After 2023’s Bilbao Grand Depart, we were ready for a consecutive ‘foreign’ Grand Depart in Florence. Greeted by tarmac melting temperatures, stage 1 was something of a killer with a huge 205km and 3,600m of climbing to ride in the boiling sun of Italy. A literal baptism of fire. The remaining ‘Grand Depart’ Loop stages through Italy were still hard, with some cooling rain joining the party and the constant Italian drivers who made their presence known. But there have been genuine big smiles between the occasional gritted teeth too. New friendships being made, old friendships consolidated. This is what Le Loop is all about.
Stage 4 transitioned into France and up the mighty Galibier where the snow was still in deep piles along the roadside but the sun and went with the cloud cover. Given the changeable weather, every rider had a slightly different experience today – descending the Galibier in sunshine is a very different story from descending in hail!
At last we were in the glorious high mountains with mind-blowing views. Fabulous! Slow, steady ascents and thrilling descents. Pretty villages, mountain air. This is the Tour de France that we love.
Stages 5 to 8 brought the sunshine, fresh cycling legs from new arrivals, beautiful views, vineyards of Burgundy and our first charity visitors on tour – Tom and Tristan from the excellent Football Beyond Borders. Young Tristan put in a cracking ride, completing 130km of stage 6 – bravo!! Talking to the group that evening gave us all a better appreciation for the reason why Le Loop exists: not just to provide an incredible adventure for us all, but to raise funds for the William Wates Memorial Trust. We were so pleased to be joined by Sarah and Andrew Wates – Will’s Mum and Dad – and his brother Rick. Their continued involvement in and passion for this event is just fantastic.
The wonderful Alitex team who join us every other year brought a great sense of fun and camaraderie to stages 6 and 7. If you want to know what a company team can get out of taking part in a couple of stages (or more) of Le Loop, Alitex are a shining example. Riders if distinctly mixed abilities and fitness pull together to challenge and support each other in a way that leaves a lasting positive impact on them all. Well done guys!
The Time Trial on stage 7 gave us a helpful shorter day, enabling those riding all the way to the half way mark a chance to recover a bit and get on top of laundry and ‘tour admin’. 2 more stages to ride before the official first rest day!
A lumpy but sunny stage 8 was a helpful transition to what proved to be a very challenging stage 9 through a lesser-known part of the Champagne region. We knew we’d have a section of ‘chemins blancs’ (agricultural unpaved roads) to contend with – but we didn’t know it would be preceded by biblical downpours that would bring trees down onto the tracks and turn the chalky gravel into a muddy quagmire!
I can’t pretend there wasn’t any of the wet stuff on the day itself – but there was plenty of the hot stuff too! So while we got thoroughly soaked with filthy mud, it was mostly cooked into a hard crust by the time most riders reached the stage end and a line-up of washing buckets to sort out these sorry bikes! What can we say – it’s all part of the adventure! The reward? Our first rest day.
We said goodbye to all our ‘First Half’ Loopers leaving our Grand Loopers, to tackle stages 10 and 11 alone. Stage 10 – a fast stage where the group ‘got the job done’ and enjoyed a longer-than usual down-time in the afternoon and evening. By contrast, Stage 11 was never going to be short, heading from the Loire Valley into the Massif Central for a punchy 211km stage with a monstrous 4,350m of ascent. 15% on the Puy Mary was definitely calf-popping, but it also marked the high point of the day and it felt good to tick it off. Cooler temperatures and group riding helped make this big stage manageable and a great day out on the bike.
Stage 12 and we welcomed our ‘Second Half’ Loopers, bringing a new fresh vibe to the peloton. Nothing beats fresh legs on tour and it was wonderful to welcome familiar faces along with lots of new Loopers. We love the way that our Alumni are so welcoming to new riders – no impenetrable cliques here! After yesterday’s long stage, we enjoyed the lovely views, villages and in particular spectacular Rocamadour. But there was a real sense of tension in the air with the knowledge that the Pyrenees stages lay ahead …
Stage 13: Joined here by our Pyrenees Loopers to ride Agen to Pau: a lovely stage – rolling hills, beautiful countryside and sunshine … which we knew wouldn’t last!
Stage 14 and we were joined by the Mountains Week Loopers for the first stage of … well, the clue’s in the name! 3 classic climbs: the infamous Tourmalet with the iconic ‘Giant’ statue on the top, the gorgeous Hourquette d’Ancizan and finally the Pla d’Adet. Cool temperatures, some rain, low cloud and fog made for an atmospheric stage with beautiful views popping out between the rising/falling cloud level. For those who don’t like to climb in strong heat, this was ideal … for those hoping to sharpen their cyclist tan lines, maybe not so much!
Descending in these conditions is a challenge – Tourmalet in particular is known for its wildlife wandering on the roads – from sheep and goats, to ponies and sometimes even llamas! With very poor visibility at times, riders needed to stay alert and cautious. Added to this, was the cold of descents which can become bitter with the windchill. Some canny riders put the goats cheese pizza boxes from feedstop 3 (what a treat!) to good use by stuffing them down their fronts – a tried and tested formula for keeping body heat in and windchill out. Touche!
The final psychological test was passing our hotel for the night to continue on to the last climb of the day. Mentally that’s very tough – chapeau to those who made it!
Our final epic day in the Pyrenees and it was a real beauty. FIVE humungous climbs today: Col de Peyresourde, Col de Menté, Col de Portet-d’Aspet, Col d’Agnes and Plateau de Beille. 198km and 4,850m of climbing. After a chilly start to the day the road immediately headed UP on the Col de Peyresourde – no messing about! As the sun came out we enjoyed the stunning beauty of the wild Pyrenees which has a very different feel to the Alps – there’s something untamed and ‘sauvage’ about it – we love it!
This marathon stage culminated with the climb up the stunning Plateau de Beille before dinner at the top and a transfer to our rest day hotel. What a stage! (the final one for our Pyrenees Loopers). Our 2nd rest day was calling and we were more than ready for it!
Stage 16 was really all about Beatrice – the young rugby player from Manchester’s STAR Scheme who came out to ride with us. Having only ever been on a bike a handful of times in the past 3 months, Beatrice is really a total beginner, so this was a HUGE deal for her.
Beatrice showed her true grit and persistence by getting on the bike, falling off and climbing back on again, determined to do her absolute best. She did herself proud and when she wasn’t on a bike, she was helping at feed stops, chatting to riders and learning what she could from our physios (she’s hoping ton get her place at Uni to study physiotherapy once she gets her A level results later this summer. Having Beatrice with us, as well as Tom – STAR’s Northwest regional manager, was a total privilege. Well done Beatrice!
The sun shone and we were treated to fast riding through vineyards and mile after mile of tree-lined roads providing much needed shade from the heat.
Finally we rolled into Nimes where we were joined by our final Loopers, here to ride our 3 stage Alps Loop.
And so to the Alps. 3 HUGE stages. The first was stinking hot but for those who made it past feed stop 4 (temptingly close to our finish hotel) they were in for a real treat – a glorious quite, isolated climb up to the finish at Superdévoluy ski resort. Stage 18 followed with another hot hot hot stage with plenty of climbing and stunning views of turquoise lakes, but no serious stand-out cols. Feed stop 4 provided ice creams and a water trough for full immersion! An incredible buffet dinner in the charming town of Barcelonette ended a cracking day.
And our final Alpine stage 19 – a brute of day with 3 colossal climbs: Col de Vars (19km within the first hour of the route), Cime de la Bonnette at 2,800m and the final climb up to the stage finish at Isola 2000. What goes up, usually goes down, and the descent off Cime de la Bonnette will to stay with many of our riders for years to come (2 vertical km over 40km!!).
The dire weather warnings played out with torrential downpours, interspersed with sunshine, then hail, then downpours. The difference of 10 minutes between riders could mean a thorough soaking, or not! A challenging day for everyone, finished with a big pasta dinner and chocolate cake at the stage finish, followed by a coach transfer to Nice for a total change of scenery!
And finally! The Cote d’Azure and 2 stages to bring this tour to a close. Not ones for making this easy, A.S.O. devised a killer stage 20 made all the more brutal with stage 19 in our legs and after the bizarre weather of the day before, a day of cycling in an oven. Our bodies were tested to the max – but we wouldn’t be doing this if it was easy … would we?
And so to our final Stage 21. What a blast! From the sunshine ride out to Monaco, the meeting with friends and family at the beach-side tennis club for lunch, the ride back to Nice (the official TT part of the day!) and finally the fantastic after-party at a beautiful vineyard venue … it was a wonderful day of celebrations, laughter, smiles (and maybe even some relief?).
We made it – through possibly the toughest tours we’ve had, battling rain, storms, blistering heat and even hail! A huge shout out to the superb riders and their supporters and sponsors – we couldn’t do this without you. Thanks to you all we’ve raised an ENORMOUS £530,443 for the William Wates Memorial Trust. It’s a staggering sum! THANK YOU.
Le Loop Chairman, WWMT Trustee and Will’s brother Rick Wates has this to say:
“What an incredible Le Loop 2024 we have had. Starting in Florence, ending in Nice and raising an incredible £530,443! Thank you to our very special riders and to our brilliant team. As a result of this stellar fundraising you are going to give young people from the most disadvantaged backgrounds hope, and you are going to give these young people the opportunity to make a go of their lives. Of all the many things you have achieved this should be right up there in what makes you remember your Le Loop experience with pride. Well done and thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”
Our cyclists rode with bravery and tenacity – right from Florence to the final stage in Nice. The highs, the lows, every challenge along the way – all go towards making this event something exceptional. It’s been incredible! We can’t wait to do it all again next year!
Vive Le Tour!
