The best raffle prizes in Europe (probably)

The CYCLOCOEUR is a locally organised cycle event aimed at raising money for people with disabilities. This is something close to my heart with a sister with various disabilities and some very inspiring winter ski clients who manage some pretty wicked things in a sit ski.

This event offers something for everyone; cross-country trails, road cycling up some of the local Cols (Iseran, Petit St Bernard etc) and a flat jaunt along the 17km long cycle path on the valley floor. So, I decided to participate last Sunday’s VTT (off-road) event and pay the very reasonable 15€ to enter. This included lunch. I had done my lunch homework before signing up and was greeted with some odd stares as I sloped behind the food counter to check that I would be getting my money's worth. (Having a Scottish partner teaches one the importance of such things.)

Satisfied that the organisers were in the midst of culinary activity, I set off with a friend to look for the trail we were to follow. Now, this is where I must be somewhat lacking in local knowledge, map reading skills or perhaps I am simply too British and need clearer instruction. It took me at least 15 minutes to decide which way we were going by which time I was hungry again so we stopped to eat a Granny bar before putting the ‘map’ in the bin and using my common sense.

The trail we were following went up in the direction of Les Chapelles, which is where we were supposed to be heading. Good news. When I say following, I mean we were using our common sense and had a good idea of where we needed to be going. The sign posts were very sparsely separated and the organisers had obviously decided to add to our fun by encouraging a little navigation and guesswork: Right up my street.

So off we set, up a much-steeper-than-I-would-have-liked hill when my bloomin’ chain snapped in half. BANG. So, undeterred I returned to base at the Train station in Bourg, jumped in the car, drove to the best bike shop in the valley, (Revolver) got a nice man to fix and replace my chain, and then booted back up to meet my friend Fredo who’d carried on at Fredo pace, which is a good thing when you are playing catch up.

Finally en-route, we made it to Les Chapelles about an hour after everyone else according to the local people of Chapelles who were awaiting our arrival with chocolate (melted by the sun), brioche (yum), cheese, saucisson, and litres of water and OJ. Les Chapelles is on the sunny side of the valley, about 15 minutes in the car from Bourg St. Maurice and has lovely cycle and walking trails through some stunning villages. I guarantee everyone who visits could imagine themselves living there.

We had to scoot off pretty quickly to make sure we didn’t miss our carefully researched lunch.

Why these big French events warm to cockles of my heart it is tough to explain, but the food and social eating has got to be the main reason, along with the blasé attitude towards navigation. Lunch was simply brilliant. Healthy, lots of it, and very tasty. There is something reassuring about these places. It feels like a big family lunch. Or perhaps I am one of those irritating Brits who tries to romanticise every element of French culture. Sorry.

Now, the very best bit of the whole day was the raffle. The prizes on offer here were better than anything you can win at the London ski show. Lift passes, ski lessons, whole week holidays in Val D’isère, Méribel, Les Arcs, weekends at the UCPA in Tignes… you name it, they had it. Fortunately for me, they also had some other smaller prizes and luckily I didn’t win ski lessons in La Plagne, but a cute coffee cup set with some swanky coffee and, LAVENDER SUGAR! It is fantastic and now I have sugar in everything.

This event is a must for any amateur cyclists with an appreciation of French event culture and a soft spot for a good cause… Who am I kidding? This is a must for anyone wanting a chance to win a free ski holiday!

SummerZest is putting together a team of motivated families to come and do it next year. We’ll provide all you’ll need at a reasonable price. Get in touch if you are up for it. Our chalet has a twin room with wheelchair access but we are sourcing more as we speak. We’ll be taking bookings for this and other events from the end of August 2011. For more information on some of the events in the Tarentaise valley, check out the Les Arcs Website, Peisey Vallandry Website, and the La Plagne Website or contact us at info@summerzest.co.uk