For mad keen mountain bikers, this is an event not to be missed…! Over 4 days, around 3,000 mountain bikers gather on the trails of Les 2 Alpes to ride, breathe and talk bikes. The 'Mondial du VTT' is the highlight of the summer mountain biking; it is the 2nd largest mountain biking event after the Roc d'Azur near Alpe d’Huez and is the 4th largest event in Europe.
Not only does this event give participants the chance to ride the fantastic trails in Les Deux Alpes, there is also an opportunity for riders to test new bikes and participate in the Free Raid Classic and enjoy the festival of entertainments taking place all over the resort. There are areas that are specifically adapted for downhilling, freestyle, cross-country, dirt, four cross, trial and accompanied rides.
Since 2004, Les Deux Alpes has played host to the Mondial VTT – a mega mountain biking event where fans of the sport can live out every one of their mountain biking fantasies within a 12000 m2 exhibition area and on the surrounding trails of the resort.
Every year over 160 bike, clothing and accessory brands are represented at the event, including Giant, Trek, Specialized, Commençal, Kona, Planet X, Sram and Shimano; all proudly flaunting their latest kit and trends for the following year.
Visitors can test the latest models from all the main bike producers present and really put them through their paces on the varied and challenging trails that Les Deux Alpes has to offer. Tests can usually be done either on your own or accompanied by some of the current top riders in the sport, such as; Aurelien Giordanengo (Team Giant), Franck Paroulin and Yann Noce (Team Specialized) and Rémi Charrier and Maxime Rémy (Team Sunn).
The very latest technology
When we went, we headed over to the Giant stand and took out a couple of their shiny new Trance X Zero full suspension babies and hit the trails in the company of two of their team, but not before each bike was set up to our individual specifications by the super helpful guys on the stand. Pedals sorted, suspension pressure checked and we were off on an “easy” trail down to Mont de Lans. Graded the same as ski runs (green, blue, red & black) the trail started off easy enough on a gentle green single track through the forest, before dropping down onto the more technical Rte 9 blue trail to the base of the Mont de Lans chairlift. Stopping at regular intervals to make sure everyone was OK and forewarning us of any tricky sections coming up, we spent a fun hour and a half in hot pursuit of our guide before he dropped us back at the stand and then zipped off to show what he was really made of in the Dirt Jumping Demo. Pretty impressive stuff as it turned out!
For many MTB fans though, the Mondial is all about getting on your bike and pitting your skills against the rest of the field in one of the organised downhill or cross-country open trials. These events change slightly each year but there are usually about five to choose from – one competitive event and four others that are just for fun. In 2008, they were as follows:
The Mavic Free Trial: a technically challenging cross-country competition and a true test of endurance over a 57km course starting on the glacier at 3200m. Riders have to negotiate 3377m of downhill and a thigh busting 1438m of uphill before crossing the finish line in town. With refreshment and mechanical assistance points en route, the winner completed the course in an impressive 2hrs 14mins to walk away with the €4700 prize!
The Biker Croute: 42km of pure downhilling, with nearly 5000m of descent and all the uphill sections taken care of by the resort lift network; this tour gives riders an extensive taster of the local terrain from the glacier (3200m) to Venosc (950m), and then from Pied Moutet (2100m) to Mont de Lans (1300m) before ending back in the resort centre.
Free Raid Classic Rando : taking in 6225m of descent over 54km, this event is every downhiller’s dream, covering trails from one end of resort to the other and, as with the Biker Croute, all the uphill sections are done by lift. One of the most popular events of the Mondial, the organisers usually make sure that as many people as possible can enter this one by running it on two separate days.
Free Raid Découverte : even if you are relatively new to mountain biking, especially downhilling, there is normally a shorter version of the Classic Rando designed to ease novice’s into this thrilling sport. By no means an easy ride, the shorter Decouverte course still has riders hurtling down 2380m of descent over a 24km course.
Free Kids MCF : organised in association with the Moniteurs Cyclistes Francais (MCF or French Cycle Guides) this event is dedicated to young mountain bikers aged between 9-14 years. Following the same route as the Découverte but starting once the adult event is over, means that the young ‘uns can really let rip down the trails in the afternoon
Re-fuel on the Mavic Free Trial
All of the competitions and open trials are open to anyone but you need to register in advance and pay an entry fee. Combined rates are available if you want to take part in more than one event. See here for registration details or check out the main Mondial website.
Having had a small taster of the local terrain on our accompanied ride, we returned to our new friends at Giant the following day and claimed another couple of bikes before heading up the first stage of the Jandri Express to try out some more of Deux Alpes extensive MTB trails for ourselves. Arriving at the top is like stepping out onto the moon as we exited the station at 2600m onto the rocky, barren terrain that lies between the glacier at 3200m and the grassy lower slopes from 2400m down. This section of the area is pretty slippery under wheel and made it all too apparent why most people deck themselves out in body armour and a full face helmet before pointing their bikes downhill. With our exposed knees and elbows we were left standing by the full clad “hardcore” contingent but none the less thoroughly enjoyed our descent down the Grand Nord blue piste (Rte 14), past the beautiful Sautet and Plan lakes before switching onto the Les Crêtes single track (Rte 7). The great thing about not looking super gnarly (I did have a helmet cam “duct taped” to my helmet after all – not cool!!) is that we had no qualms about taking our time on the descent and stopping to take in some of the truly stunning views down to Venosc and St Christophe la Bérarde en route. (If you’re not overly worried about breaking it, tuck your camera somewhere safe – these are views you’ll want to re-live! Just be sure to cast an eye over your shoulder before pulling up for a photo stop, you never know who may be hot on your heels and less than impressed to end up in a heap if you suddenly block the trail right in front of them!) So, with the exception of an unfortunate puncture in the latter stages of the ride, we arrived back safe and sound and definitely converted. Downhill riding is A LOT of fun and the Mondial VTT is the perfect environment to get a taster for it.
Dropping into the bike park
After a hard day spent on the trails, the entertainment of the Mondial is far from over, with stalls, activities and demo areas centred mainly around the Bike Park and a specially built Dirt Jump at the base of the Jandri Express. The fantastic Bike Park boasts around twelve modules including North Shore, Passerelles (drop offs) between 0.5m – 5.5m, an Elipse, Box, Wall ride and a 4 Cross track which makes for impressive viewing when the pro’s hit the circuit. If your jaw isn’t already on the floor at the park riding, the dirt jumping boys will soon send it plummeting with their astounding aerial acrobatics and bike handling skills. Elsewhere in resort, you can also take part in a Short Track on ice (!) at the skating rink and one of the favourite events of the VTT – the water jump, which takes place at the swimming pool. To wind up each day, a selection of short MTB films and videos are usually shown in some of the local bars and restaurants in the evening, ensuring that when you finally did hit the sack, you will definitely be dreaming of bikes!
The Mondial VTT is held each year around the 3rd week in June in Les Deux Alpes, so if you’re a MTB fan, be sure to mark it in your calendar for next time. However, you can mountain bike in Deux Alpes from mid-June until the end of August on over 100km of marked trails ranging between 3200m – 700m in altitude. Not just catering for the downhillers, there is the bike park and freestyle area, as well as a number of cross-country trails if you prefer to earn your descents with a bit of uphill pedalling. There are also 10 lifts accessible to bikers during the summer for which a day pass costs around €19.
You can see more photos from the 2008 Mondial VTT in our Gallery.
last updated 27-Jun-2008
Videos from Les Deux Alpes - Mondial VTT
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This year’s Mondial VTT was blessed with sunshine and clear blue skies. Once again the resort of Les Deux Alpes played host to the international mountain bike festival which had stalls from all the major brands, pro teams demonstrating their skills and races for all ages and abilities. The various downhill trails, cross country routes and dirt parks were also open to the public and the festival atmosphere in the centre of town meant that whether you were riding or relaxing you were guaranteed a good time.
