Mid-June outing to France anyone?

posted 20 Mar 2018, 03:17 by Lara Taylor [ updated 21 Mar 2018, 06:42 ]

There is a great opportunity in mid-June for a club outing to the Bernard Hinault sportive which takes place in Brittany, France. This is a chance for VCGH riders of any experience and ability to join a bit of a social weekend around a well-established and exciting sportive run French-style, with all the atmosphere that entails. There are 3 distances available (not including the '36km family event') from 80 to 200km so riders can sign up for whichever distance they fancy.

The plan is to travel to the event in cars with 4 riders and 4 bikes on each roof rack. This will mean that we can be fairly flexible on numbers, as long as the total number is divisible by 4 (costs rise significantly if not), and as long as we have enough volunteering drivers. It is also a cheaper and more flexible option than booking vans and minibuses, and means that cabin spaces are available on the overnight ferry - which they aren't for foot passengers!

James Barrell has attended this event several years in a row with his Jersey Rouleurs club, so anyone wanting a bit of insider info about the event should direct questions to him or Kate Cheeseman.

Outline Itinerary:

Thursday 14th June
Cars with 4 riders and 4 bikes to head down to Portsmouth for the overnight ferry to St Malo departing 20:15 arriving 08:15 on Friday morning. Cabins available on the ferry.

Friday 15th June
Cars drive the 90km/56miles from St Malo to Saint Brieuc in Brittany, the host town for the event. This may be too early to check into hotels, but we will aim to make a plan which allows us a place to change so that we can get out for a recce of some of the course ... via a cafe, obviously!

Sign-on for the event also happens on Friday afternoon in Saint Brieuc.

Dinner booked at a local restaurant.

Saturday 16 June
The big event day. Cyclists will be able to make it to the event under their own steam as the start will be near the hotel. Obligatory celebratory drinks at the finish (the shorter the course you choose, the longer time you have available for these!)

Dinner booked at a local restaurant.

Sunday 17th June
Head back to the UK via the St Malo ferry departing 10:30 and arriving Portsmouth 18:20.

Costs are estimated to come in at around £500 per person for all travel and race entry costs, accommodation and dining out, based on sharing rooms between 2 people (single rooms subject to availability and surcharge). This could be slightly less depending on accommodation etc. Budget extra for drinks and snacks.

There's also the option to make your own way to Saint Brieuc but join VCGH's organised accommodation and dining options. You can fly to Rennes, for example, or take the Eurotunnel and drive from Calais (around 5 hours), or taking shorter daytime crossings via the fast ferry to Cherbourg.

We need to gauge interest in this as a club event, in order to provisionally book hotels and restaurants. The aim will be to get numbers finalised by the end of March and book at that point.

Please fill in the following form to indicate your level of interest. There is no obligation at all at this point. Confirmation and a deposit will be sought before any bookings are made.

All questions to Lara.