Name: Can This Mountain Biker Survive An Epic Tour De France Climb?
Uploaded: 2023-08-05T00:00:00.000Z
Description: Alpe d’Huez, with its iconic 21 hairpin bends, is the most famous Tour de France climb. But can a non-road cyclist make it to the top? We’ve enlisted the help of Blake Samson from @gmbn to find out if a rider built for flying down hills, not going up them, can survive this legendary mountain. This is MTB freestyler vs Alpe d’Huez!

James Howell-Jones

Junior Writer

Alpe d’Huez is one of the most famous climbs in cycling and a regular feature in the 

. For 13.8km, it winds its way up, averaging 8.1%, bridging 118 vertical metres. When it comes to road cycling climbs, this has got to be one of the toughest challenges in the world.

This climb has been used in the Tour since 1952, when 

 took the victory on the Tour's first-ever summit finish on this very mountain. Since then, it's been host to some of the most iconic moments of the Tour. Every year, thousands of amateurs make their way to France to try their hand at this classic climb. 

Should we be training like Fausto Coppi and Eddy Merckx?

But how would a freestyle mountain biker find it? 

’s Blake Samson is one of the best freestyle mountain bikers around, but while he might be good at flying down hills, he’s not had too much practice riding up them.

GCN Presenter

James Lowsley-Williams

GCN Presenter Hank

King of commitment, James (or 'Hank' as he's more affectionally known) is the ultimate team player on and off the bike

Alpe d’Huez, with its iconic 21 hairpin bends, is the most famous Tour de France climb. But can a non-road cyclist make it to the top? We’ve enlisted the help of Blake Samson from @gmbn to find out if a rider built for flying down hills, not going up them, can survive this legendary mountain. This is MTB freestyler vs Alpe d’Huez!

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Which climbs should we send Blake to next? 👀 Let us know in the comments below! 💬

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📸 Photos - © Velo Collection (TDW) / Getty Images & © Sprint Cycling Agency

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We took Blake Samson from GMBN to Alpe d'Huez to find out whether mountain bikers can climb