A few words about Pat & Grace
by Wade Wallace, founder of CyclingTips.com
I’ve known Pat and Grace for over 10 years now and they’ve been incredibly generous friends who have taken an active interest in my endeavours. They have gone out of their way to help and support me however they can, and I’ve seen them take this same attitude towards nearly everyone they encounter.
I’ve attended four tours hosted and run by Pat and Grace and they make up the core of a fun, friendly and helpful team. I’ve seen the work that it takes to make a tour run well without any hiccups and they make it look effortless. I’m not sure there’s a stressed bone in Pat’s body!
Immediately after meeting Pat and Grace you’ll feel like they’ve been lifelong friends. They’re natural leaders and are able to deal with hiccups and mishaps professionally and make everyone feel at ease, which shows their true character. The groundwork they do before their tours is essential to making them run smoothly, but it’s the way they deal with ambiguity and mishaps that make everything work.
Pat and Grace make a great team and each brings different skill sets. They both know how to work with people effortlessly and make everyone feel included. Pat brings the technical knowledge and experience such as skills coaching, mechanics, navigation, knowledge of the sport, and bad jokes. Grace brings the personal touches, knowledge of local areas, and creates an environment where the entire tour feels like they’re best friends by the end.
The foundation of hosting a good tour is having good guides, and it is a reflection on Pat and Grace that they’re able to attract such fantastic guides. Not only in their competence, but in their nature and working with the group environment to help everyone feel at home. They’re a great judge of character and organisational skills are hard to beat.
Pat and Grace have a unique ability to interact with the group just enough to keep things moving along, make everyone feel welcome, and at the same time step away and let the group dynamic take its own direction. They’re natural leaders that gently push things in the right direction without being overbearing.
The laid back, inclusive environment they create with ease. Everything goes on schedule without a problem. And if it doesn’t, you wouldn’t even know. When asked “What tour would you love to do next with Pat & Grace?” my answer is, “Something in Italy!”
Ride International Tours was born out of love
How it all came to be…
It’s true, we wear our hearts on our sleeves, We are a passionate family business that prides itself on hosting exceptional cycling vacations.
Whether it’s your first time travelling or cycling abroad, or you’re an experienced rouleur, our team at Ride International Tours takes care of all the details on and off the bike to create wonderful travel experiences.
Ride International Tours was born out of a love of hosting cycling tours to the famous European Grand Tours; Le Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, Vuelta a España and the Tour Down Under in Australia.
We draw on all of our experience, local knowledge and passion to create the best possible cycling adventures and experiences for you. We are industry leaders, and raise the bar so you can experience an authentic cultural immersion, visit beautiful regions on and off the bike on your cycling holiday.
You can book with confidence knowing we have physically recce’d everything on your tour, we don’t take chances or outsource your holiday to third-party providers or under-whelming staff. We’ll host, guide you on and off the bike, provide the support you need, we personally select – train our staff to the highest standard in the industry, we cycle with you and provide the mechanical support for the duration of your cycling tour.
We love cycling and believe cycling is the best sport in the world. We love everything about the races, the pro cyclists, the countries – towns we visit, what each events bring to the locals and to everyone who travels thousands of miles to be there. There is an energy and excitement that cannot be described – only felt.
We’ve been hosting cycling tours since 2007 and look forward to continuing to share our knowledge, experience and passion with you for many years to come.
#ComeRideWithUs
Ciao Pat and Grace Fitzpatrick
Our drive is to bring you the best possible cycling tour and cultural experience, wow you in the most entertaining and professional manner. As the French would say, we are Première Classe.
