The Tennis First Sportive
Florence to Rome, May 6-9 2016
Fact Sheet
For several years Tennis First has organised a cycle ride from London to Paris - and still does with the enticement of a visit to the French Open tennis at the end of it. We have a bunch of
cycling supporters who are enthusiastic about another route with a tennis ending. So here's the
new challenge - Florence to Rome, with a visit to the Italian Open tennis at the end of it.
Dates
May 5th -9th 2016
You'll need to get yourself to our overnight accommodation in Florence on the evening of May
5th, ready for a bright and breezy start on Friday 6th. At the end of the ride we shall have tickets
for you to visit the Italian Open tennis on Monday May 9th, should you wish to take advantage of
them, but you'll be free to make your homeward journey any time after checkout from our
Rome hotel on May 9th.
We expect that some of you will want to extend your time in Italy, either before or after the
ride, (and maybe have friends and relatives join you). Clearly the earlier flights are booked, the
better from a cost viewpoint.
Hotels & Meals
We shall stay in Italian 4 star hotel accommodation (equivalent to UK 3 star). From the
suggestions that have been made and in the absence of the chain budget hotels like HI Express
and Ibis, the accommodation will be a step up from the London-Paris standard we have used
thus far. All meals from May 6th breakfast to May 19th breakfast will be provided: breakfast and
dinners will be taken at the hotels; lunch will be provided en route by our support staff at a
suitable stopping-off point.
Itinerary
Our route will take us as much as possible on little used minor roads and we shall average 120
kilometres per day (80 miles per day). You will be supplied with a list of towns and villages
through which we shall pass, but the main navigational aid will be a GPS device. (If you get lost
and all else fails, you can call the cavalry aka the support team!)
Support
Throughout the ride you will have the guidance of our support team, which will comprise:
A support van - which will deal with getting your bikes to Italy and back from a single location
near London (it will be your responsibility to deliver and collect from this location); taking your
luggage from place to place; carrying spares for the bikes; providing route support including
dealing with 'mechanicals'; carrying food and drinks to sustain riders en route. There will also be
one further vehicle.
3 personnel who will: help with check-ins and hotel arrangements, including luggage delivery;
provide food and drinks 3 times per day (drinks stops mid morning and afternoon, and lunch);
help deal with any mechanical issues; help with routes; and any other assistance.
The route and hotel accommodation will have been the responsibility of our partner in Italy,
Giro di Toscana, who will also be available to assist during the ride.
Costs
The cost of the ride is £1500 per rider. This cost includes:
Hotels
(sharing twin room) May 5th-8th inclusive.
All Meals
Breakfast, lunch and dinner from breakfast May 6th to Breakfast May 9th
Transporting bikes from near London location (to be decided) to Florence: and
from Rome to the same near London location. Riders are responsible for the cost
of getting their bikes to and from the near London location.
Rider Support: Vehicle support & 3 personnel (minimum) throughout. Head office support.
Tickets:
to the Italian Open tennis on Monday May 9th
Donation
A contribution to Tennis First
NB For the avoidance of doubt, the following costs are excluded:
*
Travel to Florence and from Rome
*
Dinner on May 5th and any meals after breakfast May 9th
*
Travel insurance
*
Discretionary drinks (like Chianti with dinner!)
Payments
We require a £250 non-refundable deposit as a registration fee to secure your place on the
Sportive. Spaces on the Sportive are limited by the availability of hotel rooms en route, and we
shall be under pressure to commit places early, so we recommend that registration is effected
as soon as possible.
A further £500 must be received by Tennis First by December 31st 2015 and the remaining £750
will be due by March 31st.
Those of you who have toured with Tennis First before will know that it is possible to fundraise
through Just Giving (with Tennis First as your preferred beneficiary). If you choose this method
then the first two payments must be made personally, and you must personally guarantee that
the remaining fundraising target of £750 will be reached by March 31st 2016.