approximately four kilometers from the summit; the slope is actually 6.5%)
Avignon to Mont Ventoux
(conclusion)
I started my climb from Malaucene at 1PM, while the day was seemingly at its hottest—and I consumed all my water in the course of the 21-kilometer climb. I definitely benefited from the knowledge I gained from my descent; the insights allowed me to anticipate the length of the steep stretches and the road flattenings. I could feel my energy draining with every kilometer marker, and I started wondering which would first run out: the kilometers-to-go, or the power in my legs.
(Below: The
"flat" portion of the climb from the north side,
approximately four kilometers from the summit; the slope is
actually 6.5%)
It’s quite difficult to make an objective comparison between the two sides—statistically speaking, the two were very comparable in terms of distance and elevation gained. I would perhaps say that the southern side was the more difficult, but just. I attribute this conclusion solely on the fact that the 9-10% stretches were consecutively laid out; the northern side did have a 4-kilometer stretch of 9-10% halfway up, but this was relieved by a "flat" (by comparison) 6% stretch at Mont Serein.
(Below: The start of the
three-kilometer 10%, final leg)
Having said that, it took me 20 minutes longer to make it to the summit from the north side. This was from a combination of the heat, my decision to climb conservatively, and of course, the cumulative effect of the day’s mileage.
(Above: Looking back
at the 10.5% stretch, the summit less than a kilometer away)
Nevertheless, I made it to the summit in one piece and from there, I was rewarded with a screaming descent down to Bedouin.
(Above: The sign
actually urges "Prudence" for those going
down the steep section, the summit is 200 meters away)
Following an ice-cream break in Bedoin (pistache, frais, and melon, if you must know), I headed back towards Avignon, some 40 kilometers away, this time taking the more direct route on the D974 to Carpentras and then the dual-carriageway D942 towards Avignon. Though it looked ominous on the map, this road turned out to be a pleasant surprise (as utility roads go)—it was flat, smooth, and with a bike lane in its busiest sections.
Alas, the road turned into a freeway somewhere between Carpentras and Le Pontet and I had gone several kilometers before I realized that all the honking was directed at me! Shuddering, I hurriedly got off at Le Pontet, a mere four kilometers from Avignon. I followed a quieter road running parallel south of the motorway for the remaining distance to the finish.
(Above: The famous Pont Saint
Bénézet, or Pont d'Avignon, first constructed
in the 12th century, was the first bridge to cross the Rhône.
Only four of
the original 22 arches remain)
Back at the hotel, I turned on the TV just in time to see George Totschnig from Deutsche Telekom starting his prologue of the Tour. I hurriedly changed, jumped in bed, and settled for 90-minutes of inactivity topped by jubilation as Lance Armstrong, taking off just before Abraham Olano and Bobby Julich, smashed Alex Zulle’s time and won the Tour’s Prologue. Not a bad day all around.
(Above: Much of what I found
attractive in Avignon was off the tourist
track, such as this quiet medieval alley in the SE district)
NB: I never did find the memorial to British cyclist Tom Simpson (who died riding up Mt. Ventoux in the 1967 Tour de France). It was supposed to have been just above treeline on the southside. I looked for it on the descent but did not see it.
End.
Last Updated: July 18, 1999