Vuelta al Teide will take place on May 6 this year and will pass along the most spectacular landscapes of Tenerife such as the coastline towards Buenavista del Norte, Masca, Santiago del Teide, National Park El Teide… 30 km above 2000 meters of altitude right through the National Park El Teide. During the 5 previous editions of the Vuelta al Teide, this gran fondo has become the ultimate cyclo event in Tenerife. For the fanatics among us: since the second edition, it has also been included in the UCI calendar. Do you want to taste the challenging training routes of professionals such as Remco Evenpoel, Wout van Aert and Tadej Pogacar? Then this gran fondo is definitely something for you!

If you are not yet fully trained for these long distances, don't worry! There is a choice between 2 routes:

• The medio fondo of 95 kilometer (2000 altitude).  
  Start: Santiago del Teide / Finish: Puerto de la Cruz.
• The gran fondo of 175 kilometer (4400 altitude).
  Start & finish: Puerto de la Cruz

The organization provides transport to the start in Santiago del Teide.

Attention, places are limited!

During the event, there are sufficient supply zones with sports nutrition and drinks. Eating and drinking is a particularly important aspect, especially in this warm climate. In addition, more than 300 people, including emergency services, police, signalmen, ... are ready to ensure that everything runs smoothly. There are 60 support motorcyclists and five ambulances to carry out rapid interventions when necessary.

Unfortunately, your friends can't be there? Then they can simply rewatch the event as it will be filmed live and broadcasted via live stream on YouTube. There is also the possibility to follow riders on the road via tracking and number from home.

Vuelta Al Teide

Frederic D'hondt's race story during the Vuelta al Teide:

“On May 8, 2021, my very first race ever took place, namely the Vuelta al Teide. Having 165 kilometers with about 4400 altimeters is a huge challenge! I go to Tenerife twice a year and know the roads relatively well as well as the difficulty of the climbs. But nevertheless, the stress and nerves struck because… I had never ridden a gran fondo.

Puerto de la Cruz

We started the hellish journey at 07:00 local time. I left way too far in the crowd but was able to slowly but surely make my way forward. After 10 minutes I was at the front of the peloton. But 1 hour later I was having a hard time as I felt I couldn't keep this pace for the whole race. Between Los Realejos and Icod I let the first 20 riders go and then decided to ride at my own pace. Through the hairpin bends from El Tanque to Las Cruces with a view of Garachico and the ocean, a second group emerged. After the descent came a flat stretch of 10km on the coast towards Buenavista del Norte. Our group turned around well, but from Buenavista, we had to climb Monte Del Agua, and then Masca, one of the most beautiful areas in the world. Soon our group broke up and I was able to escape with two other riders.

Masca

After Monte Del Agua we came to Masca, almost standing still, we climbed Masca, a 4 km climb at 11% average gradient. I just kept riding at my own pace, because I couldn't force it with the Teide climb in sight. We finally reached the top of Masca and then started the descent to Santiago del Teide.

The famous climb to the National Park De Teide started in Santiago Del Teide. During the climb, a few riders who had been released caught up, but I stayed in 13-15th position for the entire gran fondo. Finally, I got another cramp as soon as we reached the cape of 2000 altimeters. Ah, too little to drink and eat. I had no choice but to slow down and let two other riders go. Once I was through the National Park De Teide, the descent towards the finish in Puerto de la Cruz started, what a feeling. BEAUTIFUL!

Finally, after 6 hours and 12 minutes, I finished in 13th place at an average speed of 26.6 km/h. An experience and satisfaction that cannot be described.”