Historic Stage At Tour de France Alps Tignes
The 2019 Tour de France Alps Tignes will go down in race history
Arrival Day + Lac Annecy TT stage TDF 2009
There is no better way to remove the effects of plane travel than a gentle ride around spectacular Lake Annecy. Welcome to your Tour de France Ultimate cycling, Unpack once, Cycle Every Day starts with amazing views in all directions of the impressive alpine sights and pinnacles of rocks pointing at the big blue sky. Checking the bikes and breathing mountain air quickly removes all the stresses and effort to arrive in ‘Cycling Paradise’. The bike path started with a portion of the old railway line and over 20 years its almost the complete 40km route although its not completely flat, the Cote du Talloires can even make a fit cyclist get out of the saddle! A great way to stretch your legs at the Tour de France in 2019. Welcome Drinks and lunch lakeside make’s you pinch yourself with incredible tastes, colours and presentation Welcome to Annecy, Welcome to Practice Bicycle Bike Tours.
Mont Charvin – Alps stage TDF 2013
Being part of a small group allows for total flexibility, jet lag…all those unusual feelings of having just arrived from the other side of the globe! Today’s ride through ‘Cycling Paradise’ takes us to unspoilt, high altitude landscapes. Shimmering views delight us as we pedal lakeside thru quaint villages, with fresh mountain air as we start the gentle slopes of Col du Bluffy, what a sight as we look back on Lake Annecy. Cool forested roads lead us to the gateway to the Grand Alps, time for a café stop, admire markets, French village life in Thones. There is a certain ambience to the Alps…. It’s relaxing! The pinnacle of our ride today is Mont Charvin 2409m set between the Bauges and the Aravis mountain range, peaceful rural village life, farmers, roadside workers and just us! How did you find this, they ask? 25 years living and cycling the roads of the French Alps…
Claude, Lucien, Muma their beautiful lab greet our guests with a warm welcome, sit down, take a drink, admire the panoramic views, relax…its all downhill home or take the comfort of the vehicle with the finest support from Franck!
Thorens Glieres – Alps stage TDF 2018
What’s not to love about the 100 + bike rides available from One location – Annecy your home for your 2019 TDF experience. Is today harder than yesterday they ask, where would be the fun if there was no variety in sights, terrain, smells, tastes. Onward and upward todays bumpy ride take’s us deep into history Thorens-Glieres situated between Lake Annecy, Lake Geneva and Mt Blanc, locally known as the ‘Village of Neige’. Our ride options include the gentle climb of the Fleury 900m or those looking for the real challenge Plateau Glieres 1450m an important monumental site of the French Resistance. You can feel a special ambiance of time past as you pedal among these wooded hamlets. The magnificent views along the ledge of Naves Parmelan with towering mountain peaks and green rolling terrain make for another perfect day enjoying the tranquility like a ‘Naverain’ local.
View Tour de France Stage 18 Embrun > Valloire (Alps Finish)
Don’t we all like a challenge? Your guides by your side, the crazy, thrilling, chaos roadside fans make your ride one to remember! Welcome to the Grand Alps, the morning is fresh, the air thin, the locals are still asleep, but the buzz in the village of St Jean du Maurienne…the Tour de France is coming! Our philosophy ride your own pace, enjoy the climb, Paul & Bridget are here to support, encourage, help you relax, stop should you need to, its not a race, there are no time constraints, it’s your challenge to enjoy! A quick café before we start, I couldn’t help but say hello and what a great pleasure it was to smile with the great Sean Kelly also enjoying a café, he kindly had time for a quick photo memento. Let’s go…onward and upwards, our destination is the stunning ski town of Valloire, the stage is set, the ambiance is electric and the Galibier 2642m awaits. Time passes too quickly when pedalling with PB, time for a shower, a beer, or take on the summit of the Col du Galibier, with the full support of your experienced guides, you decide. With the perfect restaurant lunch spot 100m from the finish line, time to enjoy amazing French lunch as we await the riders, enjoy the carnival of the TDF caravan (so much fun) the colours and enthusiastic fans, you are at the Tour de France!
View Tour de France Stage 19 Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne > Tignes (Alps)
Short vehicle transfer deep into the Tres Valley ski area today, first stop café in Bourg St Maurice and the ride start point for our destination Tignes-les-Brévières 1550m. With the Tour de France peloton coming over the mountains from the south, we join cyclists of all nationalities heading to the live roadside action in the final 10km of this epic TDF stage. Little did we know at the time, how ‘epic’ this was going to become! The perfect tempo can sometimes make long Alpine climbs seem easier than they are, add in the distraction of spectacular valleys as we wind upwards and onwards. Don’t be distracted by the occasional bike rider sprinting past, Paul & Bridget know the French Alps like the back of their hand, and certainly in their legs. Who would have thought that we could climb for 2hrs, enjoying every second? Rolling into Tignes-les-Brévières, the amazing Franck and our Non-Cycling Guests were already enjoying a café and the atmosphere of this beautiful little ski resort. Tired legs and body were soon refreshed with a spa shower and the perfect restaurant lunch spot only a few steps away. Great food (and wine) is as important as great pedalling to the PB Team, drinks flowed, and the atmosphere built as everyone enjoyed the carnival atmosphere.
Back to the EPIC…Rain started to fall, rumours of snow over 2000m, spectators running for cover. The biggest bike race in the world is due any minute…The heavens opened, water was pouring out of the sky, down the roads and off the mountain, the crack of landslides followed we certainly were part of an EPIC day at the Tour de France 2019.
View Tour de France Stage 20 Albertville > Val Thorens (Alps)
Plan Z was called for today! After an historic TDF day yesterday, the race route was changed for today’s race route, PB called upon their years of experience and all their local knowledge to offer a TDF stage start. Knowing the back roads, is everything with a quality cycling holiday (I’m sure our guests thought we were taking them the wrong way on more than one occasion…) The church bells never let us down, as we arrive at the perfect spot and lunch at our friends famous Chocolatier in Albertville (Thanks Christophe!) today was the day of up close and personal, we even extended it to some ‘lost Scottish’ guests to help a young boys dream! (That was both P & B a long time ago). With a delightful walk through Albertville to the stage start area, it always helps to know ‘people in the know’ (thanks Klas Dimension Data – Head Mechanic) this was our chance to see the anxious, stressed, concentrated, super thin pro athletes at the end of 3 weeks, a unique opportunity as they warm up on trainers, with today super important for some and others the last day before finally in Paris.
We found our perfect bar with TV coverage of the decisive final moments in the Alps in 2019, the perfect time to celebrate, enjoy, reminisce, we’ll all certainly remember the historic Tour de France Alps Tignes stage, what a TDF to remember.
