This year the Tour de France will climb Cime de la Bonette, the highest motorable road in Europe. An infinite, long, sunny pass, between the Maritime Alps and the Savoy Alps, which stands out 2.802 meters above sea level. The air up there is really thin.
Bare peaks, even "warm" ones, so high up they are. The place is wonderful, evocative. Eagles and cyclists, courage and lungs of steel are required. The "natural" pass is at 2.715 meters, with the additional loop reaching 2.802 meters.
Four steps
He rode the Tour de France only four times on Bonette. This was the first time he did it. in 1962. And the first to pass through it was a legendary climber, Federico Bahamontes. The Spaniard repeated the feat two years later. Then it was necessary to wait 29 years for the Grande Boucle to return. That time, the first to cross the summit was Robert Millar, but the protagonists of that day were two: Davide Cassani e Laurent Fignon. And it wasn't because of any resounding victories or memorable performances. No, Bonette somehow put them on the ropes. And badly.
Before delving into this story, however, we feel it's necessary to make a small and interesting clarification. The Bonette is climbed, but despite its altitude—clearly the highest point of the Tour— it won't be the Souvenir Henri Desgrange, in memory of the creator of the Grande Boucle. Why? Because if there's the Galibier, the Souvenir Desgrange is awarded up there. That was, in fact, Desgrange's favorite climb, and the Tour will tackle it in the fourth stage, returning to France after the Italian Grande Depart.
The surrender of Fignon
It's July 15, 1993, and a blazing sun is shattering the roads of the Tour. The race faces its eleventh stage, from Serre Chevalier to Isola 2000: 179 kilometers and 5.339 meters of elevation gain. Incidentally, the final 120 kilometers are identical to those on July 19th.
«It was an important stage – Cassani begins to tell with his innate passion – because That day the career of a great like Laurent Fignon practically ended. Right up there, at the top of the Bonette, Laurent put his foot down and stopped running. That was his last day of racing as a professional. He retired last.
Fignon was nicknamed "The Professor" for his round glasses and his profound thoughts. Thoughts that were not lacking that day either: "I wanted to experience a moment of sadness and grace without sharing it with anyone," Fignon said.
Polka-dotted Cassani
"I, on the other hand," Cassani continues, "was wearing the polka-dot jersey unworthily! And that's precisely why I broke away. The day before we had done the Galibier and I had arrived with my normal half hour delay. The next day there were the Izoard, the Vars, the Bonette and the final climb to Isola 2000. It was one of the toughest stages of the Tour. And it was, I think, the first or second time that the stage was broadcast live in its entirety, it was something new.
«In those years we still started quite slowly, so we did the first climb at touring speed and that's why I managed to go and do the sprint to get some points for the polka-dot jersey. At the first GPM I came in third and then had the crazy idea of continuing. I dropped everyone on the next descent.If I suffered on the uphills, I was quite good on the downhills."
Cassani then pushed on and broke away. Alone in the polka-dot jersey, watching the world. He pushed forward, but it was clearly not his stage. Davide had other qualities, but certainly not that of a climber.
«I've always struggled on the stages with these climbs and in fact when I was on the VAR Ferretti (his sporting director, ed.) arrived. As soon as “Ferron” arrived he said to me: “Davide, what are you doing?”. And I: “I’m on the run.”
Via Crucis
Ferretti bluntly tells him he's crazy. He reminds him of his difficulties on certain stages. The negotiations between the two continue. "Ferretti finally convinces me and says, 'Davide, be careful, go slowly, it's a long climb.'" And he takes him at his word. But at the same time, the energy of someone like Cassani, who isn't a climber, begins to wane.
«And in fact – Davide continues – the Bonette begins… very long, infinite. The French also added this two-kilometer appendix to make the pass higher than the Stelvio. It never ends. I climb at my own pace. The first, second, third... they all catch up with me. I reach the top already exhausted, 20 minutes late.
"At that point, however, I still manage to stay with a fairly large group. I dive downhill, try to eat, recover, but when the last climb begins, it's like I hit a wall. I can't make any progress. I find myself alone with Domenico Cavallo, who was on the second flagship, who keeps me informed about the maximum time».
The sprint with Abdu
The situation is getting complicated. The energy is gone. Bonette makes herself felt even later. Isola 2000 is long, and the others in the group he was descending with from Bonette also broke away. It's also important to note that the time limit used to be much less "kind" than it is today.
"Cavallo says to me, 'Come on, Davide, because we're in danger.' I tell him to let me attach myself to the car, but he replies curtly, 'No, we're alone. They'll definitely catch us and send us home. Try attaching yourself to another team's car.' Except there were no other cars! We were alone."
Cavallo was in touch with Ferretti at the finish line. When we got to 5 kilometers from the finish line, Cavallo told me that we had a quarter of an hour left. “What, a quarter of an hour?” I replied. “I can't do 20 miles an hour.” He comforted me and told me that the last kilometer was slightly downhill.
«At one point Abdujaparov takes me back. Both frightened by this wall of limits, we dive in. We reach the final kilometer with three minutes to go. We can do it. When the road flattens, the sprint begins. Abdu is in front and I'm right behind him. We look like we're first and second. We have the same desire to win that sprint. A sprint! First Abdujaparov, second me. In reality, second to last and last, 25 seconds from the maximum time."
Infinite Bonette
If this is the romantic tale of that day, then there's the more technical side of La Bonette. Certain climbs and certain altitudes dig into you. And even if the gradients aren't impossible, they drain you, they present you with the bill.
"Today we know everything," Cassani continues, "we at Bonette only knew the length and the elevation gain, nothing more. We still had long gears: 39x23, 25 at most, but it was almost considered a disgrace to fit it. That also made it tough. Sia would go off at 60-70 rpm, no more."
«We knew about this long Bonette. We had studied it at Garibaldi. I had never done it before, and it was truly a Stations of the Cross. But I knew about this additional ring at the top. I'd always been curious, and I'd gone to look into it, even though my passion for history came later.
"But I didn't get the idea for the climbs! I only did it again last year, 30 years later, but without the additional loop. That 1993 was enough for me: once and that was it!"
Roof of Europe
The official Tour numbers speak of a 22,9-kilometer climb with an average gradient of 6,8 percent and a maximum gradient of 10 percent in some short sections, for an altitude difference of nearly 1.600 meters.
«At least – explains Davide – it's a regular climb. Its greatest difficulty is that it is interminable, clearly because it reaches an altitude of 2.800 metres. And this makes itself felt, also because the kilometers above 2.000 meters are quite a lot (12 to be precise, ed.). And going back to my climbing, I also suffered from the altitude. I remember that at the World Championships in Colombia I wasn't progressing."
It's going to be a great time at La Bonette, next July 19th. And after this story by Davide Cassani, we'll be able to enjoy it even more, without being captivated "only" by that huge number: 2.802.
