5:24pm Thursday 16th July 2009
By Giles Sheldrick
FOR cycling enthusiast Jamie Clarke, riding a stage of the Tour de France will mark the summit of his achievements in the saddle.
And summit is a rather apt word, when you think that on Monday the Oxford charity worker will attempt to climb the brutal Mont Ventoux along with 10,000 amateur riders from across the world as part of the now legendary L’Etape.
Before the professional racers storm up the mountain pass in what will be the penultimate stage of this year’s Tour, Jamie will be among mere mortals and club cyclists tackling the 103-mile route (167km) between Montelimar and Mont Ventoux, which stands an eye-watering 6,272ft (1,912m) above sea level.
The challenge is definitely not for the faint-hearted, especially since the long and winding mountain climb comes right at the end of a gruelling ride from Montelimar.
Father-of-one Mr Clarke, 34, who lives with his partner in Weirs Lane, South Oxford, is saddling up to raise money for the charity he works for — People & Planet — which supports young people in projects to improve the environment and human rights and tackle poverty around the world.
He will set off five days before the elite cyclists, including Lance Armstrong, Alberto Contador and Bradley Wiggins, ride the same route.
He hopes his efforts will raise more than £500 for the charity.
He said: “My normal commute from Weirs Lane to Cowley Road is just over a mile, so this is going to be a bit of a shock.
“I’ve been doing some training, including a 100-mile race in Witney in June, but with a young family it isn’t possible to put in many hours on the bike.
“I know after nearly 100 miles the massive mountain at the end is going to be extremely hard.”
Mont Ventoux is something of a pilgrimage for amateurs.
Standing 12 miles above sea level it is a climb that seven times Tour winner Lance Armstrong has described as “the hardest climb in the Tour, bar none”.
Belgian great Eddy Merkx, who won the Tour five times, collapsed after winning a stage that ended at the summit of Mont Ventoux in 1970, and Tom Simpson, one of Britain’s best ever riders, suffered a heart attack and died by the side of the road while attempting to climb the mountain in 1967. He was just 29.
Mr Clarke said “If I see the monument to Tom Simpson it will be moment of conflicting emotions — I’ll know I’m not far from the top, but also that this is where one of Britain’s finest cycling stars lost his life.
“I hope I make it that far.
“It’d be great to know that people in Oxfordshire are supporting me.
“My partner thinks I’m mad, but I’ve always been into cycling.”
In 2003, former cancer patient Squadron Leader Nigel Prince from Ducklington, near Witney, rode the 123-mile stage from Pau to Bayonne, which required cyclists to climb 10,000 feet through the Pyrenees.
Sq Ldr Prince was joined by three colleagues from the RAF Regiment based at RAF High Wycombe. He completed the stage in 10 hours and 20 minutes, raising £3,000 for Cancer Research UK.
news@oxfordmail.co.uk To sponsor Jamie, visit justgiving.com/Jamie-Clarke
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