Audlem cyclists tackle feared mountain

Yesterday, the competitors in the Tour de France took on the most feared climb of all – the ascent of Mont Ventoux, the Provencal mountain where British cyclist Tom Simpson died 42 years ago. It's also where Lance Armstrong and Marco Pantini had an epic showdown in 2000 in front of 300,000 spectators.

Members of Audlem Cycling Club signed up to take part in this year's Etape Du Tour – raced over the same fearsome stage as the professionals – earlier in the week on Monday 20th July.

The Etape involved 8,500 enthusiastic amateur cyclists but is not for the unfit or faint-hearted. The route covered 172km (107 miles) from the home of white nougat, Montelimar, with four cols to climb plus a finish on Mont Ventoux itself. The winner of the event was a Frenchman appropriately named Dimitri Champion, but three Audlem cyclists completed the course in times that had them well placed in the results.

In hot, sunny weather, Philip Hesketh completed the 107 extraordinarily tough miles in 7 hours: 30 minutes: 1 second. That put him in 1,599th place out of the 7,397 cyclists who completed the course. Ed Chatwin came home in 7:40:34, placed 1,908th overall, and Tim Reeves in 8:09:30 in 2,821th place – all well in the top half of finishers.

Tom Simpson died during the Tour's ascent in 1967 (under the influence of drugs) with the infamous last words "put me back on my bike." There is a monument to him beside the road to the summit.

The route takes in some of the best Provencal countryside – however, the riders do not have much time to look at the views as there is a time limit in which to complete the course. Riders who fall behind the schedule are unceremoniously removed from the ride.

As soon as the Audlem riders have recovered we hope to have a report on their day cycling one of the toughest Tour de France stages.

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