Sportives come in all shapes and sizes from local rides organised by volunteers at the cycling club to massive, closed road races featuring riders from all over the world. There are some great small, local events all around the world but for history, beauty and prestige these are the Big 6. A collection of sportives … Read more
A question we get all the time, what is the hardest sportive in Europe? Ok, so lets rule out the small, specialist events that are only for the hardcore (here’s looking at you Tour de Mont Blanc with your 8,000m of climbing) and we will rule out anything further than Mallorca 312 as this is … Read more
With thousands of sportives in the European calendar, these are the 7 that really stick out. These include the oldest, longest, hardest and most popular rides in Europe. On these rides you will cover some of the most famous cobbled sectors, bergs, climbs, velodromes and finishing straights in cycling. If you are looking for a … Read more
Chances are, if you are reading this you are planning your season for 2020. This is one of the most exciting times of the year. Thoughts are not on the hours of training and inevitable weight loss goals but instead on the excitement of choice and deciding which great sportives you will tackle. The sportive … Read more
The sportive season is finally here. The first two months are firmly focused on northern Europe and the famed pave of northern France and cobbled bergs of Flanders. March & April are packed with some great sportives. Cycling weekends do not come better with great beer, nightlife and massive pro races on the Sunday. Best … Read more
You can’t just turn up and play football at Wembley the day before the cup final. You can’t go and bat at Lords the morning of a Test match and you can’t run the 100m at the Olympic Stadium while Usain Bolt is warming up on the track. Unique to cycling is the brilliant reality … Read more
Excluding December, there are just four bank holiday weekends in 2016. That’s four opportunities for oversees cycling breaks with zero days off work. Here, we go through all the Sportive options for the four bank holiday weekends: Easter Weekend: March 25th – March 28th 2016 The Sportive – Gent Wevelgem One of the early season … Read more
At number 4 in our series of unmissable sportives, the ones you have to ride at some point of your life, is probably the most iconic ride in cycling – Paris Roubaix. Its not very long (the long route is 163km), its very flat with almost no serious inclines and the weather is often perfect … Read more
Number 5 in our series of sportives you have to ride in your lifetime is a gem on the Adriatic. Not widely known in the UK with only a few hundred Brits in attendance each year, this is one of the biggest events in the Italian amateur cycling calendar. Entries for the 2019 event sold … Read more