Higher Calling
Page 29
Paris-Nice: (1935) 97, 103
Paris-Roubaix:
(1896) 46
(1907) 94, 104
(1944) 183
Parpaillon, Col du, Alps 194, 196–202, 198, 200, 201, 227, 228
Pas de la Casa, Andorra 161
patous (Pyrenean mountain dogs) 255, 257, 268, 270–1
Pau, France 57–8, 182, 184
PB (personal best) 156
Petrarch 225–6, 227
Peugeot 93
Peyresourde, Col de, Pyrenees 50
Piaf, Edith 103
Pico de Veleta, Sierra Nevada, Spain 18
Piemont-Liguria Ocean 218
Pinot, Thibaut 75–6, 77, 78
Pinsent, Matthew 76
Piot, Klébet 184, 185
plate tectonics 218, 218n
Po Valley, Italy 188, 252n
Poincaré, Raymond 205
Poli, Eros 90
Polybius 188
Porte, Col de, Alps 51
Porte, Richie 68, 128, 129, 132, 133n, 147
Portet d’Aspet, Pyrenees 52, 148
Pottier, René 91–4, 94, 95
Poulidor, Raymond 103
Pra Loup, France 173
pro cycling 6–7
life of pro rider see Dombrowski, Joe
Purito Cyclosportive 161
Puymorens, Col de, Pyrenees 161
Pyrenees 11, 32–3, 148, 161, 170
introduction into Tour de France 46–59, 64, 261
Route des Pyrénées 59
sheep/shepherds in 249, 255
Tour de France (1934) and 96
Tour de France (1947) and 98
Tour de France (1950) and 182, 184–5
Tour de France (2003) and 83
tourism and bicycle in 204
see also under individual area and place name
Quintana, Nairo 23, 68, 176, 240
Racing Board of the League of American Wheelmen 133–4
Ravaud, Charles 52, 53, 55
RCS Sport 168, 168n
religion, mountain areas and 221–3, 224, 227
Rémi (friend of author) 41–3
République, Col de la, Alps 49
Restefond, Col de, Alps 192, 202–3, 202, 203 see also Col de la Bonette
Rettenbachferner climb, Austria 73–6, 77–8
rewilding 260
Risoul, Alps 197, 273
roads, mountain:
birth of Alps mountain roads 187–8
highest paved 10, 17–20, 19
Napoleon Bonaparte, road building under 190–1
Napoleon III, road building under 191–3, 202
road clearing, Col de la Bonette 15–17, 20–1, 24–5, 26–40, 28, 31, 34, 37, 269, 278–80, 298
route impériale 192, 202
routes stratégiques, les Diables Bleus building of 193–203, 194, 195, 202, 203
routes thermales 50, 59
routes touristiques 182
Tour de France mountain stages, poor state of roads and early 50–8
winter closure of 13–40, 296–9, 297, 299
Robic, Jean 104, 182–3, 184–5, 215, 216, 286
Roche, Stephen 4–5, 76–7
Rodriguez, Joaquim ‘Purito’ 161, 165, 166, 176
Romanticism 223
Romeyère, Col de 113
Rominger, Tony 128, 129
Routes des Alpes 204–5
Route des Grandes Alpes 205
route impériale 192, 202
routes stratégiques 182, 193–203, 194, 195, 202, 203
routes thermales 50, 59
routes touristiques 182
sadism, cycling and 46, 109n, 161, 173–4, 179
Sagan, Peter 68
Saint Étienne de Tinée, Alps ix, 15, 17, 20, 35, 121, 122, 186, 277
Saint Gaudens, Pyrenees 182, 186
Saint-Dalmas le Selvage, Alps viii, 44, 59, 60
Sainte Marie de Campan, Pyrenees 55
Salso Moreno river 122, 263
San Remo Harley & Flowers motorbike gang 254
Sanremo, Italy 186
Sant’Anna di Vinadio, Italy 21, 283
Sardinia, Kingdom of 187
Savoie region, France 51, 191, 193, 208
Savoy, House of 187, 192
Scarponi, Michele 285
Schleck, Andy 6, 77, 90, 152–3
Second World War (1939–45) 9, 43, 124, 182–3, 186, 206, 210–13, 246
7-Eleven (team) 23
Shepherd, Nan: The Living Mountain 175
shepherds/sheep 10, 20, 32, 55–6, 92, 121, 211, 220n, 225–6, 246–72, 249n, 251, 253, 254, 266, 271
bellwether (floucat) 272, 271
Bonette and 246–51, 261–2
disappearance of traditional mountain village life and 255–6
evolving role of shepherd in modern French village 256–7, 264–6, 266
huts 254–5, 256
mountain dogs (patous) and 255
shepherd’s festivals 251–6, 252n, 254
transhumances (movement of livestock from valleys and plains to mountainside pastures) 249–1, 249n, 251
wolves and 257, 260–1, 262, 267
Simoni, Gilberto 65
Simplon Pass, Alps 190–1
Simpson, Tom 90, 289, 291–2
Sky, Team:
altitude training and 220, 237–8
Boswell and 66, 133, 176, 178, 179
disciplined high-tempo collective efforts 184
Dombrowski and 65, 66, 70–1
Giro d’Italia (2016) and 275, 281
‘marginal gains’ theory 172–3
Strava KoM Madone and 128, 133
Teide and 220, 237–8
Tour de France (2012) and 237–8
Vuelta España (2015) and 179
social facilitation 133–4
soigneur 23, 23n, 302
St Roch 252–4, 251n
stage creation/design, Grand Tour 161–81
stairwell-running 151–2 239
Steinès, Alphonse 47, 54, 167
background 46
shaping of Tour de France route 46, 47, 48, 50, 51, 53–8, 56n, 59, 60
Stelvio, Passo dello, Alps 15, 168
Giro d’Italia (2014) 23
height of 18, 205
history of 192n
switchbacks 169, 205
weather on 23
Stonemasters 135
Strava 2, 161, 280
age groups 148
appeal of 131–4
author assignments for 161
birth of 129–31
Ditchling Beacon and 139
Dombrowski KoMs 129, 282
Everesting and 2, 134, 138, 139, 141, 146
growth in popularity of 129–30
King of the Mountain (KoM) leaderboard 130, 131, 132, 148, 149, 282
Mallory and 146, 147, 148, 150, 151
meeting of cyclists through 2, 139, 141
pro cyclists and 129
Queen of the Mountain (QoM) leaderboard 130, 131, 132
‘segments’ 130, 130n, 131, 133, 149, 150
social facilitation and 133–4
VAM envelope and 147
sublime, concept of 217, 223–5, 229
suffering/pain, cycling and 8, 71–2, 78, 81–7, 125, 140, 155, 160, 270
Bahamontes and 115, 116, 117
Cadel Evans and 153
capacity for 94, 101, 101–2n, 104, 106
control/management of 71–2, 73–6, 77–8, 81
Dombrowski and 71–2, 73–6, 77–8, 81
Gaul and 109n
motivation/pleasure and 81–7
Pottier and 94, 101, 101–2n, 104, 106
spectacle of 59, 174
training for 84
Vietto and 98–102, 104–7, 107
suicide pull 79, 79n, 287
Sutton, Shane 238
switchbacks 52, 75, 78, 81, 165, 169, 199, 201, 217, 229–30, 229, 281
T-Mobile 88
Taaramäe, Rein 285, 286, 287, 288, 295
; Taillibert, Roger 234
Team Sky see Sky, Team
Télégraphe, Col de, Alps 59, 84
Tende, Alps 251–2, 252n; shepherd’s festival in 251–3, 252n, 254
Tende, Col de, Alps 187, 252n
Terray, Lionel: Conquistadors of the Useless vii, 156–7, 213
Third French Republic 192, 206
Thomas, Edward 246
Thomas, Geraint 68
time capsule, Camp des Fourches 211–13, 263n
time-trialling 6, 159
Times, The 76
Tinée river/valley, Alps 17, 58, 120, 124, 186, 247, 271
Tinkoff 220
Tirreno-Adriatico 159–60, 164, 277
Togliati, Palmiro 214
Tour de France 20, 22, 24, 45
Étape du Tour 64, 156, 167
Giro d’Italia mountain stages and 169–70
introduction of high mountains to 46–59
Grand Prix de la Montagne (GPM), introduction of 52, 95
grand sites, wedded to 170
King of the Mountains 45–6, 93, 95, 96, 108, 112–14
‘meilleur grimpeur’ (the best climber) 93
mountain stages see under individual place and stage name
route, shaping of 46, 48–59
poor state of roads and early 50–8
position in cycling calendar 22
Prix Chocolat Menier, Prix de la Montagne 94–5
three categories of truth that pertain to 95
(1903) 47, 48, 205
(1904) 46–7, 48
(1905) 48, 92
(1906) 92–3
(1909) 49–50
(1910) 50–8, 90, 200
(1911) 84
(1926) 96
(1930) 94
(1931) 94
(1933) 95, 108
(1934) 95, 96–7, 98, 102, 230
(1935) 97
(1947) 98–100, 103–7, 182–3
(1948) 183, 214
(1949) 183–4
(1950) 182, 183–6, 214–16
(1954) 113
(1955) 90
(1958) 90, 109
(1959) 114
(1962) 25, 110, 118
(1964) 25, 110, 118
(1967) 90, 289
(1969) 76, 90
(1970) 90
(1981) 98
(1983) 161
(1984) 110
(1987) 4–5, 76–7
(1988) 108
(1993) 25, 110, 122, 123–4, 125
(1994) 90
(1998) 76
(1999) 127–8
(2002) 90
(2003) 83
(2006) 95
(2008) 110
(2009) 6
(2011) 77, 152–3
(2012) 97, 237–8
(2016) 173
Tour de l’Avenir (2012) 65
Tour de Suisse 66, 73 (2015) 73–4
Tour of Avila 111
Tour of California (2012) 65–6, 164
Tour of Catalunya 166
Tour of Flanders 184
Tour of Utah (2015) 78–9, 163
Touring Club de France 51, 204–5
Tourmalet, Col du, Pyrenees 15, 50
introduction to Tour de France 52, 55–6, 57
regular place on Tour de France 170
Tour de France (1910) 58, 90, 210, 261
Tour de France (1950) 182, 185, 200
Tour de France (1959) 59
Tour de France (1969) 76, 90
Touring Club de France and 51
tower runs 151–2
transhumances (movement of livestock from valleys and plains to mountainside pastures) 20, 249–1, 249n, 251
Traversette, Col de, Alps 188, 190
Trek Madone bike range 128
Trek-Segafredo 170n
Triple Alliance 193, 204
Triplett, Norman 133–4, 133n
trophic cascade (imbalance caused by outside intervention) 261
Trousselier, Louis 92
Trueba, Vicente ‘Flea of Torrelavega’ 108
Turin, Italy 187, 188, 252n, 275
Ubaye valley, France 13, 197
ultramarathon 144, 156
Union des Audax Français 91–2
University College Hospital 231
Urán, Rigoberto:
altitude and 240, 241
Giro d’Italia (2016) and 240, 275, 276, 285, 287
Tirreno-Adriatico 159
US Anti-Doping Agency 78–9
US Forest Service 260–1
US Postal 237
Val d’Isère, Alps 18
Valverde, Alejandro 273, 274, 275, 284, 285, 286, 287, 288, 295
VAM (Mean Ascent Vertical) envelope 147–8
Var, France 17, 119–20, 125, 197, 247, 270
Vars, Col de, Alps 21, 96, 191, 194, 197
Vaughters, Jonathan 74–5n, 241–2, 275
Vegni, Mauro 168, 168n, 169, 170–1, 171n, 276
‘vertical kilometer’ trail runs 152
Vietto, Jean 100, 101, 104, 106
Vietto, René 99, 105, 107, 108, 112, 293
ashes scattered over Col de Braus 230
birth and childhood 96–7
first French grimpeur superstar 95–6
French national champion (1941) 103
Paris-Nice (1935) 97
toe amputated 98–102, 104–7, 107
Tour de France (1934) 96–7, 98, 102, 230
Tour de France (1935) 97, 103
Tour de France (1939) 97
Tour de France (1947) 98, 103–4
Virenque, Richard 88, 90, 108
Visconti, Giovanni 281, 284, 285, 287, 288, 294, 295
VO2 max (body’s maximum oxygen consumption measurement) 70
Voeckler, Thomas 77
Voigt, Jens 83
Vuelta a Toledo 107
Vuelta al Pais Vasco 160
Vuelta España:
Bahamontes and 108, 115
mountains jersey 166
relaxed nature of 176
Rominger and 128
stage creation 161–7, 170, 170n
(2015) 161–7, 175–80, 178, 236n, 276, 296
(2016) 170, 170n
Warbasse, Larry 127, 176
Weylandt, Wouter 171n
Wiggins, Bradley 90
Tour de France (2009) 6
Tour de France (2012) 237–8
wolves, Alpine 25, 27, 200, 251n, 256–7, 259–61, 262, 267, 298
Woods, Michael 79
World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) 233
World Tour 65, 66, 70, 159–61
Zakarin, Ilnur 80
Zeno’s paradox 86
Zeus 222
Zoncolan, Monte, Alps 170, 174
George Mallory II and 148–9, 168
Giro d’Italia (2003) and 169
Giro Donne (1997) and 169
introduction into Giro d’Italia 168–9
Strava KoM 149
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Prologue: AIN’T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH ENOUGH
fn1 Years later, when Lance Armstrong was stripped of all his Tour de France titles and results, Bradley Wiggins was bumped up to third place. But this is what we all thought happened at the time.
Chapter 1: SETTING THE STAGE
fn1 Lanolin is an oily substance produced by sheep which helps waterproof their woolly coats. It is used in beauty products but not, to my knowledge, by cyclists at any time other than this. A soigneur is the name given to the cycling team’s masseur. It means ‘carer’, and soigneurs are very often asked to do other tasks, like handing out food in the feed zones or fetching supplies. (There is a glossary at the back of this book of some common cycling terms.)
Chapter 2: HORS CATÉGORIE
fn1 This maxim is printed on the route directions for the Dunwich Dynamo – an overnight ride of around 120 miles from London to the Suffolk coast every July. It’s a kind of beautiful madness that, in fine-weather years, appeals to hundreds or even thousands of cyclists in a region where there are no lofty peaks they might pit themselves against.
fn2 Or so says the famous telegram he is meant to have sent to Desgrange – ‘parfaitement praticable’. Actually, Steinès says he telephoned, so perhaps the telegram is another invention by historians after the fact.
Chapter 3: CONTROL, AND LOSING IT
fn1 On a side note, isn’t it wonderful that everyone, from six-year-olds on their first bike to blokes on a sportive to veteran pros, gets overexcited and jumps around like jelly beans in such situations? It says something about the spirit of the sport.
fn2 On another side note, Joe shared with me an observation by his team boss, Jonathan Vaughters. The nub of it is that there is a physiological reason that riders tend to get dropped every four minutes. According to Vaughters (according to Joe), people start getting dropped after four minutes, and the big selection is usually after eight minutes. After that, the intensity goes down every four minutes and the pace steadies until a winner from the final group emerges. ‘So basically, when you’re at the bottom of that climb, absolutely nailed, you have to think, OK, if I can get past this four minutes, then the next four minutes I’m good,’ Joe said. Whether this is bike-rider lore, like not eating the crust of your baguette, or actual real hard science, I do not know.
fn3 A ‘suicide pull’ is where a rider sacrifices himself for a teammate, riding so hard he is effectively ‘dead’ when he pulls off.
fn4 Pain was his speciality. At the previous year’s Giro d’Italia, Hamilton broke his shoulder and ground his teeth so hard that he had to have 11 of them capped or replaced after the race. That time, he finished second.
Chapter 4: THE KINGS OF THE MOUNTAINS
fn1 The distinctive polka-dot jersey didn’t arrive until 1975. Some people say that the design came from the then sponsor, Chocolat Poulain; others, that race director Félix Lévitan was paying homage to an old track star, Henri Lemoine, who was famous for riding in polka dots.