London to Cannes • Thursday 1st to Tuesday 6th March 2012
Cycle to Cannes is an opportunity to test yourself and your friends and colleagues in a cycle endurance event from London to Cannes. Most riders are from the UK property sector, but you don’t have to be an architect or a surveyor to enjoy the event. We have a wide range of riders - from fit commuters to more accomplished cyclists - so the ride is open to everyone.
You'll ride like a pro, with rolling road closures, support vehicles and mechanics over six days and 1500km of tarmac. Our endurance event from London to Cannes arrives in time for the start of MIPIM, and has been tweaked to improve the challenge for some and the comfort for others.
The Cycle to Cannes ride is, first and foremost, fantastic fun. It's an adventure designed for fit commuters as well as hardened roadies and a challenge that will stay with you for a lifetime. The friendly and interactive atmosphere builds camaraderie very quickly and is the core of the C2C ethos. Passionate cyclists who also happen to be property professionals come together from all over the UK and beyond to create a temporary community.
The ride will provide you with a significant goal to keep you focused, will help you reach new levels of performance, and should spur you mentally and physically to break through preconceived boundaries. In the weeks of preparation, you’ll train and ride hard, and there’s plenty of bike buzz, as well as ample opportunities for work-related chat: no matter how tired riders feel by the end of the day, there’s always a lively crowd at the bar.
The Detail
Cycle to Cannes is the experience of a lifetime. The pro-style backup and support means this is the closest an amateur cyclist will get to riding like a professional. The central element of the support is the protection of the peloton by a rolling road closure, carried out by motorcycle outriders, for its entire length through France. The freedom this gives you to ride without worrying about traffic and junctions, at a consistent speed – averaging around 16–17mph – vastly improves performance and motivation.
The ride is not a race, however. The peloton rides at the speed of the slowest rider. Stronger and more experienced riders take the wind and assist the peloton to stay safe and positive.
As well as the motorcycle escort, support is provided by our bike mechanics in a fully equipped “grease monkey” van, the C2C coach in which riders travel when not cycling, a paramedic vehicle with two qualified paramedics, two sports therapists ready to ease aching joints and muscles at any opportunity, a catering support vehicle that ensures the smooth running of stage-breaks and lunch stops, our press car carrying C2C’s organisers and photographer, and a support van with two crew for each team. Bikes are carried in their team support van when not being ridden. One van takes the “sweeper” position on each stage, picking up any rider who needs a break.
Riders are split into three teams each with a captain and deputy, and their own jersey. Each day’s ride is split into two to six stages, of approximately 40–60km each, and each rider cycles a minimum of 720km over the six days. Teams are allocated stages in advance for the entire ride and riders must ride the two stages allocated to their team each day. Riders are free, however, to ride on independently on any stage they choose. For a determined handful of “completists”, that means riding all 28 stages.
Every rider takes both Day 1 stages, between London and Folkestone, and the last stage on Day 6 into Cannes.
To make the challenge even harder – and for those of you familiar with the event – we’ve extended Day 4 as far as Valence instead of stopping in Chanas. This means the first three days in France are all more than 315km. This change also means riders on Day 4 now stay together in one hotel of a higher standard.