Getting to Bilbao ...
... What it takes to start a Grand Tour
On the 24th June, 116 cyclists, 17 staff and 2 WWMT Trustees will gather in Bilbao to start cycling this year’s Le Loop. But what does it take to get there and what’s involved in the preparation?…
First of all, the cyclists…
The stage 1 peleton(s) will be made up of Grand Depart cyclists (the first 3 Basque stages), First Half cyclists (9 stages to the first rest day) and Grand Loopers (with us until Paris). About 40% of our cyclists are Alumni and are excited to see familiar faces and make new friends.
Most cyclists signed up in July 2022 so have been waiting 11 months for this day (the Grand Depart was the first Loop to sell out, quickly followed by the First Half) and everyone will have spent hours training and fundraising. For most Le Loop cyclists, there are a few phases of preparation…
Training is hard work and time-consuming (even if enjoyable!), admin usually requires an “organisational push” (arranging flights, booking a bike service, working out what kit to take, getting medical form signed) and fundraising is also something that has taken a lot of energy and commitment from everyone. Fortunately though, once our cyclists arrive on Tour, Le Loop takes over all logistical details and all our cyclists need to do is enjoy the cycling (and eating!).
Our staff are the absolute best.
We’re bound to say that… except it really is true. Waiting to greet our cyclists in Bilbao will be Sarah & Emily (Tour Manager and Lead Cyclist), a route signer, 3 feedstop/hotel-hub managers, 5 bike mechanics, 4 physios and 2 doctors. They will have arrived in 8 vehicles (luggage vans, feedstop vans, back vans and a signing car) and will bring 108 bikes from the UK to save our cyclists having to pack or dismantle their bikes.
In addition to all those bikes is a lot of kit in our vans. The feedstops alone need gazebos, tables, water coolers, information boards, sanitation kit, vegware plates and cutlery, food boxes, rubbish bins. Add in all the mechanic tools, spare parts, arrows, cable ties, bike blankets and medical kits and you realise what an effort it is just to stock and load the vans, let alone get them to the start.
Our vans drive around the UK on carefully planned routes, picking up bikes from 12 differrent bike hubs. The first vans leave on Monday 20th and all of them will get to Folkestone by Wednesday, crossing to France with a day and a half more driving to get to Bilbao. It’s a long way to travel for a Grand Depart but definitely worth it!
On Friday 23rd, as our cyclists start arriving, the staff will empty all the vans, sort out kit, number bikes and re-pack all the vehicles ready for their event role. It’s an extremely well-oiled machine but with so many moving parts, and so many details that can’t go wrong, everything gets checked and double checked.
At the same time as all this is happening, Sarah is busy confirming, re-confirming, emailing and phoning ahead… making sure that the zillion bookings for coach transfers, restaurants, cafes and hotels over the next 3 weeks are perfectly planned. We spend seven months planning all of these things so most of the hard work is already done. At this point it’s just a case of saying friendly hellos and making sure that everyone has the information they need.
Understanding why it matters ...
As well as the staff and cyclists, two Trustees from the William Wates Memorial Trust will be in Bilbao to meet the Le Loop cyclists, say thank you in person and join them for the first three stages (yes, they’ve been training too!). We’ll have more visits over the next three weeks, both from Trustees and from two charities which are supported by our fundraising.
By the time our Le Loop cyclists are pedalling up the first climb (Basque country is not flat), ready to look out at the turquoise ocean, they’ll have heard more about the WWMT charities and the young people we’re helping. Explaining how grateful we are for everyone’s fundraising is a big part of the first few days; for us, getting to Bilbao means more than getting to the start of a bike ride.
Whilst the route is decided for us ...
… (every October we wait with extreme excitement for next year’s route), that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t take a lot of planning… Sarah has been through each stage with a fine tooth comb to plan feedstop locations, Emily has cycled a few stages to recce the new locations and has written notes for every stage so that our cyclists know (at every feedstop) what is to come for the next 40km. Not only do we need to plan this information, we then need to load it into mapping apps and spreadsheets for all the staff to use – it’s a bigger job than you’d imagine.
And then, we start cycling!
On Saturday 24th June, the signing car will leave the hotel (at 4am!) to start putting up arrows. A few hours later our vans will pull out of the hotel, loaded with spare bikes, day bags, feedstop kit and smiling staff. And then the cyclists… rolling along in small groups at a comfortable speed (whatever that may be). And for the next three weeks, cyclists will come and go, staff will come and go and the sun will keep shining on the spectacular roads of the Tour.
Next year… Don’t just watch it, Ride it!