Breton Bikes is a very small firm, run as a husband and wife team (Kate and I -that's her in the pic grinding up the last 200m of the Tormalet...) and selling only around 500 holidays a year. In the last couple of seasons we've been fully booked - turning people away, so our little venture has, for us, been wonderfully successful.
The Ride:
For a sponsored ride to work it needs to be a challenge for the participants. It also needs to be appropriate and I hope interesting. So for me the choice was natural, the Pyrenees, and in particular the most famous 'cycling' mountain of the all - the Tormalet...
The trip will begin from the campsite at Biarritz on the 13th September 2003. There then follows a five day ride East amongst the foothills of the Pyrenees then a turn South then East along the backbone of the Pyrenean range. First col will be the Col d'Aspin (1489m), then the mighty Tormalet - all 2115m of it (7000ft). Then follow the Soulor (1474m), Aubisque (1709m) and Col de Marie Blanc (1035m). Then in one evil day the tiny D19 will take us from Larrau, up and over the Col Bagargui (1284m), Col de Burdincurutcheta (1135m) and the Col d'Haltza (782m) and on to St Etienne do Baigorry. The final day in the mountains will then take in the Col d'Ispigny (672m) and Puerto d Otxondo (670m). Ten cols in all...
The end point is back at Biarritz on the 27th September.
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