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My First Classic Climb By Doug Shaw

Prologue: Gatwick - Provence (1100km)

Several years ago I pinned a piece of paper to my wall. On the paper I have written "I will ride up Mont Ventoux before I reach the age of 40." I've read so much about this cycling Mecca and it's fallen hero Tom Simpson - I feel a need to experience this mountain for myself. I get older, so does the paper. In the Summer of my 38th year my dream objective stares at me and says - time is running out. Dream objective? More like a nightmare!

Shortly after, I spot a message on the internet from Dave Lombari suggesting he might like to ride up Mont Ventoux and would anyone care to join him...? Destiny calls and I respond in the positive. So too do Tamar Collis and Maria David (who will already be in France taking part in a cyclo sportif), and we arrange to meet Robbie and Paul Brown on location, we have a team. I figure some training might be a good idea and eventually begin to prepare on July 31st. Might just have left this a bit late.... 700km on the bike plus a few good sessions in the gym sees me down to 11 stone, my fighting weight and here we are on a plane to Provence.

A very late arrival at our race HQ in Avignon on September 9th Thursday night is followed by a hearty breakfast on Friday morning and a leisurely stroll around what is a very beautiful city. In the afternoon, myself, Tamar and Dave (Maria has returned to Marseille Airport for an emotional reunion with her bike box) head off to meet Robbie and Paul at the Pont Du Gard, a garden with a superb ancient aqueduct running through it. On the way, my bike starts to play up, gears prove very difficult to select and the chain is jumping all over the place. Not to worry - we'll have a look when we stop for coffee. At rest, it soon becomes apparent that the bike is in a very bad way. Easyjet may have transported me safely but not my equipment which it turns out is so knackered I'm going to have to attempt the climb tomorrow with a grand total of one gear. I don't like the sound of that.

The Stage: Bedoin - Mont Ventoux (22km)

Nervous..? Not 'alf! To be honest I remember very little about Saturday morning as we got ready and made our way to Bedoin. Bike out, wheel on, helmet strapped to handlebars, power gel and power bar, sunnies....ready to go! Oh wait - is there a loo round here, great timing and regrettably a recurring theme (more later).

We're away, and imediately I begin to twiddle (by the way, the one gear I picked was first!!) up the road. Right from the start I know I'm going to be the slowest of the bunch by a considerable margin and settle into my pace. The first few km pass uneventfully enough, I've been warned that when the road kicks up, it does so quickly and unrelentingly and sure enough, I turn a corner and..."they ain't kidding". I'm not sure how you describe toiling up a mountain on a bicycle for kilometre after kilometre...... From my perspective I think I quite enjoyed the first section through the pine trees, a painful uphill grind with some pleasant scenery. Approaching Chalet Reynard after 16km, I'm greeted by a sight sure to motivate even the most tired grimpeur. In chalk letters across the road Robbie and Paul have on a previous climb witten "Go Lombari, Tamar, Maria and Snoop". The rain has had a detrimental effect on the paintwork but not on the effect it has - great stuff! Moving on to Chalet Reynard I'm overwhelmed with the need to pop behind a tree but I choose instead the lavatory in the caff! Fresh water in the bidons and off again. At this point the road becomes completely exposed to the surrounding rockscape and I begin to notice the wind blowing hard. These next few km prove to be really tough - tongue hanging out - knees beginning to ache - I become aware just how much salt my body is expelling as I lick my lips in a search for moisture, bleughh!! Through the sweat Tom Simpson appears in view. I'm 1500m from the summit - but for me - this journey is not complete without a pause to reflect here. A most agreeable French Gent takes my photo and we then proceed to discuss the merits of Gigondas over Chateauneuf du Pape. Part of me could stop here and empty a bottle right now, but I'm not finished yet.

The final push seems to last forever and I experience a sense of the unreal when I finally drag my aching body up the last ramp to the summit. I'm here.......plumb last but grinning like an idiot! As the stiff wind drops the temperature, I begin to wonder why we don't have a support team with a masseur - I'm hurting in places I never knew existed. The climb took me a total of 2hrs and 28 minutes start to finish. I had an idea that I'd like to complete the climb in between 2 to 3 hours so mission accomplished. I fancy another crack next year.....

Epilogue: Mont Ventoux - Bedoin (via Gorge de la Nesque) (58km)

What goes up.....must eventually come down. Slowly does it for me - my descending is positively poor and coupled with a busted head set I won't be setting any records. I caught up with everyone in Sault where we stopped for a celebratory coffee and headed for home. I already felt knackered so I picked what I thought should be an OK all round gear and off we went. Tamar and Maria rode through the Gorge and then home - Dave kindly agreed to stick with me back to the van at Bedoin. The ride through the Gorge is spectacular if slow on my part. I finally run out of steam completely on the slightest of slopes and collapse in a heap whilst Dave goes to get our transport. That night we enjoy a fine al fresco dinner in Avignon and in a very tired way - celebrate our achievement. That should be enough but hat's off to Maria who participates in the Avignon 10km run the following morning and sets a PB in the hot conditions. An uneventful flight home caps a fantastic adventure.

Acknowledgements

Heartfelt thanks to Dave for the suggestion and to Dave, Tamar, Maria, Robbie and Paul for a most awesome experience, utterly memorable and thoroughly recommended.

Doug Shaw aka Snoop