From mountain passes to the sea, following a route far from the tourist trail, discovering the more remote parts of Morocco’s backcountry. The Atlas Mountain Race resonates all the creativity of the minds behind the now infamous Silk Road Mountain Race. As with the SRMR, wise planning and a sense of being able to deal with remote riding would count just as much as physical ability, although the temperatures turned out to be warmer than predicted – a nice bonus.
Yesterday’s journey to my first crack at a UCI Marathon Series started about fifteen years ago, after seeing Miguel Martinez solo to a marathon win on Eurosport, having ditched his punctured back tyre and ‘rimming it’ from about 5km out. I’d been an armchair fan of Cape Epic and loved the footage of the dust covered athletes racing MTB’s in dramatic landscapes. I’m in my fifties. I still want to be that man. Tragic I know.
This is an unbelievably beautiful ride through rolling meadows, taking in steep climbs and fast descents on tree lined roads. History is around every corner, with abbeys and castles and country houses. Helmsley serves superb cake and coffee too, and is an ideal holiday base.
Over the last thirty five years of cycle racing, I’ve often considered my peers and their contentment at riding the same disciplines, indeed the same races, year in year out. Each to their own and all that, but it’s not for me. It’s probably a Myers-Briggs personality thing. Firstly, I like new experiences; secondly, as a very average amateur athlete, I have never really found a discipline that has offered fame and fortune. Riding the same races over and over again holds little appeal.
The longest road climb in the world is in the majestic hills of Colombia. Quite appropriate really, when you consider that this is where the best climbers come from. Let’s take a look at this amazing route and maybe inspire you to take it on.
Sitting at an altitude of 1968m the Cormet de Roselend connects Beaufort(744m) in the Beaufortain valley in the west and Bourg-Saint-Maurice(840m) in the Tarentaise Valley to the east. The climb has a rich TDF history. It was first featured in the 1979 Tour de France and ten times since. In 2019 the climb was cut from the tour as a mudslide rendered the climb impassable. It returns in 2020 for stage 18 and just happens to follow our preferred route over the Cormet!
The Bowland Badass, whilst starting in the quiet village of Garstang, is an epic 167 mile road cycling route in Lancashire and Yorkshire, with a series of epic and tough climbs. It was run as a sportive, and we’ve included the route here, so that you can ride it yourself at any time, either in a one day adventure, or as a cycle tour over a weekend.
One of the classics of the alps and steeped in history, it is believed the Carthaginian general Hannibal used this very route. The road connects Bourg st Maurice on the edge of the Isere in France with the Aosta Valley in Italy via the french resorts of La rosiere and La thuile on the Italian side.
It is possible to find country lane road cycling routes in Sussex and London. The classic Ditchling Beacon road cycling climb is an example, cycling from Balcombe to Brighton.
The Colle dell’Agnello links Italy and France, and at 2,744 m (9,003 ft), it is the third highest paved road pass of the Alps. This route takes in a hard ascent, with a break in the mountains before the return. Maybe consider an overnight 😉
