Sportive

Ten sportives to kick-start your summer with a bang

Rides to test your form through to the end of June

Etape Eryri – Sunday June 21

Summer is coming and there are plenty of sportives to test your form
The Etape du Dales takes in some of Yorkshire's toughest climbs (Pic: Simon Wilkinson/SWPix.com)
The Chenies Velo Classique is another chance to tackle the Chilterns (Pic: Steve Cadman/Creative Commons)
The Tour of Cambridgeshire will welcome more than 6,000 riders for the inaugural event (Pic: Tour of Cambridgeshire)
The Wiggle Dragon Ride is a long-standing fixture on the UK sportive calendar (Pic: Human Race)
The brutal cobbled climb of the Corkscrew is the highlight of the Cheshire Cobbled Classic (Pic: Cycle Classics)
Riders tackle the lower slopes of The Tumble at the Tour of Britain (pic: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)
Practice your descending technique in the build-up to the Etape du Tour
The undulating Northumberland countryside hosts the Virgin Money Cyclone Challenge
The NSPCC Tour of Yorkshire offers amateurs the 'ultimate pro-rider experience' (Pic: Tour of England)
Sir Dave Brailsford has given the Etape Eryri his seal of approval, having tackled the route through the Snowdonia National Park (Pic: Gwynfor James)

Etape Eryri – Sunday June 21

The Caernarfon-based Etape Eryri has grown in reputation in recent years, boasting several challenging routes and getting the stamp of approval from Team Sky supremo Sir Dave Brailsford.

Taking in the tough ascents of the Snowdonia National Park, the Bach and Canol routes (47 miles and 76 miles respectively) have their fair share of ascending.

But that is nothing compared to the Mawr (Welsh for big) or the new-for-2015 Etape Xtrem, the latter covering 226 miles of riding and 3,878m of ascending to make it, organisers believe, the toughest one-day sportive in the UK.

A timed hill climb of the Drws-y-Coed, where a King of the Mountain challenge will be hosted, is also included, with the fastest male and female rider winning a prize.

Price: £39.99 (Mawr), £35.99 (Canol), £31.99 (Bach), £95.00 (Xtrem)
Website: Etape Eryri