The Experience
1500km • Original or Chase • six days, four days, a lifetime
Since the inaugural ride in 2006, many Cycle to Cannes riders have been surprised at their ability to battle the long miles in the saddle. The camaraderie that quickly develops while attaining these personal achievements ensures that most participants make cycling buddies for life.
Cycle to Cannes is an endurance event, designed for fit commuter riders as well as hardened roadies. While most riders relish the challenge and a degree of competitiveness, the event is famous for its friendly, inclusive atmosphere. Each rider cycles a minimum of 720km over the course of the six days, while more ambitious riders can join more than one peloton and even go the whole distance – an increasingly popular challenge as we saw in 2010 and 2011. The C2C baton is carried continuously by the team leaders for the entire distance to Cannes.
The Original Ride will set off at 10am on Thursday 1 March 2012 from London's City Hall, with a motor cycle escort provided by the National Escort Group (when not working with C2C you can find them providing the same support for the Tour of Britain). We ride to Folkestone to cross the Channel by Eurotunnel and spend a comfortable night in a hotel outside Calais.
In France, we hook up with Alain Cordier, of Commissaire France, who provides his team of experienced French outriders and a rolling road closure as we cycle south to the Mediterranean. Highly experienced bike mechanics Nigel Hill and Graham Freestone King, working alongside our wonderful physiotherapists from SMART, will ensure you and your bike work as one and get to that finish line in Cannes.
With early starts from our hotels on the Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, we reach the Palais des Festivals on the seafront in Cannes by 3pm on Tuesday afternoon, allowing riders who are MIPIM delegates two full days of business on Wednesday and Thursday.
For those riders who have previously completed Cycle to Cannes and are taking our new Chase challenge - four days of non-stop riding in two teams, six hours on and six hours off – the experience will be different! You'll have your own comfortable bunk on the band-style coach, and three good meals a day, but you won't be propping up the bar in the evening. On the other hand, the memories, and the relationships you form on this particularly challenging event, will last a lifetime.
As you complete either of the Cycle to Cannes rides, you will be supporting our designated charities: Coram (from 2012 our main charity), Tom's Trust, the Multiple System Atrophy Trust, Article 25 and the Emthonjeni Trust.