Anyone done amateur crit races in France and Spain?

[Birdthom]

Evening,

I'm off round France and Spain for four weeks starting in July. I'll be taking the bike (as well as my wife and kids) and racking up a few miles and mountain passes while I'm out there. I presume that there are 3rd cat crit races out there, but I can't find any online. Has anyone on here done any? How do I find out about them, and what are they like compared to races back here at home?

Thanks.

[mcelliott]

I've done loads of races in France, not so many crits but small circuit road races roughly 6 or 7 kms (circuit length). Races were normally pretty quick, the equivalent of an elite/cat 1 race in the UK I guess - 26/27 mph average. There are definitely races equivalent to a UK 3rd cat. In those days I had a little handbook with all the places and dates but there will be loads of info on the interweb. I haven't done any races in Spain but I have done a crit race in Gibraltar, which was very 'interesting'. If you haven't got access to any of this, the best place (particularly in France) would be to ask in a local bike shop as often they sponsor local races - or the tourist information centre.

[Birdthom]

Thanks. Just found this site, which looks useful:

http://www.cyclisme-amateur.com/course.php

There don't seem to be that many races listed in each region for July/August at the moment, but maybe it'll fill up as the year progresses.

[Rouleur]

If you're registered on WeightWeenies then it would be worth PMing member JamieL as he races a lot in France.