EVENTS

Winning a jersey on The LONDON-PARIS by Tour de France

Jul 2021

Covering the 500km from London to Paris in three days is a big enough challenge in its own right but, here at Hotchillee, we know that there are some riders who also want the added spice of a bit of good natured competition. For those riders, there’s three jerseys up for grabs on the road route to Paris.

For each jersey there will be a Male, Female and Under 23 categorisation.

For both the Green Sprint and Red Climber jersey, you will need to be in Group 1 but, for the Yellow General Classification (GC), as it’s done on time, in theory a rider from any group could win it.

Team up with 3 of your buddies and enter the Best Team Award which takes into account the accumulative time of the team’s top 3 GC times each day.

As well as the jersey competition there are also Age Category awards for Masters Male /Female and Grand Mater Male / Female.

Here’s how it works with some top tips…

PRE-REGISTRATION OPEN

Entries for both events are limited so pre-register now to ensure you receive priority access 72 hours ahead of general registration opening. Premium members do not need to pre-register. Entries start from £1450. More info here.

Green Sprint Jersey

Just like in the Tour de France, this a points competition with 10, 8, 6, 4 and 2 points up for grabs for the first five riders over the line.

The day’s Sprint Section is denoted by green flags at the start and finish and the Ride Captains will up the pace leading up to it and give you plenty of warning. The Sprint Sections are typically 1km in length so tactics will definitely come into play.

Top tips for taking Green

Race safe
This applies to all three jerseys as, although a bit of competition is fun, the priority is everyone getting to Paris. Listen to instructions from the Hotchillee Ride Captains, look before you sprint, hold your line and don’t let the red mist descend in your quest for Green.
Do your homework
Look at your rider-cards for where the day’s Sprint Section is, be ready for the acceleration and try to move up near the front of the group.
Train your sprint
A kilometre can feel like an awfully long way and, even if a few riders are playing cat and mouse, you’re looking at a hard one minute plus effort and then an all-out 15-20 second final sprint. Add these sorts of efforts into your training - most flat Zwift races end with this sort of finish.
Find a mate
If you’ve got a mate who’s happy to give you a lead-out, this can be your best bet. Ride Captain lead outs can sometimes be bought with beers.

Rush the gap

As you come into the final 200-250m, you don’t want to be right on the wheel of the rider ahead of you. Let a gap go out to a bike length or two, accelerate through that tunnel of slipstream and sling-shot past to glory - just be aware of riders behind you doing the same!

Red Climber Jersey

Although there aren’t any genuine cols on the way to Paris, there are enough lumps and bumps for the mountain goats to have some fun. Scored in the same way as the Sprint Jersey, the day’s climb section is denoted by red flags with an additional blue flag 1km from the summit. The climbs are usually 1.6 - 2km in length.

Rider-card research
Again, do your research into when the climb is each day and what it’s like. Make sure you’re up near the front of the bunch well before the fireworks go off at the blue flag.
Training
It’s typically going to be a 5-6 minute effort, maybe with a finishing sprint. Work on 5-minute Zone 5/VO2 efforts in training.
Climb to your strengths
If you know you’ve got a decent 5-minute w/kg output but lack a finishing kick, go early, long and drop the punchier riders. However, if you have got a finishing jump, cover the moves, follow the wheels and wait.
Know your numbers
Having a good idea of what your 5-minute power output is and riding to this can be the best way of seeing where you stand in the bunch climbing hierarchy without risking a terminal blow-up.
Mix it up
You’ve got three bites at the cherry so, if your tactics don’t work on Day 1, try something different the next day.

Yellow GC Jersey

Calculated on a timed section each day, the GC isn’t about first across the line meaning more subtle tactics can come into play. The timed sections are normally 6-9km, marked with yellow flags and, like the climbing, there’s an additional blue flag with 1km to go.

Knowledge is power
Yep, it’s doing the research on the rider-cards again, knowing where in the stage the timed GC section is and, as it’s a longer one, whether there are any kicks where you could launch an attack.
Threshold efforts
It’ll be a 15-20 minute effort so you’ll be working at or just above threshold. Within the context of riding three days, this sort of effort every day can take a toll. Prepare by including some 20-minute FTP efforts in your long training rides.
Not first across the line
It’s your time that counts, so it can pay to let the initial flurry of attacks go and ride the section at your pace and with the wheels you want to follow.
Tag onto a team
Look out for the top teams who’ll tend to be riding GC sections as a team time trial. Jump onto their trains, take a few pulls to keep them sweet and ride them to yellow.

Forge alliances

Unless you’re unbelievably strong, you’re not going to be able to solo to GC glory and, if you try, will probably just end up towing a grateful string of riders behind you. Work with teams, other riders and agree to let the final kilometre decide.

The jersey competition is for the road route only, there is no racing on the gravel route option. Road entries start from £1550. Click here for full event information.