Whoever you are and whatever your motivation, the mHealth Grand Tour will be a great experience and great fun!

Almost anyone can take part. We think the route is achievable for anyone who has done some training in advance. For casual riders today, the Tour is achievable with training prior to the event.

For elite riders, the Tour could provide a great block of base training. We expect people with a range of experience and abilities to join the ride. Some riders will have diabetes and others not.

Whoever you are, our team will support you on the ride so you get the most out of it possible.

You will be able to experience quiet country roads and breath-taking scenery. From wooded hills in the Ardennes to open countryside in northern France, limestone gorges in the south and the mountains of the Alps and Pyrenees.

The variety and diversity of the landscape makes each day a great riding experience in its own right.

You will get to see some great modern and ancient European architecture. From the neo-classical facades of Baden Baden to the (yet to be competed) La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, from capital cities to tiny hamlets, from the natural limestone of pont de l'ardèche to the astounding motorway bridge - pont de Millau.

It's not all about the bike! The camaraderie and friendships that will be built along the way will last for a lifetime.

"It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle." - Ernest Hemingway

We think almost anyone can do the Tour, people with diabetes and people without. For everyone participating, the ride will, however, require training and preparation.

Just like preparing to run a marathon, it takes a little while to train to the distance and then a little time to train to do "back to back" days of riding. But, with training and with the support of our team and the other riders, the Tour is achievable and will be a fantastic and enjoyable experience.

"After your first day of cycling, one dream is inevitable. A memory of motion lingers in the muscles of your legs, and round and round they seem to go."
~ H.G. Wells - The Wheels of Chance

Can I participate if I have diabetes?

We believe there is no reason people with diabetes can't participate.

Diabetes should not prevent you from riding the Grand Tour, it should motivate you to take part.

With the Grand Tour, you have a chance to prove that people who live with diabetes can take up challenges and achieve anything they want in life.

The Tour will require training and preparation, but this is true for anyone taking part. All people with diabetes live this condition 24x7 and manage their condition on a day-to-day basis. The demands of a long distance ride may be unique, but the discipline of managing diabetes will be much the same as usual.

Dr Stuart Bootle, a medical doctor and with Type 1 diabetes, is hoping to do the ride. Stuart has outlined his thoughts on considerations for people with diabetes undertaking the ride:
(read Stuarts' perspectives here)

If in doubt, please speak to your doctor and seek their guidance. As with all significant physical challenges, whether you have diabetes or not, you should take medical advice so your own personal circumstances can be assessed and specific advice given.

The most important thing for us is your health and safety. Our team has supported people with diabetes on long distance rides. We will also be supported by a doctor and nurses with experience of managing diabetes. Of course, we hope they won't be needed!

For information on taking part if you have diabetes (click here).

Do I have to have diabetes to participate?

You don't have to have diabetes to participate. Anyone can take part. Active living is a major part of preventing diabetes. The Tour is designed to highlight how mobile technologies can help to motivate people to maintain an active lifestyle and ward off diabetes, as well as provide solutions to help manage the condition.