Route…
After some team photos and a rider briefing, we will all set off on our day 1 journey to Caudry.
Our ride will start from Brussels at 8.45 am. We will start by cycling through the outskirts of Brussels, and very quickly be in the peace of the Belgian countryside. After a mixture of uphills and downhills through the local villages, we’ll arrive in Le Quesnoy for our lunch.
After lunch, we will continue our journey to Caudry, via the Roubaix cobbles! The route is again varied passing through some delightful villages. Upon arrival in Roubaix, we will be the option to ride some of the cobbles or push on for 5 miles straight to the hotel in Caudry.
For those who do want to cycle a bit more, you will have the chance to ride one of the famous Paris-Roubaix cobbled sections. More details to follow on this, but do tick the box on the registration form if you are interested.
After our morning rider briefing, we will all set off on our day 2 journey to Compaigene, which, we’ll be honest, is a tough day. The route is varied but there will be frequent water and food stations located at least every 10-15 miles along the way.
We will start by riding through the outskirts of Caudry, heading towards Ribemont, St Quentin, and Crepy via the windy French country roads and cycle paths.
We will continue our journey and stop in the magical City on the Hill, Laon for lunch and a well-earned rest. After our lunch break, we will have a mainly downhill ride to our hotel, with the knowledge that when arrive we will only be 75 miles from Paris!
Also do look out for some of the 2024 Olympic Cycle routes as we arrive in Compaigne, in the champagne region of France as well!
We will check into our hotel and visit the local attractions where we will have a lovely meal and be able to share our account of the toughest day. We may even manage a bit of champagne tasting as well!
After our morning rider briefing, we will all set off on our day 3 journey to the finish line, Paris. Like day 2 the route is varied. There are water and food stations at least every 10-15 miles.
After passing through the Chateau Thierry vineyards and countryside we will hug the river and head to Muoy. We’ll take a short break before heading towards Muoy, where we will be flanked by the beautiful backdrop of the traditional poppy and sunflower fields.
We will continue our journey north along the edge of the river we will have our lunch knowing that we’ll have less than 15 miles of the day’s ride and the challenge left.
I’m sure we will all be getting photos of chateaux, churches and the beautiful countryside, hopefully in the sunshine!
After lunch, we will very quickly enter the outskirts of Paris and then into the city. There are lots of junctions on the route, so it will be a stop-start. We will remain in our groups until our finish line, the Eiffel Tower, where we will celebrate. After we will check into our hotel and have a celebration meal.