Team-Cat Actif | Cycling | Cycling FAQ | Costa Brava Trail | Languedoc Trail
Where do the cycling tours take place? In the Languedoc Rousillon area of France and the Costa brava in Spain, a coastal and mountain area of spectacular scenery and diverse culture. Most of the rides are along tiny, almost traffic- free asphalt roads in the mountains and along the coast.
Do you stock bikes, or must I bring my own? The emphasis is on road cycling, although we sometimes do some off-road cycling and rent this type of bike when we do so. The machines we stock are good quality bikes, with a variety of frame sizes [most of which are carbon fiber] to suit every guest, but you may wish to bring your own machine. If a road bike, please ensure that it is geared for mountains; a configuration of 39x26 is sufficient. Three plateux, or chain rings, are even better. You will need to bring your own cycling shoes if you use them and the pedals specific to the cleats unless they are the Look style of pedal, which we stock as standard
How fit will I need to be? You can choose to cycle as much or as little as you wish. You can even choose to freewheel downhill only if you find the climbs unappetizing. So hop into the broom wagon, which will be in constant attendance with a supply of drinks, tasty eats, spare wheels and so on. There is absolutely no point in suffering; you are on holiday! This is, however, a holiday for healthy, physically active people, so a reasonable level of fitness is required. Our bikes are geared for mountains, so the ascents are not too harsh if you pace yourself sensibly, but many of them are long. These are, after all, grand mountains. The descents are exhilarating, but please take care and don't go too wild, especially round the hairpins! If you are a very strong rider, by all means put the hammer down and sprint up the Col d'Ares! If you want to do some extra climbs and extra miles, no problem, we can arrange that for you while the more sedentary folk are relaxing with a cold beer. We would hate you to feel under-exercised, and if you should leave us gasping behind you, tough luck for us!
What time of day do we cycle, and for how long? It depends on a variety of factors; it may be between breakfast and lunch, but if we are doing a coastal ride we may take a late ‘brunch’ and then relax by the pool for a while before heading down to the coast for an evening ride and dinner in a selected restaurant. The length of the rides is quite variable and depends upon weather conditions and how much the guests want to do, which might be anything from 1-6 hours. Three to four hours is about the average duration.
What size will the group of cyclists be? Our groups are limited to 25 people not counting Team-Cat personnel, to ensure that everyone gets the care and attention they deserve , and everyone has an opportunity to really get to know the others.
What will we do when not cycling? There is a marvelous array of things to see and do here. Most of the abbeys and churches have fascinating histories stretching back over 1000 years. Planning permission in the area is so stringent that the medieval towns and villages look as they did centuries ago. The coast has good beaches and restaurants, and opportunities for wine tasting are almost limitless. You will barely scratch the surface in a week, and being right on the border we can be Spain one afternoon and France the next. Frankly, it would be hard to imagine a leisure activity which you can’t do here.
