The 2012 Tour de France is Set

The route is set and cyclists around the world are gearing up for yet another Tour de France. The prologue is set to take off on June 30 in Liege, Belgium. This will be the nineteenth year in TDF history that the race begins in a country other than France. The 3 week and 20 stage Tour will travel throughout France stopping in towns such as Rouen, Pau, and Bagnères-de-Luchon before the annual grand finale in Paris. The 2012 TDF will cover over 3400 km!

ASO, the race organizer, has not been the only ones working hard to arrange this annual tour, Discover France has also been busy putting together their own TDF cycling and non-cycling tours. With another year being an official tour operator of the TDF, our team knows what to expect and how to build the perfect tour for you. We are putting the finishing touches on our tours, which will offer VIP services to witness all the glory of the prologue, 2 individual time trials, 9 flat stages, 4 medium mountain stages and 5 mountain stages. Our tour details are scheduled to be released in November, however many Le Tour enthusiasts have already pre-booked their tours risk free. Don’t miss the opportunity to go on your dream TDF tour with us. Pre book now or get on our email list to be the first to know when our tours are posted.

In the mean time, study the Tour’s route below and narrow down what stage you most want to be at the finish line. With our help, you can!!

2012 Tour de France Route:

Prologue – Sat, June 30 – Liège > Liège (6.1 km)

Stage 1 – Sun, July  1 – Liège > Seraing (198 km)
Stage 2 – Mon, July 2 – Visé > Tournai (207 km)
Stage 3 – Tues, July 3 – Orchies > Boulogne-sur-Mer (197 km)
Stage 4 – Wed, July 4 – Abbeville > Rouen (214 km)
Stage 5 – Thurs, July 5 – Rouen > Saint-Quentin (197 km)
Stage 6 – Fri, July 6 – Épernay > Metz (210 km)
Stage 7 – Sat, July 7 – Tomblaine > La Planche des Belles Filles (199 km)
Stage 8 – Sun, July 8 – Belfort > Porrentruy (154 km)
Stage 9 – Mon, July 9 – Arc-et-Senans > Besançon (38 km)
Stage 10 – Wed, July 11 – Mâcon > Bellegarde-sur-Valserine (194 km)
Stage 11 – Thurs, July 12 – Albertville > La Toussuire – Les Sybelles (140 km)
Stage 12 – Fri, July 13 – Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne > Annonay (220 km)
Stage 13 – Sat, July 14 – Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux > Le Cap d’Agde (215 km)
Stage 14 – Sun, July 15 – Limoux > Foix (192 km)
Stage 15 – Mon, July 16 – Samatan > Pau (160 km)
Stage 16 – Wed, July 18 – Pau > Bagnères-de-Luchon (197 km)
Stage 17 – Thurs, July 19 – Bagnères-de-Luchon > Peyragudes (144 km)
Stage 18 – Fri, July 20 – Blagnac > Brive-la-Gaillarde (215 km)
Stage 19 – Sat, July 21 – Bonneval > Chartres (52 km)
Stage 20 – Sun, July 22 – Rambouillet > Paris Champs-Élysées (130 km)

5 Reasons to Join Discover France for the Tour de France

Tourists flock to France for the gorgeous scenery, delightful towns, and unique architecture, but during July the Tour de France trumps the list. Throughout the country, fans from around the world line the streets to cheer on the pro riders as they race by. On a Discover France VIP tour, because we are an official tour operator, you don’t just line the streets; you get to go behind the scenes of the Tour, test your power while riding the race route and taste some exquisite gastronomy.

Here are five compelling reasons to grab your bike and join a tour:

VIP access

As one of only 4 VIP official tour operators of the Tour de France, Discover France VIP tours offer unparalleled access to the 2012 Tour including the opportunity to ride the race course prior to the arrival of the pro-peloton, meeting the cycling pros and media with an official Tour de France guide at the Village and Izohard Bus, and crossing the finish line to take your place (and commemorative photo) on the awards podium! This special access to the 2012 Tour events can’t be found anywhere else except on our VIP cycling tours.

Different Degrees of Difficulty

Our VIP tours include challenging cycling or moderate cycling to suit every rider’s ability. Our challenging tours are for those who ride long, hard, and often and want to cover the big mountains at the Tour de France. Our moderate cycling tours are for those who ride a lot for fun, but want to enjoy other aspects of the tour and country. Discover France has spectator only tours for those not wanting to ride, but still looking to experience everything else offered including luxurious lodging, gastronomic dining, fantastic sites, and the unique French countryside and culture!

Guides

All of these exciting TDF tours include expert guides to lead the way and make sure every trip runs smoothly.  The guides are professionally trained and certified and are highly knowledgeable about the race and routes. They are multilingual as well and are experienced at guiding groups of foreigners over the big mountains and around the melee of the Tour de France. We are confident that our guides will show every guest the time of their life.

Excitement of the Tour

The Tour de France is one of the most well-known and widely attended sports events in the world. For almost a month, the professional riders race by millions of cheering spectators. The excitement and suspense is why so many people wait anxiously for July to come. We offer biking aficionados the opportunity to be at the finish line watching a hair-win sprint, or at the top of the giant cols observing the strength and determination of the pros first hand, or in Paris as the Tour winner receives the yellow jersey. Mostly, we offer the opportunity to experience the Tour de France exhilaration in a way few will ever get to.

New Acquaintances

Whether you are traveling with a small group, a partner, or by yourself, you will meet plenty of other excited bike enthusiasts. Guests join our tours from around the world to enjoy the Tour de France. New friendships will be made at the top of Alpe d’Huez, or backstage in the company of the pros and their teams, or while sipping champagne at the Champs Elysees finish line. Two past TDF guests met as strangers with one thing in common, the love of cycling; they are now planning their third biking trip together. The memories and friendships that develop on our tours will last a lifetime.

The Tour de France is one of the most amazing experiences for tourists, especially cyclists who are seeking adventure while also experiencing rich culture and history. The list above offers just a few of the many reasons you should grab your own bike and experience it for yourself.  It’s sure to be an unforgettable ride.

Discover France Guides – Best of the Best

At Discover France Adventures, we specialize in bicycle tours throughout France as well as multisport tours, custom tours, and specialty travel.  We offer unique opportunities to discover the French culture and lifestyle.  In addition to our pioneering self-guided tour offers, we operate a significant number of custom guided trips for groups of all sizes and abilities.  Our guides are the most qualified and certified professionals available, and for us that makes them the best in the business.   All of our guides go through intense training, unlike guides in other countries or ‘trip leaders’ that come to France to lead tours.   Our guides and experience really stands out, and so we really want to brag about their knowledge and the in depth training they go through before we hire them!

First, all of our guides have their Brevet d’Etat, short for Brevet d’Etat d’Educateur Sportif Activité du Cyclisme, or BEESAC.  In English it’s called a Diploma (State Certificate) of Educator in Sport Specialized in Cycling Sports Activity.  To achieve their Brevet d’Etat riders must take a two part course.  First, they must complete 300 classroom hours during a six week time period to acquire knowledge in a variety of fields including biological sciences, psychology, pedagogy (teaching), communications, legal, nutrition, and organization.  They must then prove their knowledge by taking a two hour written exam and two challenging oral tests.

The second part involves 380 hours of education specific to the sport of cycling.  Students must first take a qualifying test to determine if they are eligible for entry into training.  They then receive 60 hours of pre-training followed by an examination.  Once that’s complete, the final training is given in three units, as follows:

• UF1 : Takes approximately 120 hours and involves initiation and perfection of various cycling activities
• UF2 : Part 1 – Improving Practice;  Part 2 – Teaching the practice of cycling (about 100 hours total)
• UF3 : Takes approximately 100 hours and covers the cycling environment and safety topics

Students must then complete about 100 hours of hands-on training, at least 40 hours of which is in a federal structure.

To put it into perspective it typically takes about two years for a guide to complete the required coursework and graduate.  Seems like a lot of work so far, doesn’t it?  But there’s more.  Cycling Guides as riders are also given a three day test which entails the following:

• A discipline (road, MTB, BMX Track and Cyclo-Cross) cycling chosen for a performance and calibrated on a professional cyclist in the discipline
• Randomly selected and calibrated for a performance on a professional cyclist in the discipline
• Orientation in the outdoors with map and compass
• Educational/teaching  test in a situation with a group
• Written teaching test on a subject drawn at random with 4 hours to write an essay
  • Oral test – technical knowledge

Riders must declare their diploma to the National Youth and Sport for the right to work in the industry as a licensed professional.

In addition to technical and formal training, guides must also know a great deal of practical information such as how to disassemble and reassemble a bike, how to problem solve and keep their group safe, nutrition and food to bring on rides, and each must also pass an exam with Firefighter Certificate of Training in First Aid (AFD).

Discover France is very selective when hiring guides – we only want the best for our clients!  Our guides are all highly educated and have attended a university where they received degrees in various fields, from engineering to sports tourism management.  We hire only those who have top level experience in the sport of cycling, have extensive knowledge of nature and heritage, exhibit great interpersonal skills (to make rides fun and exciting) and are multilingual.  Most of all, we look for guides that are passionate about cycling and showing others how amazing it can be.

So what does all of this mean to our clients?  With Discover France, you can be assured that you will receive an exceptional cycling experience with professional, knowledgeable and well-organized guides to show you the time of your life.  Our guides are among the very best in the business and are eager to help you discover France as you never imagined you could and give you an unforgettable experience you’ll treasure for a lifetime.

Paris-Nice Is Up For Grabs

The UCI World Tour continues. The Union Cycliste International (UCI) World Tour brings together the world’s greatest cyclists to compete in the world’s legendary road races. The 18 UCI pro teams selected according to ethical, financial, administration, but above all sporting criteria will participate in the 2011 calendar events spanning over 10 countries. The most notable races include Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia and the Vuelta a España, but others like Paris-Roubaix, Tour de Flandres and Tour Down Under are favorites of many cycling enthusiasts.

Peloton pushing the limits

The UCI started its season with the Tour Down Under in Australia on January 18-23. Racers journeyed over to France this week for the second event, Paris-Nice. This 8 stage tour began March 6 in Houdan and will finish Sunday, March 13 in Nice.  After riding almost 1000 km, Tony Martin (HTC-Highroad) leads the GC with Andreas Kloden (Team RadioShack) and Bradley Wiggins (Sky ProCycling) staying close to his wheel. The next two stages will be difficult with many challenging climbs. The tour win is still in reach for many of the top competitors.

Could this be a sign of what to expect in the Tour de France this July? Although Andy Schleck is not competing in this race, other possible TDF winners, like brother Frank Schleck, are looking strong and performing well as we near the most anticipated cycling event of the year. While you’re waiting for July don’t miss another exciting race in May, the Giro d’Italia.