Redondo dad ‘Rides for Lucy’ in Tour de France Cure Leukemia ride
by Mark McDermott If all goes according to plan, Jeff Davis will rise sometime before dawn on July 2 and face a notorious giant in the French Pyrenees. The Col du Tourmalet is known in cycling lore as the Géant des Pyrénées, the Giant of the Pyrenees. At 2,115 meters — nearly 7,000 feet — it is the highest paved pass in the central Pyrenees, and the most legendary climb in the Tour de France. The mountain looms over the entire day, visible from the road for hours before the climb begins. By the time Davis reaches its base, he will have already crossed another major climb, the Col d’Aspin, a category-one ascent that on any other day would be the hardest thing on the schedule. Then comes the Tourmalet. The road climbs more than 17 kilometers — about 10.7 miles — from the village of Sainte-Marie-de-Campan, rising 1,268 meters, or roughly 4,160 vertical feet. That is the height of three Empire State Buildings stacked on top of each other. The average grade is 7.4%: imagine climbing a 4,160-foot vertical wall, spread across 10 miles of road. Long sections pitch above 10% — the gradient at which most casual cyclists either stand up on the pedals or stop. The final approach climbs at a…
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