Everyone wants the view, but only a few are willing to climb the mountain. This is a metaphor I often use for people who want something without the required work. In your stories case, it was literal as well as metaphorical. Great piece Sam!
Really enjoyed this piece. It captured something I’ve never quite been able to explain… the weird logic of doing something hard, again and again, just because.
Made me think of the Club des Cinglés (climbing Mont Ventoux from all three sides in one day). We did it once, and by the third ascent we felt completely foolish. We’ve already gone up twice, already come down twice… why do it again? (During „afternoon hell“, which is what they called it in the little booklet you get when you sign up for the challenge 🙈.) The mountain doesn’t care that you to come back a third time. And yet…
That's so cool. I'd not heard of Club des Cinglés. And sounds super hard. Is there a record for the three ascents? Or does that run against the ethos of the club? I'd love to learn more about it.
The challenge was created in 1988 by three guys and since then, more than 21.500 cyclists have completed it officially. (I think I was No 9200 in 2016 or so…)
To qualify, riders must simply register in advance, receive a brevet card and collect stamps at checkpoints along the way (bakeries and souvenir shops..) to prove they’ve completed each ascent within the same calendar day.
The term Cinglé translates roughly to "crazy person" in French, which feels fitting once you attempt it.
It’s not a race, so there’s no official timekeeping or ranking.
Still, some riders go much further: a few have done the triple loop twice in a day (called the “Bicinglé”) or take the fourth road up, a dirt road.
The routes vary in difficulty. Bédoin is the most famous and brutal, Malaucène is nearly as tough, and Sault is the gentlest, though by the third climb, none of them feel easy.
The combination of physical challenge, beautiful scenery, and the odd joy of repetition makes it something special. And yes, by the third climb, you question your life choices.
To make it worth the travel, do them all 😅💪 - it's still one of my favorite adventures ever. At TdF, they usually go up via Bedoin, only very few times they have chosen a different route. I think they'll be going up in a week from now.
🤔 I'm thinking translating my original Mt Ventoux report into English and publishing it here one day...
Having recently spent a lot of time going uphill (and at times wondering why) I appreciate this post and the questions it raises. One of the most striking things I notice about the ups is how they slow time... If you are good at racing, it's your speed, not your level of effort, that varies with terrain, and near the top of a long, high-altitude climb, that speed can be absurdly slow (even though you are working just as hard). The whole thing goes into a surreal slow motion — the closing and expanding gaps between runners, etc. A pass that might have happened in less than a minute on the level might take five minutes or more up there (and seem even longer, when you're above tree line, with long lines of sight). Just another thing that is intensified in the mountains.
Everyone wants the view, but only a few are willing to climb the mountain. This is a metaphor I often use for people who want something without the required work. In your stories case, it was literal as well as metaphorical. Great piece Sam!
Appreciate it, Marty!
Really enjoyed this piece. It captured something I’ve never quite been able to explain… the weird logic of doing something hard, again and again, just because.
Made me think of the Club des Cinglés (climbing Mont Ventoux from all three sides in one day). We did it once, and by the third ascent we felt completely foolish. We’ve already gone up twice, already come down twice… why do it again? (During „afternoon hell“, which is what they called it in the little booklet you get when you sign up for the challenge 🙈.) The mountain doesn’t care that you to come back a third time. And yet…
That's so cool. I'd not heard of Club des Cinglés. And sounds super hard. Is there a record for the three ascents? Or does that run against the ethos of the club? I'd love to learn more about it.
The challenge was created in 1988 by three guys and since then, more than 21.500 cyclists have completed it officially. (I think I was No 9200 in 2016 or so…)
To qualify, riders must simply register in advance, receive a brevet card and collect stamps at checkpoints along the way (bakeries and souvenir shops..) to prove they’ve completed each ascent within the same calendar day.
The term Cinglé translates roughly to "crazy person" in French, which feels fitting once you attempt it.
It’s not a race, so there’s no official timekeeping or ranking.
Still, some riders go much further: a few have done the triple loop twice in a day (called the “Bicinglé”) or take the fourth road up, a dirt road.
The routes vary in difficulty. Bédoin is the most famous and brutal, Malaucène is nearly as tough, and Sault is the gentlest, though by the third climb, none of them feel easy.
The combination of physical challenge, beautiful scenery, and the odd joy of repetition makes it something special. And yes, by the third climb, you question your life choices.
That’s incredible. Gosh, I’d love to ride one of those routes someday. Do you know which of the three routes the Tour is going up this year?
To make it worth the travel, do them all 😅💪 - it's still one of my favorite adventures ever. At TdF, they usually go up via Bedoin, only very few times they have chosen a different route. I think they'll be going up in a week from now.
🤔 I'm thinking translating my original Mt Ventoux report into English and publishing it here one day...
…never done diablo but definitely on the list…
You’ve got to do it, @CansaFis Foote! On bike or foot!
…yeah doog and you still owe me an irl hang…
Great bit of history Sam, thanks. I’ve always loved running/hiking to the highest point around me. The going back down part, not so much.
Same. Appreciate it, Josh!
Having recently spent a lot of time going uphill (and at times wondering why) I appreciate this post and the questions it raises. One of the most striking things I notice about the ups is how they slow time... If you are good at racing, it's your speed, not your level of effort, that varies with terrain, and near the top of a long, high-altitude climb, that speed can be absurdly slow (even though you are working just as hard). The whole thing goes into a surreal slow motion — the closing and expanding gaps between runners, etc. A pass that might have happened in less than a minute on the level might take five minutes or more up there (and seem even longer, when you're above tree line, with long lines of sight). Just another thing that is intensified in the mountains.