velotel
07-31-2012, 02:19 AM
I cheated. Big time. I rode Col de Pre earlier in the month. Saw this terrific looking restaurant with a grand view and knew my wife and her mother would love it. Especially the mother. She’s 80-something and kind of into the counting down the years mode. Loves the mountains. Turns into a kid when she’s up there. Suggested lunch at the restaurant with me getting in some riding. Big cheer on that so that was the program.
Late departure, no way I’d get to ride to the restaurant via the road to Roselend. Oh well, change plans. Drive the road to Col de Pre instead, the one I road two weeks before. My wife was glad it was me behind the wheel. From the saddle of a bike the road is narrow; from a car it’s a tightrope across the hillsides. One car wide, max. Arrived on the col and once again Mt Blanc covered by clouds. Great views anyway. The restaurant was packed! Easy to see why. Got a table, ate. Definitely not a meal for cyclists! Way too heavy. Fun anyway with a good bottle of wine.
Now it was my turn. On the bike, rolling fast down to the lake, across the damn, up to the Col de Meraillet and the juncture with the road to Roselend, turn right. Cormet de Roselend 7+ K away. Didn’t ride it the day I did Col de Pre, too tired to do it in good style. That’s the advantage of living here, always another day. Headed up, nice ride, good views. Lots of flowers, even rhododendron which I had thought had already come and gone. Not at all. Saw hillsides in the distance covered with them. Got to the col feeling fine. This cheating business could get addictive.
Shot some pics, enjoyed the view, started to get ready for the downhill. Looked up and saw a guy ready to roll off on a long board, another with some sort of huge long board with four wheels. Looked like it was set up to lie down on. Jumped on my bike, wanted to see how fast they were. The guy standing on the long board was fast and elegant. Followed him a bit to watch then flew by after the guy lying on his back. He was fast, big time. I was tucked down tight, maxed out, and only slowly gaining on him. I don’t ride with any measuring devices so don’t know how fast we were going but it felt fast and I was closing on him in slow motion. Then he stopped and I flew by. He probably stopped because the pavement had changed, much rougher, maybe not so good for those tiny wheels.
Long straight section then dove into some back and forth sweepers and into a round switchback to the right. Great view, stopped to shoot. Off again, couple more switchbacks then flying down a long not far off straight. Nice speed. Came burning into a hard turn to the left and jumped on the brakes. Whoa, I hadn’t expected this! The road was perched on a huge drop into a deep valley, almost a gorge. Shot some pics, headed down. Fun riding, series of sharp switchbacks through a thick forest, road too tight for much speed. Also narrow and turns blind so a bit of tip-toeing now and then with cars coming up. And motorcycles. Lots of those on the road. Hit the valley floor, road straightened out, from there to Bourg St Maurice mostly just a long tuck. Wind was on my back and with a bigger gear I probably would have been spinning, pushing for more speed but my 50/12 was maxed out most of the time. Arrived in town, stopped, waited for my wife, bike in the Tourneo, drive home. A fine day, a fine col. I need to do the climb from Bourg St Maurice some day, could be a fun one.
Some pics
Late departure, no way I’d get to ride to the restaurant via the road to Roselend. Oh well, change plans. Drive the road to Col de Pre instead, the one I road two weeks before. My wife was glad it was me behind the wheel. From the saddle of a bike the road is narrow; from a car it’s a tightrope across the hillsides. One car wide, max. Arrived on the col and once again Mt Blanc covered by clouds. Great views anyway. The restaurant was packed! Easy to see why. Got a table, ate. Definitely not a meal for cyclists! Way too heavy. Fun anyway with a good bottle of wine.
Now it was my turn. On the bike, rolling fast down to the lake, across the damn, up to the Col de Meraillet and the juncture with the road to Roselend, turn right. Cormet de Roselend 7+ K away. Didn’t ride it the day I did Col de Pre, too tired to do it in good style. That’s the advantage of living here, always another day. Headed up, nice ride, good views. Lots of flowers, even rhododendron which I had thought had already come and gone. Not at all. Saw hillsides in the distance covered with them. Got to the col feeling fine. This cheating business could get addictive.
Shot some pics, enjoyed the view, started to get ready for the downhill. Looked up and saw a guy ready to roll off on a long board, another with some sort of huge long board with four wheels. Looked like it was set up to lie down on. Jumped on my bike, wanted to see how fast they were. The guy standing on the long board was fast and elegant. Followed him a bit to watch then flew by after the guy lying on his back. He was fast, big time. I was tucked down tight, maxed out, and only slowly gaining on him. I don’t ride with any measuring devices so don’t know how fast we were going but it felt fast and I was closing on him in slow motion. Then he stopped and I flew by. He probably stopped because the pavement had changed, much rougher, maybe not so good for those tiny wheels.
Long straight section then dove into some back and forth sweepers and into a round switchback to the right. Great view, stopped to shoot. Off again, couple more switchbacks then flying down a long not far off straight. Nice speed. Came burning into a hard turn to the left and jumped on the brakes. Whoa, I hadn’t expected this! The road was perched on a huge drop into a deep valley, almost a gorge. Shot some pics, headed down. Fun riding, series of sharp switchbacks through a thick forest, road too tight for much speed. Also narrow and turns blind so a bit of tip-toeing now and then with cars coming up. And motorcycles. Lots of those on the road. Hit the valley floor, road straightened out, from there to Bourg St Maurice mostly just a long tuck. Wind was on my back and with a bigger gear I probably would have been spinning, pushing for more speed but my 50/12 was maxed out most of the time. Arrived in town, stopped, waited for my wife, bike in the Tourneo, drive home. A fine day, a fine col. I need to do the climb from Bourg St Maurice some day, could be a fun one.
Some pics