La Spider

La Spider is the long-distance weekend of the Spider Bike Crew, a cycling association that puts people, passion, creativity and freedom at its centre and sums itself up in one line: the bike is life. Based in Maisdon-sur-Sèvre, the crew has been running unassisted gravel brevets since at least 2023, including a ride through the night pitched as an introduction to long distance, and La Spider is where it takes that idea furthest.

The base is the Domaine des Trottières, a family wine estate in the Layon valley in Anjou, whose stony, gravelly slopes suit its rosé wines. From there the routes weave through vineyard paths, white roads, farm tracks, singletrack and small country lanes, and each one has its own temperament: one playful and properly off-road in the crew's signature style, one more rolling but with plenty of bite, and a road version made for taking in the scenery.

There is no race, no ranking and no clock. Riders follow GPS tracks and checkpoints with no outside help, much of the riding happens through the night, and bivouacking at the domaine is part of the weekend. The organisers frame it around personal commitment and the journey itself, in a festive and friendly setting.