A seven year old from Combe Down, Bath, is believed to be the youngest ever cyclist to conquer one of the toughest challenges on the ‘Tour de France’, Mont Ventoux.
Miriam Goode, together with her Mum Miranda and 10-year-old sister Poppy, spent a month training for the challenge this summer in the Provence region of southern France.
Mont Ventoux is 1,912m high and has become known in cycling circles as the ‘Beast of Provence’ and ‘Le Géant de Provence’.
Miriam and her sister rode Frog Team Sky bikes, and Miriam took along her favourite toy Bear Bear as a mascot in her back pocket. On completing the challenge, she was met with applause and cheering from other cyclists at the summit.
After the epic cycling feat Miriam said, “I enjoyed the challenge and that people were so amazed and taking photos of us.”
Poppy added, “The best bit was going through the woods and getting to eat lots of sweets to keep up our energy!”
Both girls set off early in the morning to avoid the heat of the day and arrived at the top of the mountain within two hours and 20 minutes. Their mum cycled alongside and their dad Jonny was in a support car close behind.
It is thought that Miriam could be the youngest to cycle up Mont Ventoux at the age of just seven. Her achievement has been recognised across the cycling community, with messages of congratulations and a tweet of support from the Team Sky, Tour de France rider Luke Rowe.
Miriam and Poppy both attend Monkton Prep School in Combe Down near Bath, where their parents Jonny and Miranda are the boarding houseparents and regularly organise triathlons and charity events at the school, including staging a ‘Bath-2-Sydney’ cycle challenge held at Odd Down Cycle Track in 2016.
Dad Jonny said, “We are so delighted with both Miriam and Poppy’s efforts. Both feel extremely proud of what they have achieved and loved the fact they were the youngest cyclists on the mountain!”