Col
du Glandon 
Glandon
19.9 kms; 1,460 metres ascent;
Start: St-Etienne de Cuines
Last Climbed; July 2006
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This is one of my favorite climbs - with beautiful scenery. It was at Glandon that Armstrong made his famous bluff in 2001 before going on to win at Alpe d'Huez. And Glandon was the big climb on the day that Landis bonked in 2006. The climb can be cut in three parts. The first 8 kilometres are regular enough between 7% and 8%. Then 3 easy kilometres. Finally, a 9 kilometre section where things get much toughet, with the final three kilometres being particularly tough.
Once at the top, don't forget to cycle 2.5 kilometres further to the top of Col de la Croix Fer (2,067 metres) I cycled Glandon in early July for the first time. But I decided to try this giant again on Tour de France day :Today I cycled up the Col du Glandon and the Col de la Croix de Fer (23 km climb and about 5,000 feet vertical) to watch the second huge Alps stage in the Tour de France. The crowds were amazing, the roads were melting, the course was steep! I had cycled up pretty early so I had a three hour wait for the riders, but time flew by in the party atmosphere as the mountain was jammed with people. About an hour before the riders the "publicité caravan" came by with 200 cars and floats, and lots of free gifts thrown at us (I was happy to get some pretzels, bottled water, and a king of the mountains hat, I gave away a Giant Hand, some cheese, a couple of key chains, and two newspapers). Finally helicopters came streaming around the corner, so we knew the riders were close. This was the third big climb on a five climb day, and the riders were all over the road.
