Where does Col du Tourmalet start?

Luz St Sauveur
As the highest road pass in the French Pyrénées the Tourmalet is a special place, almost sacred to cyclists throughout the world. From the west the climb starts in the pretty mountain village of Luz St Sauveur, where you face 19 kilometres on your journey up to the summit at 2,115m.

What is the highest paved mountain pass in the French Pyrenees that the tour has visited 83 times?

Col du Tourmalet
Col du Tourmalet is the highest paved mountain pass in the French Pyrénées. The summit is 2,115 metres (6,939 feet), and at the top is a monumental statue « The Giant of Tourmalet » to honour Octave Lapize, the first cyclist to climb it during the first visit of the Tour de France in 1910.

What stage is the Tourmalet?

stage 18
Col du Tourmalet – stage 18 As the highest paved mountain pass in the French Pyrenees, the first rider across the summit at 2,115m up will bag the Tour’s Souvenir Jacques Goddet prize. The Tourmalet is one of the Tour’s most famous climbs and this will be the 84th time the mountain has featured in the race.

What is the hardest Tour de France climb?

Mont du Chat is 8.7 km long and has an average gradient of 10.3 percent, but it is its position at the end of the 182 km stage 9 from Nantua to Chambery in the 2017 Tour de France made it the most daunting, being the seventh climb of the day.

How tall is the Col du Tourmalet climb?

Col du Tourmalet is a climb in the region French Pyrenees. It is 18.3km long and bridges 1401 vertical meters with an average gradient of 7.7%, resulting in a difficulty score of 1133. The top of the ascent is located at 2115 meters above sea level. Climbfinder users shared 17 reviews/stories of this climb and uploaded 19 photos.

Is the Tourmalet on the west side of the tour?

The Tourmalet is one of the “big three” of the tour, together with the nearby Aubisque and the Galibier (Alps). On the west side (Luz) the Tourmalet is a very regular climb of almost 8%. You can also start the climb from Argeles-Gazost, where you pass when you come from the Col de l’Aubisque/Col du Soulor.

Who was the first rider to cross the Col du Tourmalet?

Tour de France. At the col is a memorial to Jacques Goddet, director of the Tour de France from 1936 to 1987, and a large statue of Octave Lapize gasping for air as he struggles to make the climb. The Souvenir Jacques Goddet prize is awarded for the first rider to cross the Col du Tourmalet summit.

When is the Col du Tourmalet usually closed?

The east side (of Campan) is the heaviest side of the Tourmalet, although the average is lower than the west side. Please note that the Col du Tourmalet is normally closed from the beginning of November to the beginning of May.