the cycling

cycling almeria-style ....

for your tour / training camp you will be based at a delightful husband and wife run hotel in one of the aldeas (small villages) that surround the market town of sorbas. from here we are ideally placed to explore the amazing diverse geography that mkaes cycling almeria-style so exhillarating ...

great situation - sorbas is flanked by mountain ranges to the north and south - to the north is the imposing sierra de los filabres with many passes at well over 1000m. south of the town is the sierra alhamilla, which although not as high does peak out at 1387m at pico colativi rarad station. both ranges are criss-crossed with small rural roads, and as is the case in most of spain the road surfaces are excellent and many newly re-laid, each time i go back another road has been freshly tarmac'd. cross the alhamilla and the coast and the magnificent cabo de gato natural park are within easy reach ...

great roads - most of the roads we ride on are minor roads - in fact almeria doesn't have that many main roads. the campo de tabernas is served by the old main road from almeria to murcia. within a few km of leaving sorbas you will have the roads pretty much to yourself - we often see the audi / vw / mercedes tester drivers in convoy taking advantage of the brilliant roads and low traffic - they are a sight to behold! the sierras offer brilliant long steady climbs rather than hellish steep ramps, the climb to calar alto for example is 24km long at an average of 5% ....

great rides - during a week long camp there will be a variety of rides - varying from a ride down to the coast and back to the big 'queen' stage day up to velefique or calar alto (both of these have hosted vuelta a espana stage finishes in recent years). whilst out in the saddle there will be plenty of chances to sample the local culture, cuisine and refreshment on route and often a post ride de-brief with senor cruzcampo back in sorbas. your rides can be tailored to your requirements whether it be 50km a day or 150km a day, really hilly or flat, sierras or coast, it is really up to you. one thing is sure your experience in almeria will be a truly memorable one

almeria is fast becoming a mecca for protour teams for early season camps - rabobank, lotto-belisol and geox have used the are in the last 12 months,