As the 2024 Tour de France (TdF) came to a close in Nice, it’s good to look back at this time ten years ago when my family and I travelled to the Pyrenees of France and Spain to watch two stages of the 2014 TdF. Our planning landed us in an excellent base in Saint Mamet, just outside Bagnères-de-Luchon.
Above: Mikaël Cherél (AG2R La Mondiale), Stage 17, Saint Mamet, July 23, 2014. © J. Ashley Nixon
On Tour: The Pyrenees
Here is an excerpt from On Tour, the second of my Ramifications series of short, limited-edition books about culture and nature. It’s available through Betula Books.
We found a good spot for Stage 16 on the corner of Cours Des Quinconces in the centre of Bagnères-de-Luchon to tie our three flags (Maple Leaf, Union Jack and Yorkshire Rose) on the barriers and waited. Steadily, over five hours, the crowds thickened, and the excitement built. The baking mountain sun was pleasantly abated by an occasional spray of water from the Vittel truck going up and down the course’s final section. The Tour riders might have liked that refreshment as they peddled up from Carcassonne, 237.5 km away.
A little after 5:00 pm, Michael Rogers of Team Tinkoff Saxo came through the town all on his own. It was the 34-year-old Australian’s first TdF stage win in his long professional cycling career.
Michael Rogers (Tinkoff Saxo) arrives in Bagnères-de-Luchon to win Stage 16 of the Tour de France 2014. © J. Ashley Nixon
The next day, Le Tour started back down the valley at Saint-Gaudens. Stage 17 may have been the shortest distance in the 21 days (124.5 km), but it was heavily punctuated with four monster climbs, finishing at the ski resort above Saint-Lary-Soulan. We got out on the street early again, this time in Saint Mamet on a corner facing up towards the Col de Portillon. We knew the riders would be screaming down from there after a short visit to Spain, and this corner would slow things down just a little. The bikes were through in a matter of seconds, heading on to Luchon before rising again to Col de Pyresourde and then Saint-Lary Pla d’Adet. Polka Dot-clad Rafal Majka made an impressive attack on the final slopes to claim the stage, the second in two days in the mountains for team Tinkoff Saxo.
Vicenzo Nibali, team Astana won the overall general classification by over seven minutes after 21 stages and 3,660 km (2,275 miles) of cycling. As seen below, he is cycling into the village of Sant Mamet.
Vincenzo Nibali, winner of the 2014 Tour de France approaches Saint Mamet during Stage 17 in the Pyrenees, France, July 23, 2014. © J. Ashley Nixon
Vive Le Tour de France!
See the book On Tour
You can see more of my book On Tour through this link to Betula Books.
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