Rapha Condor Recycling.co.uk

The Rapha Condor Recycling.co.uk squad are to compete in the Tour de Beauce based in Quebec, Canada. Held over seven stages from June 10 to 15.

The team set to compete in the race are; Chris Newton, Kristian house, Dale Appleby, Rob Partridge, Rhys Lloyd, Graham Briggs and Ryan Bonser.

The riders will be supported by John Herety, Sarah Heal and Mike Dawson.

The team will leave on Sunday, May 8 after the Smithfield Nocturne with the race starting on the Tuesday. Manager John Herety said - "Ideally we would of like to have left on the Saturday. But the Smithfield Nocturne is too big an event for the team not to field a full strength squad."

Race website - www.tourdebeauce.com

The stages
The 23rd Edition will be launched June 10 with the revamped Lac-Etchemin / Lac-Etchemin stage, a 167-km warm up covering a major part of the beautiful Etchemin countryside, with just a sideways glance at Bellechasse before returning to the town of Lac-Etchemin.

Wednesday June 11, the Vallée-Jonction stage will emerge from the Chaudière valley to waltz the river basin of the Beaurivage River before returning to finish the stage.

Next, the competitors will have to face the monster climb of Mont Megantic during the 3rd stage on Thursday, June 12, starting in St. Georges and culminating at an observatory perched on top of the highest paved road in Quebec. It’s a good bet that some will see stars at the end of this 153-km escapade.

As in the past, Friday, June 13 will be an important day for the cyclists, starting in the morning with a 20-km individual time trial over the same course to be used later on in the summer for the Tim Horton’s Canadian Championships. In the evening, the whole population is again invited to the Criterium which will be held in the downtown area of St-Georges. Starting at 6:00 pm, the riders will travel 40 laps on the 1.5-km course.

Exceptionally in 2008, riders will compete on the downtown Saint-Georges circuit on Saturday. This circuit is largely redesigned; riders will climb a significant rise 15 times before crossing the finishing line, where three Grand Prix de Montagne will be held during the stage.

The competitors will wind up the 23rd Edition right in the heart of Quebec City’s 400th Anniversary celebrations. The last stage will take place Sunday, June 15, starting at 12:15 pm near the Parc de la Francophonie, on Grande-Allée.

A 13.9-km downtown loop, already identified as worthy of the World Championships, will lead the cyclists 9 times on the descent of “Côte de Sillery” Street and along the Saint Lawrence River on Boulevard Champlain before tackling the “Côte de la Montagne” Street.