The curve of the Dutch
The whole mountain will be one massive party on Thursday. The biggest event, however, comes at turn seven. When Dutch pastor Jaap Reuten went skiing there in 1964, he couldn’t believe there wasn’t a church there. So he had one built, worked there himself and rang the bells when his compatriot Joop Zoetemelk won in 1976. From then on, he did it for every Dutch victory, eight to date. The Oranje fans made the corner their exclave and escalated a little more at each stage. “Dutch corner” belongs today to Alpe d’Huez like the Champs-Élysées to Paris.
Lance and The Look
In 2001, Lance Armstrong bluffed all day. He was unusually far back in the field, contorting his face. Jan Ullrich was hoping for a bad day from his rival and let his team drive at high speed. But it was just a big play by Armstrong. At the foot of the climb, he let his helper José Luis Rubiera drive at high speed, turned back to Ullrich – and drove away from everyone. Turning to Ullrich went down in cycling history as “The Look”. Armstrong’s gaze was not directed at his competitor, as he explained in the ARD documentary “Being Jan Ullrich”. He just looked at Rubiera.
Coppi’s premiere
The Italian Fausto Coppi was the first winner on the 8.1 percent steep climb. In 1952 it was also the first mountain finish in the history of the Tour de France. However, it was to take until 1976 before the tour returned to Alpe d’Huez. In 2013, the 100th tour was even climbed twice.
Guerini’s fall
It looked like a safe stage win for Team Telekom. The German team were without the injured Jan Ullrich in 1999, so Guiseppe Guerini set out to win the prestigious stage. About 800 meters before the finish, the Italian ran into a hobby photographer and he fell. “It was the worst moment of my life,” said the mountain specialist. Guerini quickly got back on his feet and saved a 21-second lead at the finish.
400 times a day
Due to its easy accessibility, Alpe d”Huez is also very popular with hobby cyclists. Grenoble is not far away and other famous climbs such as the Col du Galibier and the Col de la Croix de Fer are also close by. On average, 400 cyclists cycle up the 21 serpentines every day, in the summer there are around 1000.