Col de la Madone Classic

Col de la Madone is the climb that Lance Armstrong used as his personal benchmark for Tour de France readiness. Trek named a bike after it. The day I rode this, I understood why -- it is 13 km of relentless, spectacular climbing above Menton that demands everything you have.

The climb begins almost from the centre of Menton -- within a kilometre or two the road is already tilting upward. The first 3 km sit at around 4%, which feels manageable, but then the gradient ramps to 6-8% and stays there. You pass through Saint-Agnes, one of the most beautiful villages in France and Europe's highest coastal village, with views of the Mediterranean far below. The road narrows as you gain height -- the final 5 km is single-lane in places, winding through steep limestone terrain. When I reached the summit at 925 metres I was spent, but the panorama back over the coast made the suffering worthwhile.

The descent through Peille is technical -- tight switchbacks through a medieval perched village clinging to the mountainside. After Peille the route drops into the valley before climbing again over the Cote de Chateauneuf-Villevieille -- a shorter but sharp effort that comes at exactly the wrong moment in the day.

From there the road descends all the way to Nice and the coast. The return follows the famous Corniche roads above the Mediterranean, through Monaco and along the coast back to Menton. Riding through Monaco on a road bike after a day like this felt surreal -- the yachts, the casino, the hairpin from the Grand Prix circuit, all in the last 20 km of an unforgettable ride.