Bicycle Diaries Part 1

Wednesday July 5, Le Cluster Headquarters, Briancon, France

Dear Diary,

My first day in France and we’re up for a ride. with L’Etape on Monday. We need to start our training and I am told

of a nice little ride just up the road to Nevache, almost flat and very friendly. OK we’re off…

Briancon to Nevache is up a lovely valley but it’s probably up a 3 to 4% incline, and in my jet-lagged state sitting on

their wheels at 30 km/h plus I’m thinking I have been set me up. We finally stop but only because we’ve found a mountain

pass, the Col de L’Echelle, that Mike reckons goes to Italy, and it’d be really cool to have a coffee over the border

and come back; I’m thinking by train!

Cycle stop Echelle

Not too bad up this side and we get up and look over the edge…what the! It dives vertically off a cliff and there’s a

wiggly line that looks like a road and some town in the distant misty depths. It’s Bardonecchia where they held

the snowboarding in the winter Olympics.

View down

We ride down with some caution, can we get back up? We stop at the steepest section just to reassure ourselves

it’s possible and woosh we are in Italy.

Down into Italy

Quattro espressos later we’re relaxed and with some caffeine in the system we head back up the hill.

I’m wandering along in a daze, the others are flying…something about state-of-origin…I roll up in the 27 sprocket.

Hang on this isn’t too bad, I’m half way up and I’ve still got the very exclusive 30 on call. I stopped for a pic but the

jet lag makes sure I take quite a nice close up of a plastic bag but you get the idea. Have a look where we are

and why we were a little concerned.

Up at the top everyone is very happy… “how easy was that?” The pass looked too steep for words but after we rode

it we realised our training is going to make this and L’Etape very rideable and it was a great confidence booster.

Well it was, until we saw the Col d’Izoard and Alpe d’Huez, but more of that later.

It’s a beautiful ride from here back down the descent and into Nevache to meet the girls for lunch and practice our

French on the locals. The girls seem to be bonding and having a great time. Picture of Nevache below.

After lunch there’s a storm threatening so it’s off back to Briancon and we are flying home at

ridiculous speeds, through tiny villages that I can’t stop and take photos of.

What a ride, what scenery! It is everything you hope it to be and it’s day one. Here’s Mike

on our balcony looking back towards the valley we had been up that day or was he thinking

about Izoard which we plan to ride tomorrow?

Geoff Link for Bicycle Diaries 2