Stage 4 - From altitude training to QOM glory

Hard data of the day

Day: Wednesday 13 May 2026
From: Segura
To: Teruel

#Kilometers: 90km 
#Altimeters: 1200m
#Wind: Strong north wind added a chilly edge to the ride
#Weather: Chilly and Dry

Hero of the day

Sofie VB

Trivia of the day

Nicolas VH enjoyed his moment of glory when a local mistook him for Remco E. Looking like a cycling star did not make him hero of the day, but it definitely earned him a place in the trip’s trivia memories.

Story of the day

Last night all the cyclist were extremely tired but satisfied. The ride of today was a shorter one. As we slept on a altitude of + 1200 meters we will benefit the altitude training camp as the pro riders do. I assume the consumption of alcohol won’t impact the benefits of the altitude training camp.

The restaurant of last night was as good as the previous night, we were very satisfied and impressed by our waiters’ enthusiasm. Our table agreed upon the fact that In general the hotel was very good, also did so the beautiful young lady at the Check in desk. Ok, she was somewhat slow, forgetful, indecisive , she had a bit troubles with the English language, but from our table’s point she was still the ideal receptionist.

At the early morning breakfast table I was quite surprised that I didn’t spot any real tired faces, which was really remarkable after the queen’s ride of yesterday. I need to add the information that I was the only one sitting on the early morning breakfast table.

Today’s ride started with a steep climb from the hotel to the main road. I expected an immediate attack but everyone held their horses. As a matter of fact the ride was a beauty, we cruised through a desolate landscape constantly on an altitude between 1100 m and 1300 m. The strong north wind was a little chilly but the atmosphere was outstanding.

Due to the fact the ride was quite short in comparison to the previous days our cyclists started to look for some extra salt and pepper to animate the ride.

Tom BB for instance decided, or it was decided by someone else, to discharge his gear battery and to do this ride by using only the outer chainring of his bike, even on the steep climbs. We still not know if his gears were the subject of sabotage or not. The villain who comes to confess it to me can still be nominated as hero of the day. Without wishing to cast any suspicion whatsoever, I find it strange that someone sent a photo of the inside of a church a few hours after arrival, did I notice some remorse Christian C.? It’s Christianity by default.

Tom W. pleased himself by securing the lightweights not to fly away during the windy descends.

Our fellow partner who don’t wants to be mentioned in the daily blog, Fred DB, being an skilled engineer, invented a new game which we baptized ‘phantom waiting’. Let me explain the rules of the game…. You arrive on the top of a hill and you wait for the fellow partners who arrived before you on that hill. After realizing you were the last to reach the top you need to close the gap as soon as possible with the riders riding in front of you.

At km 60 the team stopped in a little brasserie with a nice terrace. We already mentioned David R’ waiter skills. This time he outperformed his performance of the day before yesterday. His flair of serving coffee automatically sugared the coffee.

Deloitte cycling partners are very focused on their job. They start to work immediately after arrival at the destination. I witnessed at least 15 partners working very focused on their I-phone. I also received 15 kudos on my Strava account.

Talking about Strava, usage of technology is part of our consulting partners playground, the data are reviewed by our auditors, but it’s a tax and legal advisor who’s put on the pedestal as the new queen of the mountain QOM on Strava, congrats Sofie VB for this remarkable achievement and of course you are the heroine of the day.