Author: JIM COTTON

Jim is a serial gran fondo racer, Haute Route ambassador and writer. Having dabbled briefly with UK racing, he retreated promptly for the sanctuary of the high cols - his favoured terrain - and heads to the mountains whenever possible for training and racing. He writes his own blog, and can be followed on both twitter and instagram.

Reports

Why La Marmotte is Europe’s toughest granfondo
JIM COTTON 13 July, 201822 October, 2025

La Marmotte. With a 173km parcours sending you over four mountain passes to rack up over 5000m of climbing, it’s not…

Read More Why La Marmotte is Europe’s toughest granfondo
Reports

The Maratona dles Dolomites: No guts, no glory
JIM COTTON 11 July, 201711 February, 2026

Early every July, thousands of cyclists descend on the spectacular Dolomites region of northern Italy to tackle one of Europe’s toughest…

Read More The Maratona dles Dolomites: No guts, no glory
Reports

L’Ariégeoise XXL: this ‘secret’ sportive deserves to be a classic
JIM COTTON 17 October, 20166 March, 2026

Last December I had another of those moments where I lost all rational thought, like I had a few weeks earlier…

Read More L’Ariégeoise XXL: this ‘secret’ sportive deserves to be a classic