Cape Town - Extreme endurance cyclist Grant Lottering has been forced to abandon his 10th Im'possible Tour after 17 hours of cycling and 10 800m of climbing due to a nervous system dysfunction.
Lottering spent two months in the Alps training for the extreme attempt, determined to cover the distance of 551km, climbing a staggering 23 500m.
In August, Lottering embarked on his third Im’possible Tour #20onHuez.
He planned to cycle up and down the feared Alpe d'Huez mountain 20 times in one ride, a feat no one had attempted before.
He explained the strategy was straightforward: ascend and descend the mountain three times every five hours, followed by a thirty-minute respite.
This should’ve taken Lottering close to 33 hours, plus about six hours of stop time to accommodate for fatigue and unplanned delays.
“After completing four laps into the first night, I felt super confident, having climbed the mountain comfortably, keeping my heart rate between 130 – 140 bpm. After a 45-minute rest, I descended back into the valley in the dark before making a U-turn at the bottom and resuming the agonising climb for the fifth time, adding 1 080m in elevation with each rise. I was climbing the hardest section of the mountain, the first 3km, averaging over 10% gradient, when suddenly my heart rate dropped to 109 and wouldn’t go above 120bpm. My speed dropped slightly, but as my breathing became more and more shallow, my heart rate remained around the 115bpm for at least 6 km. That’s when I knew something wasn’t right,” he said.
At the famous 'Dutch Corner', Lottering pulled over.
“I honestly had no idea what was going on. Suddenly I was struggling to breathe, and my heart rate was low. I didn’t feel tired, neither were my legs sore; there was simply no power, no response from my body.”
“Bizarrely, my fastest lap turned out to be lap number six, near midnight, when my heart rate averaged the lowest. Out of utter frustration, I would sprint out of the hairpins, trying to get some reaction out of my body, pushing myself to the limit up the climb.”
At noon the next day, he got off his bike and slumped onto the pavement.
After returning to South Africa this month and seeing several specialists, including a neurologist, nervous system dysfunction was identified as the most likely cause of Lottering’s unusual symptoms. Lottering’s autonomic nervous system no longer regulated his involuntary functions correctly, like his heart rate, breathing, muscular power and other cognitive functions.
“Reflecting back, there were red flags as early as March this year. I even remarked to family and friends that something felt off and thought I needed to see a neurologist. I was dropping things, my concentration span was very short, my memory was fuzzy, and I often ran out of breath. Of course, fatigue can do all those things, so that’s what I originally thought it was.
“I didn’t take it seriously and just gave myself more time to rest in my training schedule as I prepared for my first US Im’possible Tour in June. I remember thinking, ‘I am an intelligent rider, I know my body, I have almost ten years of experience at this, surely I am not overtrained’?” he asked.
Lottering had been advised that his nervous system impairment stems from the severe internal trauma he experienced from his accident in 2013 and the 12 surgeries he underwent while putting his body through prolonged physical and mental stress year after year.
“Stress is a killer if left unattended. Fortunately, the condition is treatable, but it takes time,” said Lottering. "This time, the mountain won. My body said 'stop'. No matter how headstrong we are, we must listen to our bodies and seek professional help as soon as possible," the extreme athlete cautioned.
Cape Times