This self-published game is quite an oddity. Apart from being almost untitled ("Cycling Cards", really?), this game is a work-in-progress that has been released with unfinished rules. More than two years and two expansions later, the rules are still unfinished, and they look like that's the way they are going to remain. As stated on the box lid, "It's impossible to explain all the card mechanics. We have our own way of playing. Share yours with the community." For a brief moment, I have even been tempted to include it in the "games for which I do not have the rules" section.

The first version/part of the game was released in 2023, and it included one double-sided card with some quite cryptic explanations (see below). Of course, there was a QR code leading to a page with links to a few video tutorials (either too long or too short) and a 40-page PDF document with the unfinished (and some optional) rules. All in all, it makes a difficult game to understand, though with some dedication you might get somewhere.

This first release (on the left of the top picture) included 162 cards: 109 cyclist cards, 26 scenarios, 26 events, and the aforementioned instructions card.

The second release, one year later, was an expansion of 162 additional cards: 72 cyclists, 40 scenarios (so far so good), 4 wild cards, and 20 team cards for which no rules were provided whatsoever.

The third release (from 2025) is a 56-card deck which is supposed to be either an expansion or a stand-alone game, with 48 male and 4 female cyclists, plus 4 special cards. No rules provided, except the indication that you can either add the cards to the original game or create your own games with these cards. If that was the only deck I had, I would have included it in the card games section of this site, where we find cycling-themed card games which do not represent a cycling race. However, all things considered, there is more to it than that.

 

Lots of cards! From left to right: deck 1 (2023), deck 2 (2024), and deck 3 (2025)

In total, we have some 380 cards, of which 233 are cyclists (both modern and vintage), 66 are scenarios (which allow for many different races), 26 are events, and the remaining 28, well, you will have to figure out yourselves what you can use them for. It is important to note that the 26 event cards are two identical sets of 13 cards and that these cannot be expanded without a major change in the core game mechanics.

For, let me make it clear, the game does have rules and game mechanics. The problem is that part of the rules are not so well-explained, and another part are optional, so in the end you need to make decisions. In my case, I wonder if I should make my own rules when I do not understand the ones provided or if I should contact the game makers. While I know that the former is probably the right thing to do, I may end up doing the latter, since I love talking to game makers.

 

Sample of cards from deck 1: extra rider, standard rider, scenario, and event

 

Among the cyclist cards of the first deck, there are 5 special cards with extra features that I am not really sure if they should be included in the game, so maybe the count is more like 229 cyclists and 33 unexplained cards, but that is up to you. You may find a use for these cards, or at least that's the idea.

Wout Van Aert even has two cards, one standard and one special, with different abilities, by the way. You can play with two different Van Aerts in the race, but the categories on the lower part of the special card ("Achilles Relay", "Hades Solitude, "Theseus Impulsiveness"...) do not match those on the scenarios' cards.

 

Rules card (front and back)

 

The rules card is cryptic, as said above, and even after reading the PDF booklet and checking the examples given on it, there are some things that are not clear to me. Part of the problem is that the colour gradation is too subtle. The explosion-like icon for hills ("colina") is quite debatable too.

Some cyclist cards from the second deck follow the design of the first deck, but some don't, even skipping the coloured border which should indicate the type of card. Never mind, these newly designed cards are among the best features of this game and, by themselves, are a good reason to get this game.

While the (male) rider cards of the third deck are quite dull when compared to those of the second deck, the four female cards are not. Again, it is your choice if you include them in the game, as it is your choice to decide with which rules you play.