Best European Sportive?

mirrormatrix

Looking into training up for a sportive in Europe next year. Want something hilly, and not interested in cobbles. The ones that I have been looking at so far are:

• Etape du Tour
• Gran Fondo Stelvio
• La Marmotte

Anyone any opinions on these three, or suggestions on another sportive that they have done that is well organised with a good route? My big worry with the Etape is that there will be too many people and i'll be stuck in traffic for most of the day. With La Marmotte I have heard that the heat is a serious issue, so have been leaning towards GF Stelvio as it's that little bit earlier in the week.



Would be really interested to get some info from people that have done these sort of events before. Which was your favourite and why? Was the race well organised, with good availablility of (relatively) cheap accomodation nearby?


Thanks!

Grassey

I did Stelvio in 2015. One of the best (and worst) days on the bike ever!

We looked at the routes and decided the Long course would be handy... to the amusement of everyone we met at registration. Of the 6 of us who went over 2 finished. I took the medium route at the split, the other 5 went on to do the long route, 1 finished (he made the Stelvio climb cut off by seconds). The Mortirolo was brutal by all accounts.

Stelvio was hot that year, chilly in the morning about 8deg when we started in arm warmers, think it was very high 30s as I started the climb up Stelvio. 6ft snow banks at the top though! We ended up staying in Valdisotto as the closest we could get, accom books up fast.

The first 40km are wedged as it's all downhill, class feeling freewheeling at 60+ in a pack of thousands! The first climb is very congested but after that everyone fragments out and rest of cycle is less packed. The Stelvio climb in itself isn't too difficult, just long, and done at the end on tired legs. (Also need to factor in you need to get back to Bormio after finishing so an additional 20km downhill)

I found the pre cycle organisation great, the food stops well stocked and atmosphere fantastic. I'd go back in a heartbeat!

paudie2005

mirrormatrix wrote: »

Looking into training up for a sportive in Europe next year. Want something hilly, and not interested in cobbles. The ones that I have been looking at so far are:

• Etape du Tour
• Gran Fondo Stelvio
• La Marmotte

Anyone any opinions on these three, or suggestions on another sportive that they have done that is well organised with a good route? My big worry with the Etape is that there will be too many people and i'll be stuck in traffic for most of the day. With La Marmotte I have heard that the heat is a serious issue, so have been leaning towards GF Stelvio as it's that little bit earlier in the week.



Would be really interested to get some info from people that have done these sort of events before. Which was your favourite and why? Was the race well organised, with good availablility of (relatively) cheap accomodation nearby?


Thanks!

Liege baston liege is worth a look. Very well organized, good standard of cycling, good route and good quality accommodation available at a decent prices in Liege. No issues with massive crowds and it's pretty cheap to enter. We stayed in liege and were able to see the start of the pro race on the Sunday and then got the train to watch them take on the climbs

fat bloke

The weather is what kills Liege Baston. It's almost invariably cold and wet. Not what you want to travel to from Ireland.

I did both Stelvio and the Marmotte in 2015. Both epic. The Marmotte is much harder. Stelvio was 6+ hours or more whereas the Marmotte was 9+ hours. That's a big frickin difference.

The route they took up the Mortirolo would put me off doing it again, it's mountain bike gearing steep and narrow on the last section - a poured concrete surface. I don't think it's suitable personally for a sportive involving thousands of people.

But basically. Any trip involving a bicycle on a european hilly road will be worthwhile and memorable.

07Lapierre

Check out the Grand trophee events.. lots to choose from.

The heat can be an issue on any Sportive in summer!

http://www.grandtrophee.fr/_epreuve.php

paudie2005

fat bloke wrote: »

The weather is what kills Liege Baston. It's almost invariably cold and wet. Not what you want to travel to from Ireland.

I did both Stelvio and the Marmotte in 2015. Both epic. The Marmotte is much harder. Stelvio was 6+ hours or more whereas the Marmotte was 9+ hours. That's a big frickin difference.

The route they took up the Mortirolo would put me off doing it again, it's mountain bike gearing steep and narrow on the last section - a poured concrete surface. I don't think it's suitable personally for a sportive involving thousands of people.

But basically. Any trip involving a bicycle on a european hilly road will be worthwhile and memorable.

Wasn't ideal conditions this year right enough but doing it in less than ideal conditions makes it all the more satisfying

Sinbad_NI

Don't forget the local Giro grand fondo NI, last year of it coming up in 2017 unfortunately... is this the only fully closed road event in Ireland?

kayaksurfbum

Did this last year

http://www.pendragonsports.com/

Its like three Sean Kelly 160's back to back. The standard of cycling at it is really high, its timed and most of the riders regard it as a race. Its in driving range also.

fat bloke

Sinbad_NI wrote: »

Don't forget the local Giro grand fondo NI, last year of it coming up in 2017 unfortunately... is this the only fully closed road event in Ireland?

Better do it quick while it's still in Europe....:pac:

Esroh

www.granfondoroma.com
For anyone looking for something different.
Brilliantly run. Amazing Atmosphere. A Tough enough. Day on the bike.
Ideal weekend away for the other halves and the Short Route is ideal for anyone who just wants to give it a go.

marvin80

Sinbad_NI wrote: »

Don't forget the local Giro grand fondo NI, last year of it coming up in 2017 unfortunately... is this the only fully closed road event in Ireland?

Why is it the last year of it? (Sorry if it's a stupid question, I presumed they'd keep running it every year)

kilns

Another option at the end of August usually is the Alpenbrevet in Switzerland, it goes over some epic climbs and the platinum course is arugably the toughest sportive out there with over 7000m of climbing

mirrormatrix

paudie2005 wrote: »

Liege baston liege is worth a look. Very well organized, good standard of cycling, good route and good quality accommodation available at a decent prices in Liege. No issues with massive crowds and it's pretty cheap to enter. We stayed in liege and were able to see the start of the pro race on the Sunday and then got the train to watch them take on the climbs

Could be worth a look alright, though the weather is obviously its biggest negative. Plus you don't get the satisfaction of the fantastic views that you would get from some of the Alp climbs. Was it a pretty miserable day when you did it, or did you enjoy the cycle and countryside as you were doing it?

Never heard of Alpenbrevet, will have to look into that one.

The Pendragon sports one definitely would not be for me. Wouldn't be able to keep up in a race situation. Plus multi-day makes logistics more challenging I guess?

Sinbad_NI

marvin80 wrote:

Why is it the last year of it? (Sorry if it's a stupid question, I presumed they'd keep running it every year)

Only scheduled to run for 3 years.
Do they not move the event on to another location after that I think.

magicbastarder

posted one hour ago. they must have seen this thread.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDL5a1MzkWo

not too many in europe though...

fat bloke

Weepsie wrote: »

How about the Tour du Mont Blanx. 330km, 8000metres if climbing.

They call it a race, but don't a lot of European sportives get called that?

http://www.sportcommunication.info/TMB/index.php?lang=EN

A lot of them actually are races, but only for the tiny minority towards the front. The Stelvio for example had a first prize of a fairly swanky ultra light Trek on 2015, and I dunno if there was a cash price too, but obviously those lads in contention probably dont stop for idle chat and a muffin at the food stops...

Daroxtar

La Purito- http://www.lapurito.com/en/2016/la-purito-61/routes run by Joaquim Rodrigeuz.
It's basically stage 11 of the 2015 Vuelta, supposedly the toughest ever GT stage. 4 Cat 1 climbs and an ESP. 145km with 5000m.

Or the Fred Whitton http://www.fredwhittonchallenge.co.uk/the-route a bit closer to home.

I've done neither of them, but wouldn't mind giving them a shot

mirrormatrix

Weepsie wrote: »

How about the Tour du Mont Blanx. 330km, 8000metres if climbing.

They call it a race, but don't a lot of European sportives get called that?

http://www.sportcommunication.info/TMB/index.php?lang=EN

Wow. That looks like one hell of a challenge!! You done it?

terrydel

Maratona dles Dolomites.
I don't think anything can beat it. Route is very tough (4000+ m of climbing), scenery is simply stunning, the goodie bag is unreal. Its at a time of year where the weather is almost guaranteed to be perfect.
And its supported by the locals to the point where the finish is like being in a grand tour stage.
Cant be beat imho.

mirrormatrix

Daroxtar wrote: »

La Purito- http://www.lapurito.com/en/2016/la-purito-61/routes run by Joaquim Rodrigeuz.
It's basically stage 11 of the 2015 Vuelta, supposedly the toughest ever GT stage. 4 Cat 1 climbs and an ESP. 145km with 5000m.

Or the Fred Whitton http://www.fredwhittonchallenge.co.uk/the-route a bit closer to home.

I've done neither of them, but wouldn't mind giving them a shot

La Purito's one sounds really good. Plus i would really love to visit Andorra!

mirrormatrix

terrydel wrote: »

Maratona dles Dolomites.
I don't think anything can beat it. Route is very tough (4000+ m of climbing), scenery is simply stunning, the goodie bag is unreal. Its at a time of year where the weather is almost guaranteed to be perfect.
And its supported by the locals to the point where the finish is like being in a grand tour stage.
Cant be beat imho.

Class. Found this on their website

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uhcpQU7YVs

terrydel

mirrormatrix wrote: »

Class. Found this on their website

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uhcpQU7YVs

The Queen stage of this year's Giro was basically the maratona, with a 70km roll in.
It takes in 7 climbs (Campolongo is done twice, the giro just did it once). The toughest is the second-last, Passo Giau, 10k at an average of nearly 10%.
Its all either downhill or uphill, almost no flat spots on the 138km route.
I did it in 2015, didn't get a spot this year and praying I get one for 2017.
For the goodie bag alone its worth it!

Esroh

I know I read somewhere during the year about a Italian Event that is so over subscribed that the locals now run 2 alternatives before and after. One goes the opposite direction.
No entry fee and no official feedstops but you buy your supplies in the villages. This way they benifit and everyone gets to ride.

I think it was the Maratona but I could well be wrong

fat bloke

Threads like these really make me wish I lived in mainland Europe. Would be so frickin cool to be able to throw the bike in the boot for these events and drive to the Italian/French/Swiss alps or down to the pyrenees or whatever.

kilns

Living in Switzerland is heaven for it, however it is now nearly time to put the bike away and to get my skis serviced instead:)

marvin80

Not sportives but they have traffic-free days for some of the climbs in France.
Unfortunately never did any of them but great idea.

This article is from 2015 but gives you an idea of it:

http://road.cc/content/news/157349-ride-some-frances-iconic-hill-climbs-traffic-free-roads-free-summer

Wishbone Ash

mirrormatrix wrote: »

Could be worth a look alright, though the weather is obviously its biggest negative. Plus you don't get the satisfaction of the fantastic views that you would get from some of the Alp climbs. Was it a pretty miserable day when you did it, or did you enjoy the cycle and countryside as you were doing it?....

I did LBL in 2015 and the weather wasn't great. It rained for most of the way but wasn't overly cold - pretty much like a wet spring ride in Ireland. There isn't any great scenery but it gave a great sense of achievement to get through it. I had been a bit over-daunted by the whole thing in the lead up and it ended up being easier than expected.

That said, it's a tough day in the saddle with the severest gradients in the second half. No long climbs but some brutal stuff including one ramp which made me cry inside when I turned the hairpin and saw what lay ahead. There are 5 foodstops so its broken up nicely.

Utter chaos at the start with thousands of cyclists rampaging through the dark wet cobbled streets of Liege and mini pumps, bottles, Garmins and every other item falling off many bikes.

Steve SilverMint

Registration for Mallorca 312 opened today. Three options 312km, 225km and 167km.

I've been to Mallorca cycling a couple of times and it's fantastic. It's on the end of April so weather should be nice but not too hot for us Irish lads.

fat bloke

Steve SilverMint wrote: »

Registration for Mallorca 312 opened today. Three options 312km, 225km and 167km.

That's a mad event imo. I'd much much rather do 4 x 100+km cycles in Majorca over four days, which you could easily do very cheaply in march/April

kavanagh_h

What about the mallorca 312? Or the velothons run by ironman? One in wales and Berlin. Hoping to do all three. Two booked.

Steve SilverMint

fat bloke wrote: »

That's a mad event imo. I'd much much rather do 4 x 100+km cycles in Majorca over four days, which you could easily do very cheaply in march/April

You could always opt for the 167 as the most challenging climbing is on that route anyway, really well organised event.

golfer555

Registration for the Etape du Tour opened today. You can still get in now but I presume it'll fill up very soon.

One thing I will say about european sportives is how much of a logical difficulty there are. I'm used to marathons around Europe when you simply fly into a major city, pick up your bib and check into your hotel and its job done. With sportives its lugging your bike then going to a location quite far from the airport you fly into. It's quite costly too, very hard to do in 2-3 days with the travel involved.

That said there's no doubting that these sportives take place in some of the most picturesque parts of Europe. It's just worth bearing everything in mind when planning a trip.

mirrormatrix

golfer555 wrote: »

Registration for the Etape du Tour opened today. You can still get in now but I presume it'll fill up very soon.

One thing I will say about european sportives is how much of a logical difficulty there are. I'm used to marathons around Europe when you simply fly into a major city, pick up your bib and check into your hotel and its job done. With sportives its lugging your bike then going to a location quite far from the airport you fly into. It's quite costly too, very hard to do in 2-3 days with the travel involved.

That said there's no doubting that these sportives take place in some of the most picturesque parts of Europe. It's just worth bearing everything in mind when planning a trip.

Presume you just dont bring your bike? Hiring has got to work out way cheaper, no? Plus youre not worrying about changing your cassette out.

Mayo self-build

A big shout out for the Alpenbrevet. I did the Gold Route this year, and its the most amazing scenery. Wife came along for the few days and loved the area. I've also done Marmotte, but I found the Alpenbrevet tougher. The heat this year was mid-30s which added to the difficulty (for me anyway).
Have also done the Fred Whitton. Stunning in a different sort of way - the Lake District is really beautiful. Year I did it the weather was poor - cold and windy. Its a properly tough event though, with some steep climbs. I don't think I'll ever forget the climb up Kardknott Pass!

Charlie69

Steve SilverMint wrote: »

You could always opt for the 167 as the most challenging climbing is on that route anyway, really well organised event.

I was going to do the Mallorca 312 this year but was disappointed to see they had changed the route which used to circumnavigate the Island, to the current route which as you say has most of it's climbing and in the first half of it.

I ended up doing the Marmotte Pyrenees instead and would recomend it to anyone. 160 km with almost 6000 mtrs of climbing ... epic day on the bike.

ford2600

Charlie69 wrote: »

I was going to do the Mallorca 312 this year but was disappointed to see they had changed the route which used to circumnavigate the Island, to the current route which as you say has most of it's climbing and in the first half of it.

I ended up doing the Marmotte Pyrenees instead and would recomend it to anyone. 160 km with almost 6000 mtrs of climbing ... epic day on the bike.

Well done on Marmotte, sounds like a proper day on bike.

The current 312 course looks way better to me than the old route; Palma dominates the southern coast and getting through it wouldn't add much to event. The section from Palms SE towards Cala Pi hasn't much to recommend it.

I had planned a lap of Mallorca this year, but my memory of the section SE of Palma caused me beforehand to shorten the lap the cut out that section.

Mallorca best cycling is in the mountains and the minor roads(cami) on the very quite interior. Not easy to do 312 with 5000m sub 14hrs as your more or less straight into mountains from start with limited benefit from group riding.

If you like small events and quite roads the smaller less well known events are a good benefit and easier regards accommodation, bike hire etc

Charlie69

ford2600 wrote: »

Well done on Marmotte, sounds like a proper day on bike.

The current 312 course looks way better to me than the old route; Palma dominates the southern coast and getting through it wouldn't add much to event. The section from Palms SE towards Cala Pi hasn't much to recommend it.

I had planned a lap of Mallorca this year, but my memory of the section SE of Palma caused me beforehand to shorten the lap the cut out that section.

Mallorca best cycling is in the mountains and the minor roads(cami) on the very quite interior. Not easy to do 312 with 5000m sub 14hrs as your more or less straight into mountains from start with limited benefit from group riding.

If you like small events and quite roads the smaller less well known events are a good benefit and easier regards accommodation, bike hire etc

Don't get me wrong I'm sure the new route is tough but I just liked the idea of doing a lap of the Island. I've spent a week cycling in Mallorca last year and loved it.

I think if I was doing a European sportive though I'd prefer to do one that incorporates a few of the classic climbs from the Grand Tours. Each to their own I suppose.

terrydel

mirrormatrix wrote: »

Presume you just dont bring your bike? Hiring has got to work out way cheaper, no? Plus youre not worrying about changing your cassette out.

It isnt much cheaper Id imagine.
Hiring often means renting a car, but thats quite cheap unless you have to have some stupid suv posing machine.
Then you dont have bus/train transfer costs. The pain is simply lugging the bike round and having to build it back up.

Arthurdaly

Another thumbs up for the Maratona Dles Dolomites. The build up, the event itself and post party is something else. The small towns of Alta Badia and Corvara are taken over by cyclists and it really is a big celebration of cycling.

I done it in 2015, it was clear blue skies all day and very hot. The course really is spectacular with 7 consecutive big climbs, Passo Giau been the toughest with 10km @ 10%.

I think it was around 100 to enter but when you consider the goodie bag and the event itself on closed roads I'd pay far more than 100.

Logistics are difficult, I got a ryanair flight to Bergamo then a bus to Alta Badia. I'll enter the lottery again this although Mallorca 312 is attractive also.

Esroh

http://www.sellarondabikeday.com/en/news.html
Link to the day the close the roads and you ride for free in the Dolomites. June and September.

terrydel

Arthurdaly wrote: »

Another thumbs up for the Maratona Dles Dolomites. The build up, the event itself and post party is something else. The small towns of Alta Badia and Corvara are taken over by cyclists and it really is a big celebration of cycling.

I done it in 2015, it was clear blue skies all day and very hot. The course really is spectacular with 7 consecutive big climbs, Passo Giau been the toughest with 10km @ 10%.

I think it was around 100 to enter but when you consider the goodie bag and the event itself on closed roads I'd pay far more than 100.

Logistics are difficult, I got a ryanair flight to Bergamo then a bus to Alta Badia. I'll enter the lottery again this although Mallorca 312 is attractive also.

At the end you get a tenner back or a nice baseball cap! And a really nice medal.
I did it 2015 also, hit 40 degrees Celsius at times, my main concern was not the hills but sunburn on my pasty Irish skin!
Corvara is stunning, the view up at the town sign is one of the most spectacular I've ever seen.
Its absolutely worth the 100 quid, in fact its a bargain.

Arthurdaly

terrydel wrote: »

At the end you get a tenner back or a nice baseball cap! And a really nice medal.
I did it 2015 also, hit 40 degrees Celsius at times, my main concern was not the hills but sunburn on my pasty Irish skin!
Corvara is stunning, the view up at the town sign is one of the most spectacular I've ever seen.
Its absolutely worth the 100 quid, in fact its a bargain.

The medal was class, almost as impressive as an olympic medal! The jersey and gillet is still my favorite piece of kit. Fingers crossed I get a ticket for next years event.

terrydel

Arthurdaly wrote: »

The medal was class, almost as impressive as an olympic medal! The jersey and gillet is still my favorite piece of kit. Fingers crossed I get a ticket for next years event.

I lost my gillet, still gutted over theat.
I bought one on the all4cycling.com official maratona site, but its much lighter and more a rain gillet than the lovely warm one that came with the goodie bag.
Its as close as the likes of us will ever get to an Olympic medal :pac:

AmboMan

Has anyone tried the L'eroica sportives ? I'd like to give the one in Italy a go in Oct. 2017.
Looks like an interesting event !


http://eroica.cc/

mirrormatrix

Been looking at the La Marmotte website, and it looks like they are only selling race entries in bundles (Marmotte Alpes + MArmotte Pyrenees) for the first 7 days. Is this normal?

Redjeep!

AmboMan wrote: »

Has anyone tried the L'eroica sportives ? I'd like to give the one in Italy a go in Oct. 2017.
Looks like an interesting event !


http://eroica.cc/

I fancied this and was looking at doing it this year, as there were still a few tickets left in July/ August, but couldn't figure out the logistics in time.

I'm still thinking of doing it in 2017.

The question is do I try and buy a compliant bike and go to the bother of shipping it, or just rent something. It seems that the cost of bike rental is pretty steep (I'd seen €200 for the day)...

Londonirish72

I have done the Etape a couple of times. It is a great event but never again.
Both years were hot. Really hot. The type of heat you never experience in Ireland so despite all the training it is a really difficult event when you are not accustomed to the weather. Also, the logistics are a pain in the @rse. You will waste a day getting there and another half day registering. Accommodation often gets booked up and we ended up getting up at 4.15am one year to drive over Glandon to the start. We then had to drive back after. We were staying in an airless static caravan which was the only place we could find when we looked (though better places were available closer to the big day but we had already paid up front).
If you have the time to spend sometime out there beforehand then you can make a proper holiday of it and also catch the Tour as it comes through the following week but if you only have a standard wage-slave holiday allocation then this will not be an option.
I would really like to do all of the Etape climbs again but on my own terms. I would go down there in May or September and do incorporate perhaps two climbs into a long cycle and repeat that for every day I was down there.

Koobcam

fat bloke wrote: »

The weather is what kills Liege Baston. It's almost invariably cold and wet. Not what you want to travel to from Ireland.

I did both Stelvio and the Marmotte in 2015. Both epic. The Marmotte is much harder. Stelvio was 6+ hours or more whereas the Marmotte was 9+ hours. That's a big frickin difference.

The route they took up the Mortirolo would put me off doing it again, it's mountain bike gearing steep and narrow on the last section - a poured concrete surface. I don't think it's suitable personally for a sportive involving thousands of people.

But basically. Any trip involving a bicycle on a european hilly road will be worthwhile and memorable.

You're right about LBL-I did it last year and it rained all day. I did manage a photo with Eddy Merckx before the start though, so that was nice... Another thing I remember about that trip was that we stayed in Maastricht. I have to say, all things considered, Liege is a bit of a sh*thole, but Maastricht is a fabulous place to stay. The other thing is that they have their own event which i think happens either the week before or after LBL-the Amstel Gold sportive. This is just as hilly as LBL but takes place almost entirely within the Dutch province of Limburg, where all the Dutch hills are. And, I remember last year, the weather was fantastic for it. The only prob with Amstel Gold is that it is super popular, so the only way to get an entry now is probably with a tour company.
I've also done Etape du tour. Great event, but with so many people, I was constantly getting caught in traffic jams on the climbs. Still, if you're not in a hurry, great event and you can hang about to watch the pros a few days later.

terrydel

If you want to do something a bit different and less 'popular', I did this one a few years back and its great.

http://www.granfondoepica.it/ The site is in Italian but has a fairly crude google translate to English option near top left.
It is in Piacenza, I found out about it thru a friend from Liverpool who has lived in Italy for a long time. We are mates thru a mutual fondness for Everton FC and he persuaded myself and my brother to come over for it.
Its 90km or so, over a lot of dirt roads, dried up riverbeds etc, and not overly hilly, but its good fun and a big deal to the town that hosts it (cant recall the name). We were practically the only foreigners, so got introduced to the Mayor afterwards, and given gifts of Italian sausage (no jokes please :P)
The food and drink afterwards was excellent. I did it on a rented old colnago, too big for me, and up til about 20 mins before the start it was a single speed! My mate had rented it and not noticed the gear cables weren't wired up, I collected it when I met him of the train the day before and never even looked! Only noticed the morning of the event!
It gets a good crowd of al sorts, top end carbon bikes, restored old classics, even people on Dublin bike style stuff! Its proper old-school Italian cycle for me.

Carawaystick

terrydel wrote: »

If you want to do something a bit different and less 'popular', I did this one a few years back and its great.

...
Its 90km or so, over a lot of dirt roads, dried up riverbeds etc, and not overly hilly, but its good fun and a big deal to the town that hosts it (cant recall the name). We were practically the only foreigners, so got introduced to the Mayor afterwards, and given gifts
...
The food and drink afterwards was excellent.
...
It gets a good crowd of al sorts, top end carbon bikes, restored old classics, even people on Dublin bike style stuff! Its proper old-school Italian cycle for me.

I was just thinking that the best sportive in Europe would be something no one had ever heard of before. A little gem like this is probably one of the best

BH2008

Londonirish72 wrote: »

I have done the Etape a couple of times. It is a great event but never again.
Both years were hot. Really hot. The type of heat you never experience in Ireland so despite all the training it is a really difficult event when you are not accustomed to the weather. Also, the logistics are a pain in the @rse. You will waste a day getting there and another half day registering. Accommodation often gets booked up and we ended up getting up at 4.15am one year to drive over Glandon to the start. We then had to drive back after. We were staying in an airless static caravan which was the only place we could find when we looked (though better places were available closer to the big day but we had already paid up front).
If you have the time to spend sometime out there beforehand then you can make a proper holiday of it and also catch the Tour as it comes through the following week but if you only have a standard wage-slave holiday allocation then this will not be an option.
I would really like to do all of the Etape climbs again but on my own terms. I would go down there in May or September and do incorporate perhaps two climbs into a long cycle and repeat that for every day I was down there.

Totally agree with London Irish, did the etape last year and found the heat on the Joux Plane totally unbearable....I was sweating way more than I could ever drink, it's incredible how one climb can utterly change an experience. I also wasn't massively keen on descending with hundreds of cyclists around, I've no particular fear of descending but had a niggling fear of some lunatic have a go hero cleaning me out of it from behind....once them thoughts get in your head they're hard to get out! Overall though I loved the experience of cycling in the alps and defo would be on for doing the major climbs with a smaller group.