It can be so difficult choosing a cycling holiday, especially as a single female that is used to the safety of the Dubai cycling community and the fantastic infrastructure that we have grown so used to. So packing up your bike (thank you the Cycle Hub) and heading to Europe to tackle the legendary mountains of the Pyrenees was one of the most daunting trips I have set out on.
Wow! I was so wrong and I left all of that anxiety on the plane as being picked up from the airport with lots of other riders that I met at Toulouse airport could not have been easier. Pyrenees Multisport is a family-run company based in the heart of the Pyrenees. They have converted an 18th century farmhouse specifically for looking after cyclists and triathletes. They have been organizing training camps and cycling tours since 2004 and the owner, Ian, has in fact ridden the infamous Raid Pyrenees (a 710km challenge from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean) 32 times so he knows this region perfectly.
I was part of their Tour Ultime, a bike tour/camp that took in all three of the Pyrenean mountain stages of the Tour de France for that year. It was like riding back to back Etape de Tours with your own support vehicle looking after you all the way. In between there were plenty of other rides mixing in the toughness of the mountains with the group social at the fantastic evening meals that Julie provides and of course all the café stops along the way, just like the Friday morning ride.
I learnt a great deal about the different cycling tours available during my stay in Luscan and how to choose my next adventure in the future. More importantly not to be worried about travelling alone and all those other worries that always stop you from doing something you have always wanted to do like “will I be the last one? Will it be too hard?”
Here is my short guide;
Self Guided Cycling
If you just want a gentle introduction into cycling abroad then you can choose a Self-Guided cycling holiday – this maybe on your own or with a group of friends for a long weekend or a week away. You will be picked up from the airport and transferred to their centre in the French Pyrenees where you will have access to a vast array of cycle routes, all pre-prepared, printed route cards and GPS files. You do not even have to bring a bike, if you prefer to rent one. If you happen to have a mechanical or physical breakdown out on the road, there is always the knowledge that emergency backup is only a phone call away. So a Self Guided cycling holiday is a great way to ride abroad in the mountains at your own pace and with your own itinerary, stopping when you like and riding whatever distance that takes your fancy and then be pampered on your return.
Organised Cycling Tours
All cycling tours are fully supported and this means that you will be met at the airport by the tour operator’s staff. You are transferred either to the arrival hotel or to their base in the Pyrenees. You will have help building your bikes or have your rental bike provided and fine-tuned for you. There is always a briefing/welcome meal and the road books, route cards and on the Grande Tours, your cycling jersey, will be given to you. All accommodation, evening meals and breakfasts are provided. Lunches will be at cafés on route and the support vehicle will have hot and cold drinks and snacks to be given out on request (or just grab them when you want). The support vehicles will carry all your kit and leap frog the group throughout the ride. Everything is taken care of including keeping you and your bike on the road whenever possible. All you have to do is ride your bike!
There are several types of organised guided cycling tours but these can be broken down into two categories:
1. Cycling Tours
A Cycling Tour can be based in a single location with rides radiating out each day normally with coffee stops and lunch stops and returning back to the same base (and bed). Or they can be multi base tours going point to point from hotel to hotel or, they can be a mixture of both similar to the Tour Ultime which has a few days based at their location in Luscan and a few days going point to point through Spain and Andorra.
Both single and multi base tours are always fully supported so you will have the support vehicle nearby at all times with your extra kit, food, motivational encouragement and if it is a point to point, your luggage too. The groups are made up of all abilities and over the past 10 years their experience in supporting everyone shows through, allowing you to enjoy the riding at your own pace with zero pressure. They never hurry the back markers (their support vehicle is not a sag wagon) and they never make the front riders wait. Each rider is there to enjoy their own riding whatever speed you ride at.
2. Cycling Challenges
There is a crossover between cycle tours and cycle challenges as it depends if you would like to ride the tour at your own leisure or to receive an award at the end for completing the ride. For example the Pyrenean Traverse, their 6 day tour across the Pyrenees is also known as the Raid Pyrenean which can also be completed over 5 days. This is a set “Brevet” or medal challenge and in the case of the Raid Pyrenean, you are required to ride from Hendaye to Cerbere over 18 set climbs in 100 hours and is ratified by the Cyclo Club Bearnais in Pau. You receive an official stamp card, which is a lot of fun and you get a feeling of accomplishment as it fills up over the tour. You then receive a medal, a certificate and added to the list of finishers for that event.
