Col de la Faucille - Gex

The historical col de la Faucille from Gex is a great climb on a good road with fantastic views of the lac leman and Geneve. Every since I watched Lance Armstrong and his team postal lead the peloton up here in the tour de france I have used this pass as a training ride. Starting from the roundabout in Gex I try and find a steady rhythm with about a 39/25 and keep it until the famous Fontaine Napoleon which incidently has very good drinking water and I invariably fill up here on the way down. From this corner however the climb is steeper and I usually drop to my biggest cog of 26 here and then survive the long steep straight to a viewpoint and parking and then push hard through the last few corners before the top. The road actually descends just before the finish and sometimes I am able to carry my speed through to a sprint finish but it is always hard. My PB is just on the 40 minutes!

On weekends there are lots of other cyclists to latch on to on this climb and if you have time you can continue on to make a nice climb by bike loop in the Jura.

My personal climb rating:

Awesome climb. My first mountain. Cycled in a group of 20, but soon left most riders behind. At the half way stage stage asked fellow rider if he wanted to race - he declined. I was the first to reach the summit and it felt awesome.

My personal climb rating:

This is my home climb. I live 10km from the start, in Versoix. If you ever fancy a ride up it and are nearby, give me a call 0041 78 891 0880 and maybe I will come and join you for it :)

My personal climb rating:

On the 28th of june 2007 I started the climb from Gex under very nice weather conditions. At the time I stayed with my family on campsite Le Fleutron in Divonne-les-Bains, a town nearby Gex. Already in Gex you start ascending the col. Shortly after leaving Gex the road is surrounded by treas which provide you with some shadow. The climb is pretty straightforward, the road is very good. When you find your rhythm its not that difficult a climb. When you reach an old uninhabited house in a sharp bend things get a little harder. The climb percentage increases a bit here but the reward is some great vews over Lac Leman. You can even, if not to tired, see the Jet dEau and the airport of Geneva. In the distance Mont Blanc is visible, and from your bike you start to appreciate the greatness of this enormous snow-covered rock. The last few kilometers are about 8%. All in all the Col de la Faucille is a nice climb with some great views. Not really tough though.