..........................................................................................................................................................................................................

climbers -how the kings of the mountains conquered cycling. peter cossins. cassell publishing hardback. 335pp illus. £20

every sunday morning, the velo club peloton perambulates the very same parcours, a section of which takes us up what strava refers to as the col du rspb, a short climb that averages around 6%. though i will usually have ridden the approach road along gruinart flats quite comfortably, the minute the road heads upwards, i find myself drifting back from my compatriots' rear wheels. it's a disappointing situation, for at one time i would have been the chap up front, leaving riders behind without undue strain. how things have changed.

i am therefore working on the theory that gravity has greater effect on the over sixties. were it simply a case of my slowing down due to the effects of advancing years, i could (disappointingly) live with that fact, but it is notable that, when the road goes down, i am often able to freewheel at a velocity comparable to the pedalling efforts of my colleagues. scientifically speaking, that is surely evidence for the gravitational pull as described above?

nonetheless, in my younger days, i had convinced myself that my abilities as a grimpeur were the equal of many, though in retrospect, that may have been more wishful thinking than demonstrable athletic prowess. when time comes for the giro, tour, or vuelta, along with many, it's the mountain stages that offer the greatest attraction (along with cobbled stages such as yesterday's, obviously). it is this aspect of velocipedinal life that has been ably investigated by author, peter cossins, a man who lives in the pyrenees that form an intrinsic part of his subject.

in a book that features polka dot endpapers (and why not?) the author commences with a few words with noted climber, pierre rolland, who encapsulates just what climbing means for many pure grimpeurs. "...being in the mountains increased the amount and degree of pleasure that I felt. I knew right away that this was the kind of terrain I needed to focus on." there's obviously a difference between sprinters and climbers, both having different objectives in life, but it would be interesting to learn if the former had similar feelings during the freneticism of a sprint.

but the art of the climber, one which has changed considerably over the years, still aims for the same goal, and in the words of rolland, still curates the same sensations. "I want to cycle in the same way I saw riders doing when I was a teenager. That goes against the current flow, where teams and tactics are more organized in the mountains."

chapter one sets out the breadth of cossins' investigations, entitled as it is, From Pottier to Pogacar, the former being rené pottier, who rode away from his rivals on the ballon d'alsace in the 1905 tour de france, described as cycling's "...first great climbing exploit." prior to the existence of the tour de france, the author describes a cycle tour organised in march 1902, by the touring club of france, designed to "...test the function and resistance of all parts of the bicycle." the 225km route included tarbes, lourdes, luz, col du tourmalet, bagnere-de-bigorre before returning to tarbes.

and then there's the oft repeated tale of how, in order to reinvigorate the tour following persistent domination by 'strapping rouleurs' a dilemma answered by his associate, alphonse staines, "...what if we made the riders go through the Pyrenees?" the account of his subsequent exploration of the possibilities across a snow-covered pyrennean mountain pass has all but entered the realm of mythology. despite conditions being far worse than expected, he advised henri desgrange that "...Passé Tourmalet, trés bonne route."

cossins then goes onto feature those who have set the mountains alight with their climbing abilities, riders such as bottechia, binda, trueba and the rivalry between italians, gino bartali and fausto coppi. "Bartali had stamina, but Coppi had speed. Bartali's racing was based on grinta, guts and strength [...] (Coppi's) ability to ride solo would ensure he could not be caught."

he has also featured more modern exponents of the climbers' art, including philippa york (robert millar), andy hampsten, marco pantani ("...returning the sport to its most beautiful dimension.") michael woods and south-africa's ashleigh moolman passio. but, for me, the standout chapter is one entitled, "Hammers and nails" in which the author asks, "How do they do it? What do you feel when you race up a climb full bore? Do you remain lucid? Does it bring any sense of enjoyment? considering himself unqualified to answer any of those questions, cossins asks the experts.

as ashleigh moolman passio explains, "...you have to learn how to find some kind of enjoyment in that suffering, to overcome the challenge." as to the change in climbing tactics seen over the last decade or so, dan martin says the emphasis on nutrition has been key. "Nobody makes mistakes with nutrition any more. [...] cyclists' bodies have changed over the past twenty years." but as to the contention by notable climbers that, when 'in the zone', it almost resembles an out of body experience, philippa york told the author, "When you're going really, really well [...] the mountain just goes past like it's not there."

but perhaps it's all a tad more mundane than that, the reasons for climbing mountains very quickly, being less about philosophy and more about pragmatism. when asked why he climbed so fast, marco pantani was quoted as saying, "To abbreviate my agony."

for those of us who, as we grovel up the col du rspb every sunday morning, are inclined to ask the same questions as peter cossins, this is the perfect antidote to exasperation. many of the included histories have been highlighted in any number of cycling books, but never in such perfect context, and rarely told so well. 'climbers' is an immensely readable book, well written and researched and a highly entertaining read, whether you can go uphill fast or not.

the climbing fan's bible.

thursday 7 july 2022