IS THIS THE HARDEST CLIMB IN ROAD CYCLING?! – Col de la Loze 2304m – Tour de France Climbs

Title says it all. This is Episode 11 of my TdF classic climbs series, and this is definitely the hardest yet by a country mile! It may just be the hardest out there? let me know if you can think of any harder climbs which have the whole package: length, height and gradient such as this. This was a sort of home coming for me, as i spent my first season in France living in Courchevel before i became a Chamonix Ski Bum, so it was nice to be back and visit some of my old haunts for the first time since moving on to pastures new.

[Music] w [Music] [Music] welcome back so today’s challenge is the cold of the Lowe’s this first appeared in to of France only in 2020 and it’s only been in twice 2020 and 2023 so can’t really call something that’s only been a tour twice a classic climb but it’s definitely one of the most popular and it’s going to be a future classic cuz it is absolutely brutal so we just passed through Mutia which is kind of the gateway to all the major ski resorts in this area the T Valley lean laark teens Val Des a etc anyway I’ve stopped to talk here in this kind of nondescript industrial State on the edge of town cuz this first section of road it’s a very major road fast Road not going to be as tall even if I did would would hear me so hopefully I give you a bit more of instruction once I’m higher up the road and somewhere a bit more scenic but for now so that was breed lean a spar town at the base of the TW Valley and the official start of the climb so from there you can either take the call Via marabel or via kabel I’m heading the direction of around now although I’ll change suit halfway up so I’ll be following the route that took on this year’s tour which has head up towards Corell before traversing through detan back to the Marbell side where was the first time the tour took the co went straight up from breed the ban to marabell so yeah two options already from the start so officially the route I’m taking is 28 km long but no matter how you’ve got here going to have to come for M here like and you’re climbing all the way from MTI here that an extra 7 or 8 km an extra 10050 M of scent it’s not very steep but climbing is climbing indeed I’ve come from even further down the valley so it’s more like 40 km from me today after a brief diversion through breed lean you’re back on this very busy very fast very loud road again so yeah the low portion of this climb not particularly pleasant but it’s got to be young to get up there Nation Drive halfway up but that’s cheating so around 35 km long if you started from M like I have that put this right up there with the Gia in terms of length and in terms of total height gain as well me is at around 500 M I’ve started at around 400 m elevation and the climb tops out 2,300 so just sh 2,000 M of height gain but over 2000 M of climbing take into account the little downhills in the middle [Music] part of Reason wanted to come up this way by cor Val to the mar route is because it was fresher in the memory that’s the way they came this year but the main reason was to come back to here Coral s Bon this is where I first lived on mve to France and there’s a ski season here in the th Valley so this is technically the lowest Resort of Kel although it’s not actually a ski lift to get here she got to get the bus up but there’s a ped run that comes down to the edge of town just here so really quite and traditional little place nothing here but yeah this was my gateway to being a ski bom and shamony so I lived in this rickety Old Barn just here on the left on this ridiculously steep road which is impossible to cycle up but skiing down here on need powder on a couple of occasions is pretty good fun this is technically the Mary for the whole of the cor Val Valley so s’s quite important even though there’s absolutely nothing here just past the 1100 M way marker so still a hell of a long way to go this is Kel lapra AKA Kel 1300 this is the true base station of the ski area the main lift’s just over there so if you wanted to follow the p l via Coral Bas to continue up the road that way whereas if you’re doing this year’s toal France route which I am you follow the road to L which is a right turn just about there so I’ll be heading back there shortly yeah just enjoying the Sun at this beautiful spot so while the tour has only been over the colder Low’s twice it has been up to Corell and Marell independently dozens of times but they they only open up the road all the way to the call in 2018 or 2019 I think before that just a dirt track to access the ski lifts for maintenance Etc so yeah and I’m pretty sure it basically built specifically for Road biking so this is the Tanya which was the athletes Village for the Winter Olympics in elville for the events that they held up in cor Val marabel which is why it all looks the same basically there was a small village here beforehand just down Hill of here but yeah this is all a purpose built complex which it’s functional it’s not the prettiest but it’s not the ugliest [Music] [Music] either [Music] [Music] so cycling call the categories based on three criteria length or height gain if you will altitude and and gradient and C lows would reach HC category status in all three of those categories individually let alone when you put them together this is why it’s so brutal the top 10 km which is what I’ve just entered now you took them off the top of a mountain plk them down at sea level it still be HC climb you know an average gradient of over 10% for the 10 km with sustained sections of over 16% and Max been gradient at 24% which is just insane I don’t know if I’m going to be able to get up 24% gradient with my gear ratio at sea level alone on top of a mountain it is absolutely brutal but got that Joy still to [Music] come [Music] now is where we start to get serious you leave the main road at L the past just down there now we’re on this closed roow segment which is definitely a luxury for me never ridden on closed roads before but still this time year you never far from construction noise cuz it is Peak construction season yeah the climbing gets really steep now those last few kilm have been around 7 8% now we start to get into the 10 12 15 16% territory and yeah probably to talk much CU be too exhausted but we’ll see how it goes in case you’re wondering yes this is a ski past and that’s a snow Cannon it tells you how steep this is going to get according to the sign just there this kilometer is only 8% but haven’t seen the section on the TV it’s definitely one of the steeper bits pretty much go straight up through these trees I’m not even sure I’m to start again probably to back down to there to get going again yeah 5 km to go these are the toughest 5 KMS of the whole day look at this bit crazy steep just have to deploy the zigzag or snaking technique to get out that ramp there GoPro won’t do it justice but that was that was really tough still at the worst to come I think first proper sighting in the cold L Low’s all the way up there it’s not really a CO just a shoulder of a mountain that the ski runs go to but they decided to build a road up it so road is there we will ride it just past the 4 km to go sign still a hell of a lot of height gain to make in these 4 km which is why it’s so damn steep the road traverses about to see it along the face of the Hill up there least have some good views up here now well away from the town peace and quiet mostly in the woods you still got the ski infrastructure to SPO The View but compared to what we had earlier really shouldn’t complain just suying myself up for the final ramp look like someone else’s ground to Halt just before the top I don’t want to be doing that I’m this close to Running on Empty a Finish Line wasn’t my insight I’ve been thinking about turning around by now because so don’t want a bonk on train this steep this is brutal brutal but beautiful a made it just about that final round probably the hardest thing i’ ever had to do in motorcycling it’s like a wall at 2,300 M after having climbed for 30 km absolutely beautiful is this the hardest climbing Road cycling I think so combination of the gradient the length and the altitude all add up to make it absolutely Savage sure there um climbs out there with more sustained gradient aren’t that many climbs with that kind of length and it’s not the highest but it’s pretty close well over 2,000 M so altitude’s definitely kicking in God knows how the pros can race up that after having already climbed something like they called a melin or the com d done just to get here I think that took me around 5 hours the probos do it an hour and a half which is insane sure I’ve had lots of little breaks but not had any proper stop for lunch or anything just five minute snack and drink breaks here and there time to zigzag actually the whole way up on every single ramp which of course you can do it’s closed Road went have the luxury of doing that on an open road with traffic coming towards you now a few moments to take in the view before I get back down again initially planned to go over the coal down into Corel that way make it Loop that way slightly longer and slower and given that it’s already 6 p.m. I don’t want to run out daylight again as long as head that straight back down through Marell it’s a quicker and shorter way I can’t say that’s an enjoyable climb in the way that the cold of G is or indeed the cold of melin the bottom half is on a busy very loud very noisy Road no views and then you’re in the ski station of mar for a long long time which yeah it’s not the ugliest in the world but you’re just surrounded by Massive Shadow blocks and all the ski infrastructure and when you finally get out the top on this lovely section of closed Road you’re absolutely so yeah definitely more case of ticking it off rather than enjoying it but I’m glad I’ve done it maybe I’ll do it again one day coming up the course of outside but H me for a while got so many more climbs to do before then yeah now let’s get back down before it gets [Music] dark [Music] oh