Each year, L’Etape du Tour de France provides cyclists with the opportunity to get a slice of the Tour de France experience through a mass participation cyclo-sportive held on one of the Tour de France mountain stages. Around 15,000 lucky riders take part each year – and you have to see it to believe it!
This year, for the first time ever, Zwift is hosting the Virtual l’Etape du Tour de France as part of the virtual TdF. (Zwift hosted a single l’Etape du Tour event in 2019, but there was no corresponding virtual pro race.) This year’s Zwift event series will allow participants to test themselves on the same (virtual) roads as the professionals, like the outdoor event, but across three stages instead of just one.
Ride New French Roads
There’s been a lot of chatter in the past few days about Zwift’s new France and Paris maps. Zwifters keep asking the same question: when can I ride the new roads?
Stage 2 of L’Tape du Tour is your first chance, so mark your calendar for July 11-12!
Stage Details
Three stages will be held over the first three weekends of July alongside the virtual TdF. The stages get progressively more difficult each weekend, culminating in the massive Mont Ventoux climb on stage 3.
16 different events will be spread over each weekend, so Zwifters should be able to find a time slot to fit their schedule. Here are the stage details:
Sign up in the Companion app or online at zwift.com/events/series/virtual_letape_du_tour_de_france
Categories
The L’Etape du Tour events have just two categories to choose from:
- A: Women Only
- E: Open (Men and Women)
These categories aren’t based on ability in any way – they simply allow the ladies to ride in a women’s-only event if desired.
Is it a race? Only if you want it to be! Keep in mind you’ll be competing against the full spectrum of riders, not just a typical race category (B, C, etc). Make it your personal challenge just to finish a stage, or race all three – it’s up to you!
ZwiftPower for Racers
If you’re planning on racing, be sure you’re signed up for ZwiftPower beforehand since the general classification results (cumulative time) across stages will only be available on ZwiftPower.
Follow the instructions under “Getting Started” here to get signed up for ZwiftPower.
ZwiftPower L’Etape du Tour 2020 Results Page >
Riding Trek
At the time of this post, the L’Etape du Tour events are set up so all riders are placed on the Trek Madone frame. This is due to partnership/sponsorship deals with ASO, and the good news is the Madone is a very aero frame.
But it leaves us wondering: why not at least give us the Emonda (a better climber) for the final Mont Ventoux stage?
Double Draft
These events are set to run in double draft mode, which hasn’t been used much lately for big Zwift events. If you’re not familiar with double draft, it’s a stronger draft effect more akin to what you would experience in outdoor riding.
This will help packs stay together on the flats, since the faster pack speeds in double draft mode make it harder for strong riders to stay away – at least until the climbs begin!
Kit Unlock
Finish just one Virtual l’Etape du Tour de France stage to unlock the virtual Rapha l’Etape kit, seen here:
To learn more or sign up, visit zwift.com/events/series/virtual_letape_du_tour_de_france
Questions or Comments?
Share below! We’ll do our best to answer questions and comments as more information is released in the coming days.
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