The EF Education-Nippo rider has now covered 3,632 kilometres, spending 148 hours in the saddle while also raising AU$407,000 for World Bicycle Relief.
La Llagonne was the start point for Morton on Day 12 as he finished Stage 14 into the Pyrenees before riding on a further 100km to Ceret which is the start point for stage 15.
However, Morton revealed he is really feeling the pain of the cumulative effort after 12 days on the bike.
“It’s a very different tired. It takes me 2 or 3 hours to get going. After 5 hours I feel really good and the last 4 or 5 hours are really difficult again. The toll on my body is a lot more, I've got blisters everywhere, I haven’t been sleeping as much as I normally would,” Morton said.
It was another 12 hours in the saddle for the Aussie who now has the colder temperatures which come with being at a higher altitude.
It is just another hurdle on what is a truly gargantuan mission to cycle 5,510 kilometres over 23 days and beat the Tour de France peloton to Paris.
Yesterday, he came the closest he will to his hometown Girona, and said it would be quicker to ride home than to Paris. The last transfer will be the longest he has ever ridden in one go.
“I’ve been trying to ride more or less 12 hours every day, or at least that’s what it has ended up being," he said.
"I’ve got to get back through the Pyrenees and do the really long transfer back to Paris so it’s still a significant amount of riding to go.”
