the essential
Moved from April to June last year to fit the calendar of the European Cycling Federation, the Aveyron mountain bike festival is even more attractive with the promise of good weather.
O“We’ve never had so many people registered, maybe the fact that it’s in June has something to do with it.”, asked Pierre Boyer, the president of the club orchestrating the Roc Laissagais, as he took stock of the number of bibs validated on the eve of the first start. Last year, the organization had to postpone the Roc Laissagais by two months to stick to the calendar of the European Cycling Federation. Because after hosting the French championship and the marathon mountain bike world championship, the Palanges were chosen to be the scene of the battle for the star-spangled tunics. And if the event, which is in its 32nd edition, has attracted mountain bike enthusiasts for several decades, this new date is an additional incentive for some. And for good reason: the promise of good weather and higher temperatures than in April. “It’s especially important for hikers, because competitors come in all cases”noted Philippe, a volunteer since the creation of the event in 1992 and working within the team of around a hundred forces this year.
Since this change, the Roc Laissagais has not been too lucky since last year, the weekend was punctuated by rain and these days, the mercury is not helped by the humidity level . But that didn’t cool down the mountain bikers! “During the hike, I remembered the time I did it in the snow”laughed Pierre, a 40-year-old from Stéphane, who was participating in his 17th Roc Laissagais, he who discovered the event thanks to his wife, originally from the village. “June is good, but it shouldn’t be later than this first weekend”he assured, supplemented by his friend Fred: “Because it’s a month when there are a lot of races, especially in the Toulouse region, where we live.”
Even if the sun is not as bright as one might expect on this date, Céline, 45 years old and from Laissagaise, recognizes that the prospect of good weather was an additional motivation to sign up for the gourmet hike. The local, who has more than twenty participations in the Roc, also realized that the more comfortable conditions allowed her to enjoy the ride even more. “In April, with the cold, we didn’t stop at all the supplies, but here, we took the time!”, she smiled at the finish line. Like her, there are 300 hikers who kicked off the weekend, in addition to the 130 budding mountain bikers, 69 gravel riders and 83 enduro riders who reached the end of the competition. And the party continues!
Gravel – 70 km
Women
1. Camille Giraud2h53’43
2. Julie Benoît3h12’59
3. Alexia Pascal3h22’48
Men
1. Max Warderdam2h27’02
2. Benjamin Olivier2h28’46
3. Valentin Rey2h29’04
Enduro
Women
1. Jasmines Merabet-Marmonier24’53”9
2. Fanny Raimond30’46”7
Men
1. Gurvan Poilvert-Pieto20’22”4
2. Guillaume Rivault20’32”3
3. Loan Journet20’39”2
VAE (electrically assisted bicycle)
1. Thibault Soutadé17’58”0
2. Loïs Garric18’39”9
3. Cyril Maurin20’16”9
Roc youth U7 – 1.2 km
Women
1. Léonie Bouet4’49
2. Margaux Reboul5’13
3. Bertille Bossan5’37
Men
1. Victor Sarrazin3’27 2. Hugo Lacan3’52
3. Tim Libourel3’55
Roc youth U9 – 3.6 km
Women
1. Aelys Rozières12’14
2. Léa Ferrando12’41
3. Céline Reylet13’13
Men
1. Hugo Milhau9’48
2. Gabriel Cisternino10’25
3. Charly Albouy11’24
Roc youth U11 – 4.4 km
Women
1. Emilie Cavaroc-Viarouge15’14
2. Romane Magaud15’35
3. Léonie Alinat17’30
Men
1. Ksawery Kwiatkowski12’11 2. Louis Patard12’55
3. Maxime Odemer13’32
Roc youth U13 – 7.6 km
Women
1. Naomi Dieuze24’32
2. Zélie Bouet25’52
3. Chloé Gallardo26’54
Men
1. Loris Cabrit21’32 2. Clément Bouet21’38
3. Milo Trousselier21’39
Roc youth U15 – 10.8 km
Women
1. Alyssa Galtier32’59
2. Chloé Bouzat34’19
3. Anaëlle Ladet38’07
Men
1. Robin Veyrac27’14
2. Franciszek Kiatkowski27’52
3. Léo Olivier29’00
