La Vélidéale: which way and when to ride
The best month for La Vélidéale is September: 76% of days were dry with highs of 10–30 °C. In September the wind barely favours either direction — on average 1.7 km/h along the route (ERA5 2006–2025, daytime 9:00–18:00).
Weather by month
| Month | Good days | Rain days ≥ 1 mm | Rain, mm | Avg high | Days ≥ 30 °C | Days < 10 °C | Daylight, h |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 23% | 25% | 84 | 8 °C | 0% | 64% | 9.0 † |
| February | 40% | 25% | 69 | 10 °C | 0% | 46% | 10.2 † |
| March | 57% | 28% | 76 | 13 °C | 0% | 23% | 11.8 |
| April | 72% | 26% | 66 | 16 °C | 0% | 4% | 13.5 |
| May | 70% | 30% | 79 | 19 °C | 1% | 0% | 15.0 |
| June | 69% | 24% | 71 | 23 °C | 7% | 0% | 15.8 |
| July | 71% | 16% | 45 | 25 °C | 13% | 0% | 15.5 |
| August | 71% | 15% | 46 | 25 °C | 15% | 0% | 14.2 |
| September | 76% | 20% | 56 | 22 °C | 4% | 0% | 12.5 |
| October | 75% | 24% | 86 | 18 °C | 0% | 2% | 10.8 † |
| November | 53% | 29% | 88 | 12 °C | 0% | 25% | 9.3 † |
| December | 30% | 25% | 88 | 9 °C | 0% | 54% | 8.6 † |
Best months are all months within 3 percentage points of the best one. † less than 11 hours of daylight — long stages get tight.
Wind by month
| Month | Wind Royère-de-Vassivière → Saint-Nazaire, km/h | Headwind > 15 km/h, Royère-de-Vassivière → Saint-Nazaire | Headwind > 15 km/h, Saint-Nazaire → Royère-de-Vassivière | Better way |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −1.4 | 11% | 5% | either |
| February | −1.6 | 12% | 6% | either |
| March | −1.5 | 13% | 6% | either |
| April | −1.0 | 8% | 5% | either |
| May | −2.5 | 11% | 4% | Saint-Nazaire → Royère-de-Vassivière |
| June | −2.5 | 7% | 3% | Saint-Nazaire → Royère-de-Vassivière |
| July | −4.2 | 10% | 2% | Saint-Nazaire → Royère-de-Vassivière |
| August | −3.8 | 8% | 2% | Saint-Nazaire → Royère-de-Vassivière |
| September | −1.7 | 8% | 4% | either |
| October | 0.0 | 6% | 5% | either |
| November | −1.0 | 9% | 6% | either |
| December | −0.9 | 11% | 6% | either |
Stages
The route is split into 6 stages of about 100–150 km between towns; each stage has its own page.
| Stage | km | Best month | Tailwind Royère-de-Vassivière → Saint-Nazaire in September, km/h |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Royère-de-Vassivière → Aixe-sur-Vienne | 100 | September | −1.7 |
| 2. Aixe-sur-Vienne → Ruffec | 136 | September | −1.1 |
| 3. Ruffec → Niort | 114 | October | −1.5 |
| 4. Niort → Nueil-les-Aubiers | 104 | September | −0.8 |
| 5. Nueil-les-Aubiers → Nantes | 132 | September | −2.2 |
| 6. Nantes → Saint-Nazaire | 88 | September | −3.1 |
How to read the numbers
Wind is the 10 m wind of a 25-km grid cell, daytime hours 9:00–18:00 local solar time; at saddle height in a sheltered valley it is weaker, on a coast or ridge stronger. A positive value is a tailwind. ERA5 slightly over-counts days with ≥ 1 mm of rain (by about 5–7 percentage points) and underestimates daily highs by 1–2 °C. Good day = less than 1 mm of rain between 9:00 and 18:00 (riding hours, local solar time) and a high between 10 and 30 °C; rain at night or in the evening does not spoil it.