Mont Ventoux

The legendary Mont Ventoux (1912 m. high). Petrarca climbed up and described it in 1336. I knew the mountain, dubbed the "Giant of the Provence" ("Géant de Provence") since I followed the "Tour de France".

During the Tour the mountain is often called the "Beast of the Provence", as it is the scene scene of one of the most grueling climbs in bike race. In 1967 the British cyclist Tom Simpson died here, a victim of heat exhaustion and amphetamin drugs. Some years later Eddy Merckx collapsed just after the finish. Marco Pantini won the stage in 2000. He only survived for four years and was found dead in a hotel room in 2004.

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British author Tim Moore whote a very humrous book about the Tour the France. He just got out his city bike out of the garage and started to find our how dificult is the Tour. His book is titled "French Revolutions: Cycling the Tour de France". And as the Tour is much harded, than he had expected, he has to find ways to cheat a bit around the mountains.