Cyclosportive du Valais: Course, Elevation & Route Profile

Course & Elevation

The course starts in Sion at a good 500 metres and forms a loop that climbs out of the Rhône valley and drops back into it twice. The first climb begins almost immediately after the start: 1.7 kilometres averaging 7.7 percent with ramps to 14.6 percent, gaining a good 130 metres in a matter of minutes.

After a long descent back to the valley floor, the second sustained climb arrives at kilometre 11.4, running 2.2 kilometres at close to seven percent. Straight after it, at kilometre 17.4, comes the steepest section of the loop: 730 metres averaging ten percent and touching 17.4 percent.

The remainder is valley floor with two short rises near the end. A good 43 percent of the loop is flat, but around six percent each sits in the steep climbing and steep descending bands, which is a lot for a course this short. Just under 500 metres of climbing across 39 kilometres, waymarked in blue.

Pacing Strategy

The start is the most critical point on the whole course. A 1.7 kilometre climb at nearly eight percent after 800 metres catches you with cold legs in a field that is still tightly packed. Ride it well below what feels possible in that moment, or you will pay for it on the two climbs that follow.

The loop is decided by the pairing at kilometres 11.4 and 17.4. The first is long and even and can be ridden in a stable rhythm; the second is short and steep and forces a deliberate choice: go briefly over threshold and accept several minutes of recovery, or stay under it and lose time but not substance.

The second trap is in the descents. Close to a tenth of the route drops steeply, some of it through tight hairpins. Brake late and correct the corner with an acceleration and you burn exactly the reserves the closing flat kilometres will ask for.

Training plan for Cyclosportive du Valais: 12-week build

Expect roughly 1:30 to 2:15 for the Rando depending on your level. Despite the short distance the demand is markedly variable: three clearly separated climbs each asking for several minutes at or above threshold, with longer descents and valley sections between them.

The race turns on the combination of the opening climb on cold legs and the steep ramp at kilometre 17.4. Both require you to go well over your sustainable output briefly and still find a rhythm afterwards.

Build training around hill intervals of five to twelve minutes on a gradient of seven to eight percent. Add short, very steep blocks of one to two minutes above ten percent, because Valais ramps of that kind recruit differently from an even alpine pass.

Include descending skills: ride hairpin descents regularly, ideally on roads you know, so line choice costs nothing on race day. And do at least two or three sessions where you go into a hard climbing effort straight after the warm-up, to rehearse the start.