Raid Pyrenees

A 700 km route , climbing twice the height of Everest and taking in the legendary Pyrenean stages of the Tour de France, it’s a tough challenge and a very unique one…
Who are you
John Wood, Performance Director

The Challenge
Raid Pyrenees – Atlantic to Mediterranean

How long did it take
6 days

What was the distance
700 km

How much did it cost
£1,450 ($2,340)

Who was the organiser
What was it like

700 km, climbing twice the height of Everest and taking in the legendary Pyrenean stages of the Tour de France, it’s a tough challenge and a very unique one. Add to that the complete crossing of a country and the ever changing character of the mountains and people who live in them and all this makes the Raid Pyrenees one of the great adventures. 

  The accomplishment of conquering the classic climbs of the Tour de France was only surpassed by the adrenaline of the amazing descents that follow. Swooping down over 20km of descent overtaking cars made up for the long, long climbs.
We were raising funds for the Motor Neurone Disease Association and Sail4Cancer and this gave added motivation when the going was upwards and tough. 

 Every day was a challenge in constantly changing mountain scenery and the obvious highlights were conquering the Col d’Aubisque and Col de Tourmalet but, having watched the Tour de France all my life, just riding the same roads as the legends of cycling added to the sense of achievement.

We were a group of six and of course everyone had good and bad days but everyone completed the Raid dived in to the Mediterranean at the end.
How did you train

Being a mountain biker up to six months before the Raid meant a transfer to the road and the acquisition of those skills. The group did a combined fitness test and bike fitting to set the base lines and to put off-bike programmes in place to address any weaknesses.

Then it was a matter of building up the miles and then seeking out sportives that emulated the distance and height climbed on a typical Raid day. Beyond that it was regular forays in to the Surrey Hills whenever time allowed seeking out a series of climbs.

Any other useful hints

Using an event organizer (www.raidpyrenees.com ) was key. 

Knowing that after a hard day on the bike you had rooms and food sorted with your bags transferred. The on road support was also excellent with the support vehicle at key points on the road for food, drink and any repairs.