By the numbers

It all adds up

We spot a woman taking a topless photo. Altitude does strange things to people

this is a popular location for movie production. In fact, Alberto says he helped out with some of the logistical work for the latest movie in The Fast And The Furious franchise. Peering over a sand dune, we spot a woman taking a topless photo. Altitude does strange things to people.

With a mix of undulating roads and long straights upon which we can pick up the pace, it’s an amazing place to ride, but it proves to be hard work as the altitude sucks away my energy. My throat is so dry I feel as though I have been sipping sawdust. This isn’t the traditional way to get dehydrated in Tenerife. As I pant across the sides of a volcano, I know that thousands of my fellow countrymen are simultaneously downing beers by the beach in the party capital of Playa de Las Americas.

The Teide volcano is 3,718m high but the paved road reaches 2,356m, from where a cable car ferries tourists to the top. Along this same lofty road we pass the Parador hotel where Team Sky and other pro riders stay during their trips to Tenerife. We can see a couple of Astana vans parked outside.

We pass the red pinnacles of the Roques de Garcia, the sprawling plain of Llanos de Ucanca, and the bumpy TF-38 road that has been twisted and tortured by the heat. I pause for a break. total length of the ride in kilometres metres. The highest point of the ride, which we reached on the Teide volcano total elevation gain in metres unusual volcanic rock formations (approximately) pro team spied on the island: Astana altitude dropped on the final descent to Granadilla naked tourist spotted