The L’Étape du Tour, which is organised by Amaury Sport Organisation (A.S.O.), is “The ultimate cyclosportive in Europe” and attracts 15,000 cyclists from across the world who want to tackle a route that mirrors a stage from the Tour de France.
This annual event, which started in 1993, has become famous for its difficulty and simply finishing it is an achievement. The route is challenging, but so are the logistics around undertaking such an event, therefore to participate I signed up via Sportive Breaks who relieved me of the extra logistical hassle as I rode the L’Etape du Tour.
About Sportive Breaks
Sportive Breaks launched in 2015 and aims at providing holiday experiences for cyclists focusing on European Sportives and Gran Fondos. Sportive Breaks specialise in three areas which are:
- Cycling Breaks
- Sportives
- Hospitality
Booking with Sportive Breaks
Booking with Sportive Breaks is simple. They offer a range of packages to this exclusive event, where tickets sell out fast. I was late at deciding to participate, but fortunately, Sportive Breaks still had multiple packages available.
They offer event tickets only, with access to Sportive Break’s feed stations in the race or event tickets and accommodation at the start or finish. I opted for the later.
Transfer to and from the airport from your hotel is also provided at an extra cost, but this takes any logistical worries away and enable you to focus on the race.
Hotel
My hotel, Hotel l’Escapade in Beuil, was located 5km from the finish line and it was an excellent choice but it did mean a lengthy transfer from the airport.
However, the advantage of this meant that after I trundled over the finish line, I could freewheel to the hotel in Beuil, which was a hub of activity and included a “Pasta Party” which was put on by the event organisers, A.S.O. Those that did not have a hotel located nearby had several options, the first was to ride downhill to Nice, adding an extra 80km to the day or getting the transfer, via a bus that the organisers put on.
Fortunately, I was able to coast to the hotel and enjoy a relaxing bath and a freshly prepared dinner. The food was exquisite, and there were a range of dishes to enjoy, including incredible deserts, a much-needed reward after such a tough day.
The location and accommodation was ideal for when you finished the race, but it did mean a really early start to the day (3.00am), so these are things to be considered when you factor in booking your package.
My experience
I had a positive experience with Sportive Breaks from start to finish. Booking the trip was easy and payment for the event could be spread in instalments.
Due to elections in France, the organisers were forced to change the date of the race from Sunday 7th July to Saturday 6th July. This obviously impacted tour companies like Sportive Breaks, however from a customer’s point of view, you would not have realised. An email was sent communicating this change and an invitation to get in contact should you need help with your booking.
The impact of this change of date meant that the planned warm-up ride that Sportive Breaks would have hosted on Saturday, was now changed to a recovery ride on Sunday and was it was detailed in their itinerary that they sent before travelling. This date change meant that I found myself travelling up to my hotel in the mountains on the Friday, only to be descending several hours later in the early hours of Saturday morning, to the start. Sportive Breaks worked wonders to ensure everyone got to their allocated start, on time.
In retrospect, my advice would be to ensure you have extra time in your travel plans, so in the event of last minutes changes, you are not impacted and that you give yourself time to recover from any travelling you have done.
What I realised is that you don’t want to be spending an unnecessary energy, so the less you have to do, the better and it is vitally important that you have a day without travelling before the race. This will allow you to undertake a gentle ride to ensure your bike is setup correctly and that you have completed an activation ride to “wakeup” the legs in preparation for the race. You don’t want you warm-up ride to be simply cycling to the start, as was my case. I believe I would have benefited from a quiet day in the mountains, before the start of the race.
Benefits
An additional advantage of using Sportive Breaks is that they collect your race number on your behalf, and in my case it was waiting for me at the hotel as well as a host of other freebies as part of the event. This is a real added extra because otherwise you would have to navigate your way to the Race Village to sign in and collect such items, wasting time and energy.
Upon arrival at our hotel, Sportive Breaks supplied a mechanic to help with assembling your bike for those that brought their own or helping with the setup for those who hired a bike, which Sportive Breaks can arrange.
In addition, at each hotel there was a Sportive Breaks Representative to ensure your needs were catered for. Our Rep was simply outstanding. He was welcoming, an experienced sportsperson and a veteran of eight Ironmen, which resulted in knowing how to make sure we were cared for, the minute we arrived. In addition, our Rep provided a really detailed briefing about the event. This briefing included photographs from a reconnaissance they had done of the route which included key aspects points such as the climbs and descents, particularly key points to be wary of and location of the feed stations.
During the race, the event organisers had multiple feed stations. These are areas where you can get snacks and refill your bottles during the race. The only problem is that they are busy, very busy and chaotic. Fortunately, Sportive Breaks offered their own feed stations for their customers as well as mechanics and these were of real value. These feed stations were reserved for Sportive Breaks customers and allowed you to leave your own nutrition, which saved you having to carry too much which was a mistake that I made. I realised I was carrying too much food when I really didn’t need to and next time, I would carry just enough to get me to and from each Sportive Break feed station.
The Sportive Break feed stations were easily identifiable as they had large orange marquees where you would get all the required support, including getting your bottles refilled whilst you were having a little snack. These were mini oasis and were strategically located, providing much needed support during the long day.
Post race
Following the completion of the race, our small group managed to reconnect in the evening and share a bite to eat and swap stories about our struggles during this epic undertaking.
The return home was simple as Sportive Breaks managed our transfers where we were delivered to the airport without incident.
Summing up
There were around 150 people that Sportive Breaks successfully supported throughout the event, everyone made it to the start and those that completed the event, did so without incident, myself included which was an incredible undertaking. Sportive Breaks managed the logical challenges that may inhibit those from trying such an event and thus enabling people to enjoy the race without distraction.
If you are a keen cyclist, you may be interested in tackling the 2025 L’Etape du Tour. To learn more click here. This is a fully refundable pre-booking option. It guarantees you spot, even before the route is announced, so you can’t lose. Personally speaking, although I found the event challenging, I found using Sportive Breaks a positive experience.
