Mallorca's scenic roads, designed for early motorists, are a cyclist's dream

Former pro-cyclist Doug Petty has been bringing cyclists to the Balearic island for more than 50 years to ride the famous hairpin bends on its spectacular mountain roads

Mallorca attracts more than 200,000 roadies a year. Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome are usually credited for popularising winter riding on this Spanish Balearic island, but it's two others who really put the island on the cycling map, one of them quite literally.

1950s pro cyclist Doug Petty has been bringing cyclists to Mallorca every year for 51 years, and he's been able to keep them coming because of the lure of two twisting roads built in the late-1920s by local engineer Antoni Parietti, who built the snaking carreteres to attract motor tourists. Sports car drivers still head to the Coll dels Reis and the Cap de Formentor mountain road, but the majority of those now skimming Parietti's curves are pedal powered.