velotel
01-23-2012, 12:13 PM
Maybe I should have put the title all in caps because this was one seriously fun adventure. Plus I discovered a true soul mate, at least for riding. A lot of you already know that maxn and I both live near Grenoble and have done a few rides together. He's one of those brainy people, a scientist with a bunch of letters after his name or maybe just 2 letters in front of his name, as a d and an r. Me, I'm just an old ski and bike bum. But for some reason he seems to enjoy riding with me even though he's way younger and stronger. I think I discovered why yesterday; we both like doing crazy things on a bike. Sunday was that. Which you'll see in his video which for sure he'll post.
An afternoon ride; he's a family kind of guy, you know, the complete catastrophe, wife, kids, etc. So the morning he's off in the climbing gym doing vertical exercises with a rope instead of being a proper rider and getting an early start. Then again it was raining. But only lightly.
One o'clock, bikes loaded, we're off for the hills of Tullins. A paradise of narrow, crazy roads. And no traffic. Last ride we did together was down there. This time new territory for him, me too as it turns out.
Up and over some steep hills then up again to a ridge top. And down, steep, narrow, damp, blind curves, no traffic. I know the road so rolling at a good clip anyway, but cautiously. Hit an intersection, go right. A good climb ahead. Turns out to be a really good climb because it's been a few years since I've been there and I turned right one road too soon. Realized that after awhile but figured, what the heck, always wondered where this road went; might as well find out. Max looks at me and asks how the heck do I manage to find all the steepest roads. I would have answered but was too busy breathing. Also forgot to mention this was my first time here. Road got narrower, if possible, starting to look a bit shaky. Pavement ends, not the road. I tell Max I've never been here but I'm sure this will take us somewhere. This is where I discover a soul mate on wheels.
I head off, Max right behind. Turns into a track for mountain bikes. No problem. I've got my magic wand, wave it over the bikes, voila they're transformed into mountain bikes. Max is loving it. We're jamming, kids playing in the mud, splashing through puddles. No idea where this is taking us but I'm sure it'll take us to pavement eventually. It does. To the end of another dead end paved road. And a farm. There's a track climbing up past a barn. Might as well find out where that goes while we're here. Too soon to head back down.
Now we're into some serious mountain biking. Tried the magic wand trick but totally failed at changing the gearing. Stuck with a 34/25 for this stupidly steep and rocky and, just to really keep us honest, wet hill. I charge ahead, goes well, I'm breathing so hard I'm liable to wake the mummies in Egypt. Then I look up and see the finish, a vertical wall laughing at me. Okay, stop, stagger around searching for some air while Max steadily pedals by. Then stops at the wall. Only he's still breathing like a normal guy.
We hoof it up. And wonder where the heck we are. We're now following two tracks up a ridge, going where we haven't a clue. But it looks good. We ride a lot of it. Would have ridden more but it was too wet. No traction. Still rode most of it. Up into the woods and an intersection. We go left towards the sunny side. Not the good direction. Turn around, go the other way. Good riding except the ground is saturated, the mud slick. Pull aside to let a 4x4 grind by. See a hunter and his dog. Ask him if there's a road up ahead. Depends on where we want to go. I say, doesn't matter, any road. Okay, straight ahead there's a road. Then he notices our bikes and laughs. We're off. Downhill, water coursing down the track, wheels slipping sideways, no problem, we press on, riding well. And there it is, pavement straight ahead. We're in like Flynn. (Google it if you're too young to know what that means.)
And now the icing on the cake. Once again we're at the top of the road, a dead end at a farm. We head down and the road is a dream. We're talking perfect pavement, not a crease, not a ripple, smooth as the proverbial. One lane, no traffic, round bends, we're flying. Unreal. It was like that all the way to valley below. A long way. Don't ask, I have no idea why those roads are so beautifully paved. Maybe just for us.
Max is grinning, which for him is practically shouting his joy. That was outrageous. Yea, french road riding. I only know a few others who would have done that ride: my son and his buddies, and Max. Like I said, a soul mate found.
I didn't shoot many pics but here are a few. Including one of Max. You'll notice he's a total californian. I mean I was riding without gloves, without a hat (and no helmet either so don't bother, that's me), only a few layers, and Max is bundled up like we're riding in Alaska. Californians, totally spoiled in the weather department. Good rider anyway, even in the mud and rocks on a road bike. Gotta love that.
An afternoon ride; he's a family kind of guy, you know, the complete catastrophe, wife, kids, etc. So the morning he's off in the climbing gym doing vertical exercises with a rope instead of being a proper rider and getting an early start. Then again it was raining. But only lightly.
One o'clock, bikes loaded, we're off for the hills of Tullins. A paradise of narrow, crazy roads. And no traffic. Last ride we did together was down there. This time new territory for him, me too as it turns out.
Up and over some steep hills then up again to a ridge top. And down, steep, narrow, damp, blind curves, no traffic. I know the road so rolling at a good clip anyway, but cautiously. Hit an intersection, go right. A good climb ahead. Turns out to be a really good climb because it's been a few years since I've been there and I turned right one road too soon. Realized that after awhile but figured, what the heck, always wondered where this road went; might as well find out. Max looks at me and asks how the heck do I manage to find all the steepest roads. I would have answered but was too busy breathing. Also forgot to mention this was my first time here. Road got narrower, if possible, starting to look a bit shaky. Pavement ends, not the road. I tell Max I've never been here but I'm sure this will take us somewhere. This is where I discover a soul mate on wheels.
I head off, Max right behind. Turns into a track for mountain bikes. No problem. I've got my magic wand, wave it over the bikes, voila they're transformed into mountain bikes. Max is loving it. We're jamming, kids playing in the mud, splashing through puddles. No idea where this is taking us but I'm sure it'll take us to pavement eventually. It does. To the end of another dead end paved road. And a farm. There's a track climbing up past a barn. Might as well find out where that goes while we're here. Too soon to head back down.
Now we're into some serious mountain biking. Tried the magic wand trick but totally failed at changing the gearing. Stuck with a 34/25 for this stupidly steep and rocky and, just to really keep us honest, wet hill. I charge ahead, goes well, I'm breathing so hard I'm liable to wake the mummies in Egypt. Then I look up and see the finish, a vertical wall laughing at me. Okay, stop, stagger around searching for some air while Max steadily pedals by. Then stops at the wall. Only he's still breathing like a normal guy.
We hoof it up. And wonder where the heck we are. We're now following two tracks up a ridge, going where we haven't a clue. But it looks good. We ride a lot of it. Would have ridden more but it was too wet. No traction. Still rode most of it. Up into the woods and an intersection. We go left towards the sunny side. Not the good direction. Turn around, go the other way. Good riding except the ground is saturated, the mud slick. Pull aside to let a 4x4 grind by. See a hunter and his dog. Ask him if there's a road up ahead. Depends on where we want to go. I say, doesn't matter, any road. Okay, straight ahead there's a road. Then he notices our bikes and laughs. We're off. Downhill, water coursing down the track, wheels slipping sideways, no problem, we press on, riding well. And there it is, pavement straight ahead. We're in like Flynn. (Google it if you're too young to know what that means.)
And now the icing on the cake. Once again we're at the top of the road, a dead end at a farm. We head down and the road is a dream. We're talking perfect pavement, not a crease, not a ripple, smooth as the proverbial. One lane, no traffic, round bends, we're flying. Unreal. It was like that all the way to valley below. A long way. Don't ask, I have no idea why those roads are so beautifully paved. Maybe just for us.
Max is grinning, which for him is practically shouting his joy. That was outrageous. Yea, french road riding. I only know a few others who would have done that ride: my son and his buddies, and Max. Like I said, a soul mate found.
I didn't shoot many pics but here are a few. Including one of Max. You'll notice he's a total californian. I mean I was riding without gloves, without a hat (and no helmet either so don't bother, that's me), only a few layers, and Max is bundled up like we're riding in Alaska. Californians, totally spoiled in the weather department. Good rider anyway, even in the mud and rocks on a road bike. Gotta love that.