| Welcome
to the 2005 Tour! Our Tour de France programs are shared with
you below. We are purposely including a mix of Tour stage
viewing along with the flexibility to take personal time to
relax and/or ride more as well as minimizing the driving time.
I hope that you can join us for a memorable vacation to the
heart of cycling’s holy grail, the Tour de France.
Alex
Stieda Cycling Tour de France Experience
The Pyrénées
to Paris: July 16 – 25, 2005
10 Days/9 Overnights
Price: $6350 USD ($7665 CAD) per person, double accommodations
Single Supplement: $995 USD ($1200 CAD)
DVD highlight movie: $100 USD ($120 CAD)
HIGHLIGHTS
All Inclusive: All ground transfers from designated
arrival point to departure point. Fully supported rides with
water, energy bars & mechanical support. 7 of 8 lunches
and 8 of 9 dinners included.
Hands-on Expertise: Ex-professional cyclist
and Tour de France Yellow Jersey holder, Alex Stieda will
ride (and eat!) with our group every day of the
trip. Alex will provide daily, skills-based
riding clinics specific to the terrain that we ride each day.
Intimate Experience: A maximum of 20 clients
with 6 support staff makes this trip a fully catered experience.
Flexibility: We provide flexibility in the daily itinerary
so that you don’t feel like you are holding up the group
or having to wait.
Custom Sugoi
Cycling Clothing: Everyone will receive 2, 2005 custom
Stieda Cycling Sugoi jerseys; 2 pair Sugoi shorts; 2 pairs
of socks and a Sugoi wind breaker.
Best Day: If you like mountains, Stage 16
into Pau is the day. Our ride leaves from the hotel and then
intersects the course for the ascent of the historic climbs
of the Aubisque and Soulor. We have lunch near the summit,
with incredible views of the racing action and the high peaks
of the Pyrénées. The climbers are sure to liven
up the action on the last major col of the 2005 race.
Toughest Ride: Either riding up the final
climb to Plat d’Adet or if you choose the Hautacam option
the next day, you will receive a full dose of what it’s
like to ride the ‘beasts’ of the Pyrénées!
Coolest Inclusion: Our balconied suite at
the 5-star Hotel
Crillon provides a spectacular view of the final-day finishing
circuit in Paris. After the race ends, we have great access
to the Place de la Concorde staging area for the final parade
of Tour teams.
Viewing Stats: Five viewing days of seven
possible, including 2 finishes, 1 mountain pass-throughs,
1 start and 1 finish/circuit.
Bonus # 1: A television producer will be
along to record our trip on digital video after which he will
produce a short ‘bikeumentary’ of our trip for
an additional $100 USD fee.
Bonus # 2: We only stay at 3 hotels for our
10-day trip, making for a more relaxing and enjoyable cycling
vacation.
Daily Rides: 8 total - 2 long, 4 medium,
2 short
DAILY PREVIEW
•
Day 1 (Saturday, July 16): Arrival in Toulouse (Toulouse-Blagnac
Airport) our designated arrival point. Transfer west to Lourdes,
where we stay at a 4* hotel in the foothills of the Pyrenees,
followed by a short shakedown ride and welcome dinner.
•
Day 2 (Sunday, July 17, TdF Stage 15): We’ll access
the finish of today’s mountainous stage by riding (or
driving part way) from the hotel. After 6 climbs (!), the
riders will certainly appreciate any motivation we can give
them on the final 10km, 7.6% ascent.
•
Day 3 (Monday, July 18): It's a rest day for the boys with
no racing, but they still need to get out and ‘stretch’
their legs. We'll get out and see if we can visit one of the
team hotels and also an option to preview next day’s
2 climbs and/or challenge ourselves on the legendary “hors
category”, Hautacam and Tourmalet.
•
Day 4 (Tuesday, July 19, TdF stage 16): Today, we’ll
have an option to ride from the hotel on the course up the
16km, 7% Aubisque and the following 2km, 5.5% Soulor climb.
Option 2 is to ride up the backside of the last climb of today’s
stage (Soulor) to view the riders as they ‘top out’.
We’ll all have a picnic lunch and a fun descent back
home.
•
Day 5 (Wednesday, July 20, TdF stage 17): We check out this
morning and drive towards today’s stage finish. The
race moves east with a relatively flat stage to Revel. We’ll
ride on the course for the last kilometers, and then wait
for the explosive finish. We have an option today to find
one of the feed zones and view the ‘chaos’ of
bottles and mussette bags flying in the air!
•
Day 6 (Thursday, July 21, TdF stage 18): We’ll drive
to Albi to view the stage start today and then take a leisurely
ride back to our hotel in time to watch the finish of the
stage on TV.
•
Day 7 (Friday, July 22): We will forego Tour viewing for the
day. We’ll sleep in (!) unless you want to ride more.
After a short drive to the train station we’ll transfer
to Paris via the roomy and ultra-fast train, the TGV.
•
Day 8 (Saturday, July 23): We take a traditional cyclist’s
morning tour of Paris with a ‘pilgrimage’ ride
in an urban park. You then have the afternoon to explore Paris
but be sure to watch the excellent race coverage of the time
trial on TV.
•
Day 9 (Sunday, July 24, Final TdF stage): We can take the
morning for another bicycle tour of Paris. After the post-ride
brunch, it's a five-minute stroll over to the secure zone
and our race viewing suite at the Hotel Crillon. Our post-race
street party gives us ample opportunity to wind down and embellish
the stories of our ten days following the Tour circus.
•
Day 10 (Monday, July 25): For those leaving Paris today, airport
transfers are included and pre-arranged by the Stieda Cycling
staff, making for an easy departure. Au Revoir!
HOTELS
•
Nights
1, 2, 3 & 4 (July 16-19): Eliseo
(Lourdes)
•
Nights
5 & 6 (July 20-21): Grand
Hotel de la Muse et du Rozier (Gorges du Tarn)
•
Nights
7, 8, 9 (July 22-24): Sofitel
Fauborg (Paris)
MEALS
•
7 lunches will be included
•
8 dinners will be included (table wine is included with dinners)
All itineraries are subject to change
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