Road cycling around Madrid

[kgreene10]

My family and I are thinking about spending a year in Madrid. We are at the early stages of considering it but before we go too far, I figured I would consult with the experts (you guys) about the single most important question -- how is the road cycling around Madrid?

Quick web searches seem to imply that there are a lot of mountain bikers in the city, but would it be a good place to get in 10-15 hours a week of training for road racing? Are there areas within the city where you can do 1.5-2 hours of structured training during the week without going far (i.e., an unobstructed circuit in a park or something)? And are there routes for longer rides that quickly get you out of the city on the weekends with minimal traffic once you are clear of the metro area?

Thanks in advance for your advice.

[ultraman6970]

Madrid??? dont ride man... enjoy the city walking, the hot chicks, the wine, the cheese and the TURRON :)

[kgreene10]

Madrid??? dont ride man... enjoy the city walking, the hot chicks, the wine, the cheese and the TURRON :)

All part of the draw. But careful with thy words, heretic!

[vav]

There is a nice bike path connecting Madrid to Colmenar Viejo. Colmenar Viejo is a town 20 miles northwest of Madrid.( Stayed here with my aunt for a month last July )From Colmenar you can find really scenic routes into the Sierra Madrileña. ( Madrid Mountains ) As far as riding in Madrid proper, I wouldn't. But once you are out of the metropolitan area, riding is really nice. It was HOT in July, 100 - 115 F easy during the day. Have fun.

Bike path:

http://img11.imageshack.us/img11/9015/colmenar12.jpg

http://img704.imageshack.us/img704/2946/acolmenar10.jpg

A bit of climbing:

http://img686.imageshack.us/img686/8171/elevprofile1.jpg

[ultraman6970]

What, are you going to deny that walking in madrid is not nice? that city is awesome for sight seen... and are you going to deny that spanish girls are hot aswell? :)

All part of the draw. But careful with thy words, heretic!

[rain dogs]

The road cycling there is pretty good, but not great. Madrid is a massive city with a ton of traffic. However, the city proper has a massive 64km circular bike path that allows you to circumnavigate the city - the Anillo verde:

http://www.anilloverdeciclista.es/

You could definitely get your base miles in doing this route, but nothing super high intensity, because it is a bike path. It takes you to many parts of the city and many parks. It's great. Part of it is used ot get to Colminar Viejo.

From there you can ride out to San Lorenzo del Escorial... its a big deal with the vuelta. The route to bola del mundo isn't far from there.


outside of that head north to castilla y leon for great riding and to Asturias. You can also be in the Pyrenees with a simple overnighter using the train.

The north of Spain has some of the best riding in the world in my opinion.

[kgreene10]

Thanks guys, very helpful. Sounds like midweek training could be a challenge but weekend rides out of the city would work pretty well.

And no, not denying any if the glory of Madrid and its inhabitants, just saying that when you add cycling, it becomes even better.