La Marmotte des Pyrenées 2019

Kyran7

Folks,

6 of us have signed up for this beast.

Have done the Marmotte Alpes a few times so for the craic we said that we would try this.

Would love to hear some reviews or summaries from anyone who has tried this event.

Thanks

fat bloke

I'd love to hear about your logistics. Where you flying to, are ye renting or bringing, where ye staying, how many days start to finish etc.

Would be a handy template for others (me!) interested

Charlie69

Kyran7 wrote: »

Folks,

6 of us have signed up for this beast.

Have done the Marmotte Alpes a few times so for the craic we said that we would try this.

Would love to hear some reviews or summaries from anyone who has tried this event.

Thanks

Myself and some friends did this in 2016, there's not as much razmataz for the Pyrenees's version compared to the marmotte Alps (which I've also done)and the numbers for it were much smaller.

I'ts a tough route for sure but very doable if you put the training in. Absolutely beautiful part of France too with spectacular iconic climbs on good surfaces with much less traffic volume than the Alps. The climbs in the Pyrenees are far more irregular in terms of gradient in comparison to the Alps which makes them a bit tougher in my opinion and the scenery is even better...a must visit for all cyclists.

Large bottle small glass

Fly to Biarritz and drive/train to Lourdes/Argles Gazost region might work.

I did a solo trip there a few years ago, great place to ride a bike, but really tough. An awful lot of route of event is up a nd down Tourmalet route, which is a busy enough road if riding solo outside of event.

There is a massive number of less well known quitter climbs away from main event route if staying for a few days.

@velopeleton used to be based out of Saint Savin ( a one horse town missing the horse) and has an unrivalled knowledge of area which would be a great base. Very short cycle to his place from Lourdes train station

1bryan

signed up for it in 2016 but ended up getting ill and travelling over without the bike. Booked accommodation in Argeles-Gazost, which is a cute little town, but which was pretty dead once the event was over. That was where the route started that particular year and the whole town was taken over by cyclists.

Ended up driving the route on the day, just after the event. There wasn't anything too terrifying on it. All looked like nice, rolling climbs, apart maybe from the second pass of the Tourmalet which looks a total bitch through the town at the top (where the ski lifts are).

One thing I do recall was the oppressive heat in the couple of days before the event (around 35 degrees), but then the cloud came in on the sunday taking the temps back to around 16 degrees (and damp). So, plan for any eventuality. The heat in the days before was hard enough even to walk around in, let alone cycle in. Not sure what's more normal for that time of year.

Kyran7

fat bloke wrote: »

I'd love to hear about your logistics. Where you flying to, are ye renting or bringing, where ye staying, how many days start to finish etc.

Would be a handy template for others (me!) interested

I have some detail already.

5 of us are flying to Lourdes on the Friday before the event. Event is scheduled for Sunday. Renting a car/van at airport and driving to Luz Saint Sauveur. Event starts in this town. Have hired a mobile home in a Eurocamp site in this town for just over €500 in total.

There are 3 bike shops in the town but have yet to book.

I am actually driving there with family. Cork to Santander in Spain, staying on coast for a few days then driving inland. Father in law is flying in also with group and will meet us in Lourdes. So with my car and him as a driver we will have a very welcome support car on the day of event. Lourdes is only about a 35-40 minute drive from start in Luz Saint Sauveur.

More to follow 😂

Kyran7

Folks,
Is there anyone else on here either going this year or have completed this event in the past few years.
Would love to hear your thoughts. Maybe where you struggled, most difficult parts of the route. Any watch outs or recommendations that you might have for us. Are there start pens like the Marmotte Alps? Things like that. Any info would be good no matter how big or small.
Thanks