This is a cycle race game for 3 to 6 players. In the box you receive a game board showing an oval track and 24 rather nice plastic cyclist tokens. Before you're first game, you need to put little stickers on the back wheels of each bike to identify them whilst racing, as you control a team of four cyclists numbered 1 to 4. You also get a game pad onto which you record a cyclists movement factors.

At the start of the race, cyclists are allocated points, which each player divides as they see fit over 3 or 4 columns. The race is run over 100 squares, consisting of three stages, with points awarded for each stage a cyclist completes.

Order of play is quite simply Move cyclists, score stages, replace movement points.

It's worth noting here that this is a diceless racing system and uses what I think is an excellent game mechanic. Movement begins with the race leader. The player looks at that cyclists available movement factors, chooses one of the 3 or 4 available and moves the cyclist that number of squares. This is repeated for each cyclist. Used movement factors are checked off on the Movement Log sheet.

As the first 8 cyclist complete a stage, points are awarded to them and the player receives a sprint point card.

Movement factors are now replaced for each cyclist. For this a formula is used where you count the number of cyclists in front of the cyclist, stop counting when an empty space is reached and add 3. It sounds a little cumbersome, but in practice it works fine. These are then written into the empty column on the Movement Log sheet for that cyclist. A special bonus is awarded should a cyclist Break Away from the rest of the pack, pretty much equivalent in a real race to being given the yellow jersey.

When 8 cyclists cross the finish line, the race is over. The team with the most points wins.

SUMMARY:
This is really neat race game. The mechanics of the diceless system make this a real game of strategy and tactics and the theme of the game has been captured brilliantly. If you like race games, then this is a must to add to your collection.

Review by Brian