La Marmotte and Etape du Tour Recon Weekend

Preview the route of La Marmotte Cyclosportive and the key climbs of of the 2011 l’Etape du Tour du Mondevelo from Modane to Alp d'Huez.

This weekend provides you the opportunity to preview the route of La Marmotte and the key climbs of the 2011 Etape du Tour from Modane to Alpe d'Huez.The route winds through the spectacular scenery of the Dauphiné Alps, taking in many of the ‘grand classics’ where the heroes of the Tour de France have suffered and triumphed: Col du Glandon, Col du Télégraphe, Col du Galibier and the fabled ascent to Alp d'Huez are all on the itinerary.

Friday - Arrive into Lyon or Geneva

Arrive at Lyon  or Geneva airport in the afternoon. You will be met and driven in a shuttle to Huez en Oisans: transfer time approx. 3 hours. Unpack bikes and gather for dinner.

Saturday - Huez en Oisans to Valloires -114km

We depart Huez en Oisans, heading towards Col de la Croix de Fer (2067m). It can be hard to distinguish, in superlatives, between one Alpine pass and the next, but the road up to Col de la Croix de Fer and Col du Glandon (1942m) takes some beating for beauty. After reaching the summt we head down a steep, technical descent to the historic, market town of St Jean de Maurienne. The day is not done, however: there is still the tough, 12km climb to reach the communication towers on Col du Télégraphe (1566m), before a brief descent to reach the overnight stop in the small ski-village, Valloires.

Sunday - Valloires to Alpe d'Huez - 65km

After breakfast, we depart from Valloires and head 17.5 km up, to reach the ‘ceiling of the Tour’, the mighty Col du Galibier (2645m). The summit views are, naturally, superb. Henri Desgranges, the founder of the Tour, famously described all mountains as ‘pale and vulgar babies’ compared to Galibier. On the long, fast descent we pass the monument to Desgranges. We continue the descent to reach Col du Lauteret (2058m), on the geographical fault line between the northern Rhone-Alps and the Provence-Alps region. It’s a further 38km, down the valley, to the foot of the last climb of the day – the mythical ascent to Alpe d'Huez.

This 13.8 km climb – average gradient 7.9%, with sections of 14% – is almost as iconic of the Tour de France as the Yellow Jersey. Coppi won the stage when it was first included in 1952, after a legendary race with French rider, Jean Robic. It has been included in the Tour almost every year since 1976, and the 21 hairpin bends are named after the stage winners. The ascent is even timed – Marco Pantani holds the record: 37mins 35secs in 1997. From Alpe d’Huez, we descend back down to Huez en Oisans to pack the bikes for the return transfer to Lyon.

Note: Recommended flights are with BA from London Heathrow into Lyon Saint Exupery arriving Friday 18.35 and departing Sunday 19.25.