The Col de Menté (elevation ) is a

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...

in the central Pyrenees in the department of Haute-Garonne in France. It is situated on the D44 road between Saint-Béat and the

D618 Route nationale 618 or RN 618 was a French national road linking Saint-Jean-de-Luz (on the Atlantic Ocean) to Argelès-sur-Mer (on the Mediterranean). En route it crossed many of the famous passes in the Pyrenees, immortalized by the Tour de France ...

(at the bottom of the

Col de Portet d'Aspet The Col de Portet d'Aspet (elevation ) is a mountain pass in the central Pyrenees in the department of Haute-Garonne in France. It is situated on the D618 road between Aspet and Saint-Girons, Ariège, Saint-Girons and connects the Ger and Bouigan ...

) and connects the Ger and Garonne valleys. Le Mourtis ski-station is located 1 km. south of the col. A stele in memory of

Serge Lapébie Serge may refer to: *Serge (fabric), a type of twill fabric *Serge (llama) (born 2005), a llama in the Cirque Franco-Italien and internet meme *Serge (name), a masculine given name (includes a list of people with this name) *Serge (post), a hitchi ...

(son of Guy) is situated at the summit.

Details of climb

Starting from Pont de l'Oule (east) (at the foot of the

), the climb is long. Over this distance, the climb is (an average gradient of 6.6%). The climb proper starts at Ger-de-Boutx, from the summit (at 7.8%), with the steepest sections being at 10.5%. Starting from Saint-Béat (west), the climb is long. Over this distance, the climb is (an average gradient of 9.1%) with several sections in excess of 11%. At the summit there is a road that loops up and over the Col de Menté-Le Mourtis (), via the ski-station, returning to the Col de Menté.

Appearances in Tour de France

The Col de Menté was first used in the Tour de France in

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

and has appeared frequently since. The leader over the summit in 1966 was

Joaquim Galera Joaquín Galera Magdaleno ( Baúl, May 25, 1940) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer. Major results ;1965 :Subida al Naranco :Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primaril ...

. The Col has featured 20 times, including crossing the Col de Menté-Le Mourtis in 1979 and 1995.

Luis Ocaña

On stage 14 of the

1971 Tour de France The 1971 Tour de France was the 58th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. The race consisted of 22 stages, including three split stages, starting in Mulhouse on 26 June and finishing at the Vélodrome de Vincennes in Pari ...

Spanish cyclist Luis Ocaña was in the

Maillot Jaune The general classification is the most important classification, the one by which the winner of the Tour de France is determined. Since 1919, the leader of the general classification wears the yellow jersey (french: maillot jaune ). History Th ...

with an overall lead of 7 minutes on Eddy Merckx and they crossed the summit of the Col de Menté together in a storm, with streams of mud running across the road. Merckx, an excellent descender, attacked as he descended dangerously down the mountain road. To stay in contact with Merckx, Ocaña took risks descending. Flying through the corners, Merckx lost control and skidded into a low retaining wall at the side of the road. Ocaña trailing close behind could not avoid the fallen Merckx and fell himself. Merckx was up quickly and sped away. Ocaña struggled to release his cleats from the toe clips and was struck by the pursuing Joop Zoetemelk. Ocaña lay on the ground screaming with pain. Help arrived quickly and Ocaña was rushed by helicopter to the hospital in St. Gaudens. He recovered from his injuries, but his 1971 Tour dreams had come to an end. The following day Merckx refused to wear the yellow jersey in order to pay tribute to Ocaña. There is now a memorial plaque at the scene of the accident on the western side of the Col de Menté (at ).

References

External links

Summary of the climb Website (French)Col de Menté on Google Maps (Tour de France classic climbs)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mente Mountain passes of Haute-Garonne Mountain passes of the Pyrenees Climbs in cycle racing in France