Super Besse

Last updated
Super Besse
Depart funitel.JPG
The station and the foot of the ski slopes
France relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Super Besse
Location within France
Location Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise
Nearest major city Clermont-Ferrand
Coordinates 45°30′38.52″N2°51′24.30″E / 45.5107000°N 2.8567500°E / 45.5107000; 2.8567500
Top elevation1,800 m (5,900 ft)
Base elevation1,350 m (4,430 ft)
Trails 27
Lift system 23
Lift capacity24,000 people/hour
Website www.sancy.com

Super Besse is a winter sports resort located in Massif Central, France.

Contents

Puy de Sancy from the south Puy sancy sud.png
Puy de Sancy from the south

Geography

Super Besse located in the commune of Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise (Parc naturel régional des volcans d'Auvergne in the department of Puy-de-Dôme, Auvergne). Situated approximately 50 km from Clermont-Ferrand, it is located at an altitude of 1350 m on the slopes of Puy de Sancy, Puy de la Perdrix and Puy Ferrand.

Climate

Climate data for Superbesse, 1287m (1981−2010 normals, 1976−2022 extremes)
MonthJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYear
Record high °C (°F)17.0
(62.6)
19.1
(66.4)
19.3
(66.7)
20.9
(69.6)
25.7
(78.3)
33.7
(92.7)
32.0
(89.6)
30.6
(87.1)
27.0
(80.6)
23.6
(74.5)
20.6
(69.1)
17.4
(63.3)
33.7
(92.7)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)2.8
(37.0)
3.0
(37.4)
5.2
(41.4)
7.6
(45.7)
12.1
(53.8)
15.8
(60.4)
18.7
(65.7)
18.3
(64.9)
14.8
(58.6)
11.3
(52.3)
5.9
(42.6)
3.8
(38.8)
9.9
(49.9)
Daily mean °C (°F)−0.1
(31.8)
−0.1
(31.8)
1.9
(35.4)
4.1
(39.4)
8.3
(46.9)
11.8
(53.2)
14.4
(57.9)
14.1
(57.4)
10.9
(51.6)
7.8
(46.0)
3.0
(37.4)
0.9
(33.6)
6.4
(43.5)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)−3.1
(26.4)
−3.2
(26.2)
−1.4
(29.5)
0.6
(33.1)
4.6
(40.3)
7.8
(46.0)
10.0
(50.0)
10.0
(50.0)
7.1
(44.8)
4.4
(39.9)
0.0
(32.0)
−1.9
(28.6)
2.9
(37.2)
Record low °C (°F)−22.0
(−7.6)
−20.5
(−4.9)
−15.0
(5.0)
−10.5
(13.1)
−7.0
(19.4)
−1.0
(30.2)
2.0
(35.6)
0.5
(32.9)
−2.5
(27.5)
−7.0
(19.4)
−14.0
(6.8)
−16.6
(2.1)
−22.0
(−7.6)
Average precipitation mm (inches)202.7
(7.98)
197.5
(7.78)
178.6
(7.03)
166.7
(6.56)
164.2
(6.46)
152.0
(5.98)
130.6
(5.14)
124.2
(4.89)
159.4
(6.28)
206.4
(8.13)
219.6
(8.65)
221.7
(8.73)
2,123.6
(83.61)
Source: Meteociel [1]

Facilities

Super Besse in the evening Super-Besse ski nocturne.jpg
Super Besse in the evening

The on piste skiing consists of 43 km distributed on 27 tracks (5 green, 9 blue, 9 red and 4 black) between 1300 m and 1840 m altitude, on the south-eastern slope of Puy de Sancy. It contains 21 ski lifts. It also includes 125 km of cross-country skiing.

The resort includes:

Tour de France

Super-Besse hosted the first mountain finish of the 2008 Tour de France. The finish was at an altitude of 1289 m, whereas in previous years the finish was at 1350 m.

Tour de France stage finishes

YearStageStart of stageDistance (km)Category of climbStage winnerYellow jersey
2011 8 Aigurande 1893Flag of Portugal.svg  Rui Costa  (POR)Flag of Norway.svg  Thor Hushovd  (NOR)
2008 6 Aigurande 195.52Flag of Spain.svg  Alejandro Valverde  (ESP)Flag of Luxembourg.svg  Kim Kirchen  (LUX)
1996 13 Le Puy-en-Velay 1773Flag of Denmark.svg  Rolf Sørensen  (DEN)Flag of Denmark.svg  Bjarne Riis  (DEN)
1978 13 Figeac 221.53Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Paul Wellens  (BEL)Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Joseph Bruyère  (BEL)

Alejandro Valverde is listed as the winner for the 2008 stage as original stage winner Riccardo Riccò was removed from the classification after testing positive for the banned performance enhancer CERA.

Details of climb

Starting from Besse-et-Saint-Anastaise (1040 m), the climb to Super Besse (1325 m) is 7.2 km long. Over this distance, the climb is 285 m (an average of 3.95%). The maximum gradient is 8.4%.

From the valley at Lomprat the total climb is 11 km at 4.7%.

  1. "Normales et records pour Superbesse (63)". Meteociel. Retrieved April 17, 2024.

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