps with my wife than to achieve any particular results or power numbers this time around.
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That sounds like a good plan. Had the same experience in the Dolomites in 2022, hope to get more enjoyment alongside the suffering. And not worrying whether I finish 45th or 42nd. However, once the flag drops it is though to hold back ;).
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I donāt really know how Iāll stack up. I only get a chance a couple times per year to get any real climbing in my legs and Iāve never spent any time at elevation. Iām hoping for a good placing, but not really sure what to expect.
Haha, agreed! Itāll be hard to not try to hold on to the lead groups for too long.
Also, that 2022 Dolomites edition was quite a lot between the storms and the extra steep finish up to Tre Cime. The climbs here seem to be far steadier, and there arenāt any long transitions like the multi-hour trek to Trento.
I was actually there, but was (likely) hit by a car on Bormio the day of registration and spent the week recovering from a bad concussion and some stapled-together wounds. I was in a memory loop for the first few hours, so I kept asking (successfully) to be released so I could get ready for the first stage up the Stelvio. Thankfully my wife was there all evening to keep multiple doctors and neurologists from committing malpractice by releasing me. On the bright side, however, it was incredibly cheap relative to US healthcare.
this trip isnāt quite as dramatic!
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Ouch! Yes, hope for less drama this time around.
I did most of my training for prior years on the trainer or at a flat cycle track (all at sea level), so I wouldnāt worry too much about this. Power is power, and muscular endurance is something you can build equally well on the flats.
My thoughts on placings based on the past few years between my own experience and a few friends who are more competitive:
- Thereāll be 5-10 folks who will just be on another level. You could go back to childhood and train optimally for decades and theyāll still be significantly faster than you. Last year at Dolomites, that included Ilnur Zakarin and Pim van Diemen. Pim was there for a training camp, and his coach had him doing threshold run brick workouts after he cruised to a top 10 Bondone time trial because the day was too easy.
- Thereāll be another 15-20 people with peak weeks in the 20+ hour range who have been dialed in on their nutrition and structured training for the past few years. Usually a few teammates in this pool, and tends toward 40+ Europeans who have the time (and a lack of North American workaholism) to make this work.
- Beyond that, the time gaps amongst the remaining 50-100 or so people who are trying to do more than just finish are relatively small compared to the two groups above, but backgrounds are pretty mixed. Some of these folks will still be the fastest climber in their local community, while others will be P/1/2 criterium racers looking to close out their season with a fun event. From my conversations with a few dozen folks at the Venice airport while waiting for my flight, I was definitely on the low end of training hours at 10 hours a week within this group.
Based on your numbers from this thread, we should both tend toward the faster half of the third grouping, but I honestly donāt think your GC placing will impact your day to day decision making or enjoyment very much. Itās something to mull over for a minute or two after the results come out, and then you just go back to searching for carbs that arenāt covered in cheese.
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Great info, thanks! A friend did Alps last year and came in around 32-33rd in GC. Iām sort of using him as a guide, hoping to finish not far off.
Cool to see it laid out like this; thanks!
That second day is going to be a doozy, between the 45 km lead-in to the Loze to the ~2 hr ascent of the Loze itself. I guess itāll be a good warm up for doing the Madeleine, Glandon, and AdH triplet the next day.
I keep telling myself that Iāll starting learning how to live in kilometers so the signage will make sense next month, but it hasnāt happened yet. 
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Thanks for sharing! Looks like more or less all descents are neutralized this year. Understable, although there are some that are safe to race IMO (descents of Glandon, Bonette and Lautaret come to mind). Also a pity that the flat part on stage 1 is neutralized. Makes it tougher for big boys like me to make up time.
Information from the organisation has been pretty poor, especially considering the entrance fee. No information about hotels, timing etc. yet. Unless I have missed something?
Other than sharing the Strava routes, I havenāt seen any communication from the organizers yet either. I signed up for the newsletter, though I have not received one yet nor does there seem to be a web archive of newsletters. I couldnāt find much communication including the timed sections on HR Pyrenees either, usually thereās a riderās handbook, but Google didnāt turn up anything.
Iām going through AlpCycles for a full package, so at least I know where Iām staying!
ETA: As I post this I get the following in my email:
HAUTE ROUTE 2024
RIDERāS NEWSLETTER #5
2024 HR Info: Haute Route Alpes 2024
Newsletter 1: Adobe Acrobat
Newsletter 2: Adobe Acrobat
Newsletter 3: Adobe Acrobat
Newsletter 4: Adobe Acrobat
Theyāre a bit behind on timing relative to our last two registrations with the Dolomites, but even the prior organizers didnāt release specific info until fairly late. Not sure if thereās anything else we need to know in terms of actionable information. The only thing we cared about was the timed v. untimed release so we could decide how much ride nutrition to pack for our flights over.
@JDP_85, I think youāll be just fine at 76 kg, particularly if youāre putting in 25 hour weeks + doing the heat training. Based on Jasper Verkuijlās videos on Haute Route, itāll only be an issue if youāre gunning for the overall podium. At that point, even 65 kg is porky!
With this morningās newsletter, I think everything is provided ā¦ though I love reading a well designed riders guide!
Jasper was 82kg going into HR last year and managed to remain ācompetitiveā ā¦ i.e. finished 5th on GC! I believe his FTP was around 420W. Michele looked to be in high-50s/ (1st on GC), Iām not sure on Thomas (2nd), and Jason Holder was 62kg and had a ~5.5kg bike (3rd). Drake also put up a great fight, and I think heās high 60s/low 70s with a massive engine, until when he didnāt on day 6 ā¦
Having seen Drake in action here in California, I canāt wait to see this yearās equivalents all ride away from me as soon as the timed section starts. 
I may have built the worldās porkiest Aethos between custom paint and 32c tires, so itāll be nowhere close to 5.5kg. Thatās a really impressive weight assuming itās a disc brake ride!
It was not, it was next-level weight shaving: Weight Weenie does Haute Route Alps 2023 - Weight Weenies
I hadnāt seen this; thanks for sharing. Interesting perspective of what life is like at the pointy end of the event, for the folks who can thrive on 36-28 gearing. A bit surprised by the wheel choice given all of the effort that went into shaving off a few grams, but probably a safer bet given how long some of the descents can be.
He links to a post by RyanH (a WW mod), who I bought my Aethos frameset from before repainting it. Iām surprised he didnāt bring the Aethos instead, but his travel-ready Calfee is far more special.
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He explains the wheel choice - he was used to it, it is bullet proof, easy to fix flats ā¦ and is what he had lying around!
Also he is a British hill climb champion of some sort 
helps to be strong