One of the joys on our Dordogne tour is a little hotel in the middle of nowhere, in Calès, Le Petit Relais. It’s owned by Karine and Olivier. The village has a population of just 166, according to the National…
I’m always delighted to receive photos from Chain Gang tours – especially if I woz there. Last year I was lucky enough to accompany a Dordogne bike tour with, among others, Rob Thomas, who sent me an album of photos.…
About 2024. This year, 2023, was the first time since Brexit, and since the Covid-19 pandemic, that The Chain Gang ran a full season of tours. And even that isn’t really true – we still need to wake-up our Italian…
Fun and Games in the Dordogne Back in 2019, I was introduced to the wonderful ‘sport’ (sic) of sabering by the Mercer Island chapter of The Chain Gang, particularly Bruce and Kim York, and their daughter Casey, my sabering gurus.…
Josephine Baker During the first three days of our Dordogne tour, it’s hard to miss that Josephine Baker used to live here. She was in the headlines again last November, 46 years after her death, when it was announced that…
Something that gives me just the tiniest frisson – connections between tours. I’ll give you an example, from our Dordogne and Loire Valley tours. One of the striking features about the Dordogne is the way that the history between England…
What’s The Most Fun You Can Have On A Bike Tour? The origins of The Chain Gang lie in a trip to Brittany back in 1992, with 3 friends. None of us had ever been on a bike tour before,…
It’s the the end of March, 2 months before our new season. 1. New Jerseys I’ve spent this afternoon trying to finalise the design of our 2016 Chain Gang cycling jersey. It’s always a special feeling when I’m with Chain…
Learning about cheese. From the very beginning! When I first dreamed up The Chain Gang I drove around France for a few weeks trying to decide which region was the most interesting. I visited La Rochelle, then drove 40 Km…
How old does a cycle tour company have to be before you can start putting ‘Established in …’ on your logo? No idea, but this year The Chain Gang turns 20. Presumably next year someone turns up with a key…
