Ventoux’s wild side
After gaining a few hundred metres of elevation we swing off the road and leave our new friends to their tarmac-based toiling
It’s mid-morning on the road above Bédoin and already cyclists outnumber cars more than ten to one. Most are already in their smallest gear and face a long struggle battling up perhaps the most famous mountain in cycling.
Climbing to 1,910m above sea level, Mont Ventoux stands alone, seemingly detached from any other range. This climb is a superstar in the cycling world – its profile unique, its Tour de France appearances many and its barren, weather-beaten summit legendary. Ventoux draws riders from across the world to suffer in the wheel tracks of their heroes. Almost every metre of tarmac features graffiti urging on both pros and amateurs.
Having settled into the procession for the infamous grind up the road that leads to Chalet Reynard and onto the Ventoux summit, I’m not sure anyone notices as we abandon our place in the line and instead turn off into the forest.
Only place to start
Just like most cyclists attempting Mont Ventoux, our day started in the pretty commune of Bédoin. The jumping-off point for most of the Tour’s many trips up this storied mountain, Bédoin sits at around 300m above sea level. It’s late summer and in the farmlands surrounding the roads out of town the grape harvest is just being brought in.
As a result, each bend is sticky from the overspill left by the automated lorries that strip the vines. To the left lies our goal for the day: the candy-striped weather station atop Ventoux, just visible high up through the haze. To the right, vineyards and lavender fields roll
