There is nothing quite like the challenge of a Marmotte Granfondo. Often set in the most famous mountain ranges in the world, they offer you the chance to ride routes used in the most renowned professional bike tours in the world, including the Tour de France and Vuelta.

The big event feel and the challenge combine with the views that you and thousands of others will experience when you become part of a Granfondo peloton. If that is not enough to whet your appetite and start a training programme to enable you to ride the summits of the most demanding climbs in Europe, here are 17 reasons to make you climb on the saddle and ride!

Ride a Granfondo this year with SportActive and feel like a pro!

1 Climbing makes Perfect

Climbing is everything in cycling and everyone wants to be good at it. Although you can climb your local hills unless you live in the Pyrénées or the Alps you are unlikely to climb cols that compare to Galibier, Alpe d’Huez or Tourmalet. There is nothing quite like riding these cols. For many of us, the only opportunity we have to do so is by entering a Granfondo.

2 Know Thy Nutrition is to Know Thy Self!

Without knowing your nutrition, you cannot hope to progress well in distance cycling. Marmotte Granfondos offer the ultimate test of your nutritional knowledge. Working out what works for you both on the saddle and off it where food and drink is concerned is a fascinating challenge in of itself.

3 Riding in a Peloton of Thousands

There is nothing that makes you feel more like a professional than riding in a peloton of thousands. It is more than testing your peloton riding skills. This is peloton riding on Le Tour mountains, and this makes it so much more special.

4 It’s a Marmotte Granfondo Altitude Thing

Riding a Marmotte Granfondo often involves riding at higher altitudes than you normally would. This takes getting used to as you climb mile after mile into the sky. Air gets thinner and it takes a little while to adapt.

5 You Get to Climb Alpe d’Huez and other Classic Cols

Yes you can ride the highest climb you can find locally, but does it compare to the 21 switchbacks of Alpe d’Huez? Of course not, so get on the bike and ride a Granfondo.

6 Training Perfecting Training Perfecting

Training for your Granfondo event makes you a much better rider. You will make a training plan and start training hard for it. You will experiment with nutrition and learn about yourself, improving your condition ready for the big day. It is also a great excuse to get out on the bike, not that you need one.

7 Descend Like Sean Kelly, well almost...

Sean Kelly is known for being one of the fastest descenders of all time. Like climbing, descending is a skill best realised when negotiating hairpins rather than a local hill. Here, you can put your descending skills to the test mile after mile rather than a few hundred metres. There is nothing quite like those great long descents in the Alps or Pyrénées.

8 Get a Granfondo Medal and Brag your Heart Out!

Once you complete your Marmotte event, you will have a finisher medal. This medal gives you bragging rights that few of your cycling friends can match. You’ll feel proud and satisfied that you have ridden a very demanding and tough cycling challenge and proved you can do it. You can now annoy your cycling chums by constantly talking about it. This can be its own reward.

9 You’ll Want to Ride More than One

If you’ve ridden one Marmotte you’ll want to ride another. They are addictive and it’s natural to want to get better. If you ride Marmotte Alps one year, you’ll want to get a better time the next you ride it. It is that simple.

10 It is Easier than you Think to Organise

The easiest way to ride a Granfondo Marmotte sportive is to book it with a tour operator. The better operators offer pro-style support and organise your registration into the event. This saves you a world of pain as you don’t have to chase event organisers for your registration, and you avoid the infamous registration queue which can feel like a peloton as it snakes off into the distance.

11 The Views

As you ride the cols you will be afforded magnificent views. These views are like no other and arguably are some of the best in the world. Although Granfondos are intense, there are times during the ride where you can take in the magnificent beauty around you that few get to appreciate.

12 On the Bike Support is Pro Style

Riding with a good Marmotte tour operator is the best way to approach it. You will not only have logistics covered so you don’t have to think about getting to your hotel with your bike, but you will be supported pro-style, during the ride itself. This not only adds to your Marmotte experience, but receiving a water bottle from a support car truly makes you feel like a pro.

13 Feel Like a Pro

Riding Le Tour cols in a peloton of thousands truly is the pro cycling experience. You’ve watched your cycling heroes take on the big mountains, and now it’s your turn to do the same. This aspect is brilliant and can’t be replicated elsewhere.

14 Feel Alive

Big Granfondo events make you feel alive. There is nothing quite like it as you ride for mile after mile. The views, the sound of the chainring, the wind rushing past you as you descend into valleys. This has to be experienced at least once in your cycling career.

15 Say Hello to your Competitive Side

You may not see yourself as competitive but the truth is we all want to do well in cycling. We all have an inner Sean Kelly or Chris Froome dying to get out and perform. This is your opportunity to unleash your inner rider and push yourself to achieve.

16 Camaraderie

When riding a big cycling event you make a natural bond and form a mutual respect with your fellow riders. You may feel you are in competition with the thousands of riders around you, but you also acknowledge each others achievement and respect it.

17 Feel Fitter Feel Better

As you get fitter training for your Granfondo you’ll feel better. You’ll be in great condition, and you will feel confident. As the big day arrives, you’ll be in the best condition of your life, and this is a truly wonderful thing.

Riding Marmotte Granfondo Alps and Marmotte Granfondo Pyrénées with SportActive

At SportActive we are Granfondo experts and veterans. We know every inch of the courses and provide full support, before, during, and after each event.
We take care of your registration, organise all transfers and your accommodation. On the day, we provide pro-style support and organise strategy meetings before the big day. All you have to do is turn up and ride.

Discover your Inner Rider

• Marmotte Alps Details

Submitted: 29/01/2020