Key Details
- Category: HC
- Length: 17.2 km (10.7 miles)
- Elevation Gain: 1213 m (3,980‘)
- Average Gradient: 6.9%
- Watopia Climb Segment
- Watopia Descent Segment
- France Climb Segment
- France Descent Segment
- 5 W/kg: 50 minutes
- 4 W/kg: 61 minutes
- 3 W/kg: 79 minutes
- 2 W/kg: 115 minutes
Strava Segments
Time Estimates
Part of a chain of three road climbs in the Pyrenees (the others being Col de Peyresourde and Col d’Aspin), the hors catégorie Tourmalet has been used more than any other climb in the history of the Tour! 2023’s stage 6 marks its 88th appearance in the world’s greatest bike race.
The Tourmalet’s first appearance in the Tour was in 1910 when the Pyrenees were introduced. Octave Lapize was the first rider over the top, and he went on to win the GC in Paris. In 1913, Eugène Christophe famously broke his fork on the Tourmalet and repaired it himself at a forge in Sainte-Marie-de-Campan.
There are two roads to the top of real-life Col du Tourmalet: one beginning northeast of the summit in Sainte Marie de Campan, the other beginning southwest from Luz-Saint-Sauveur. Zwift’s Tourmalet is the shorter route from Sainte Marie de Campan.
See the IRL climb from Sainte Marie de Campan:
These climbs cause me to adjust trainer difficulty down just to be able to keep a reasonable cadence. Is there a way to equate the percentage used with actual gearing? Say I run 30 percent TD with a 39X23 gear. What gearing would that be at 100 percent TD? As I type this, I think maybe converting that gearing to how many inches forward you would go in one pedal revolution and take 30 percent of that. Does that sound reanonable?
Cheers,
David
Here’s a post to help ya out: https://zwiftinsider.com/trainer-difficulty-granny-gear/
Also this one: https://zwiftinsider.com/trainer-difficulty-gear-ratio/
I do this as well, on a wattbike, I’ve no idea what you mean lol its quite a clever feature, essentially like putting a climbing gearing on
Most mere mortals can’t do these climbs with standard gearing on their bikes IRL. I know for sure I would need at least 2 less cogs in the front and 2 more in the back or I’d be spinning at 45 rpm!
Eric, your time estimates for the climb are very accurate! I am an 87 kg rider and knew I needed to hold at least 4 wkg on the climb to go sub 60 min. I ended up with a time of 59:10 at 4.05 wkg
Nicely done, sir.
These estimates are based on steady-state bot tests on the actual climbs. Times can vary depending on which bike you use, if you fluctuate your power smartly, how much you draft on flatter stuff, etc. but they should be accurate within a minute or two on a long climb like this.
Hi Eric @Eric Schlange I was wondering if the strava segments (ascent and descent) are from the portal entrance to the finish banner and the reverse back down? Contemplating some hill repeats the coming weekend, and also if it is feasible to freewheel all the way down as on the Alpe?
My plan is France portal, ascent, U-turn after finish banner, descent while refilling bottles (off the bike), then U-turn from wherever the bike has stopped (assumingly some distance after the portal i.e. back on the France map), and enter the portal again etc. Make sense? Thanks! =)
Yes, the climb starts at the portal entrance and goes to the final arch. Then the descent is the opposite of that.
Seems like your plan would work just fine!
Everested Col du Tourmalet yesterday. Still on Zwift version1.43 so there was no chat in the portal. For the descents, I did not get all the way down freewheeling as the climb has some steep humps in the lower portion. Ended up pedaling down after approx 10min freewheeling, this led to about 19minutes average for each descent. On the Alpe I shift according to percentage and feel. In the portal I shift according to color and feel. This lead to some more adjusting than at the Alpe for the first few ascents. I must say that the portal is awesome… Read more »
Go Sepp! one day at a time
Are these coming back soon, i really like to try this Tourmalet?
This friday, saturday and sunday it will be available.
I will be very curious to see how the new Zwift Hub One will affect climbing, cadence, even everesting as I believe I read somewhere that the 24 gears will provide the equivalent of 55/30T chainring combo with an 11-40 cassette. That is a nice granny gear, and more!