Most Inspirational Moment
Some of the descents were awesome, but I also enjoyed the challenge of some of the climbs and the sense of achievement
Thoughts on Group Leader
I thought Richie was a very good group leader - he was very professional and took things like health and safety and bike maintenance seriously but at the same time he was good fun and always upbeat and encouraging. He had good local knowledge and was always keen to share tips to help the group improve their cycling. He was very organised so we always knew exactly what was happening each day, what time we had to meet and where etc so the trip ran very smoothly.
Advice for Potential Travellers
It’s a holiday and not the Tour de France, but you definitely do need a good base level of fitness to complete this trip as there are several climbs. Being confident that you can control a bike is also important as there are some fast descents with sharp corners. You don't have to be an expert cyclist to enjoy this trip but for your own enjoyment and that of others on the trip I would definitely advise doing some training for this trip and make sure you are realistically fit enough to cycle 70km per day for 6 days otherwise you might struggle or hold other people in the group back. Overall I would say the trip is most suitable for intermediate level cyclists, ie those who cycle a bit at home but are not too serious about it. I think beginners might struggle (unless they are very fit and confident, in which case they would be ok) and advanced cyclists might find the pace of the group too slow (although they could still enjoy the trip as a relaxing way to explore a new country) Take some warm clothes as its cold in the mountains, especially at night. If you want to read at night, take a torch as most of the hotels you stay in don't have very powerful lights and its hard to read. The hotel in Marrakech is quite noisy so take ear plugs!
Suggestions
The free day (ie day off cycling) should be spent in Essaouira not Marrakech, because it is a much more relaxing place than Marrakech and also there is the beach which people can relax on if the weather is good or go surfing or do other water sports. People will probably have time to explore Marrakech a bit on their arrival or departure day. Exodus should definitely have the free day in Essaouira.