Today I took a break from watching the Tour de France.
Tag / France
Mountain Friends
Get off my face you stupid beautiful butterfly, I’m trying to climb a mountain.
Day 2
Today I rode my bike most of the way to Grenoble, and then came back and went up L’Alpe d’Huez. Details here.
I was really excited about the 12 kilometers of 8-10% climbing.
France, Pt. 1
We’ve made it!
Highlights:
All the ads in the Geneva airport were for watches. Not even joking.
They also sold some large jars of nutella.
Walking our bikes from the Swiss to the French side of the train station.
Waiting hours for the train.
Commandeering the cars.
Chris being very nonplussed with all the traveling
Riding 30 miles, unshowered and unseatbelted, in the back of an unventilated sprinter van.
The view from our front porch the night we arrived.
The view from our kitchen.
The house
Wine shopping
Cheese shopping
The haul
Just the view from the grocery store parking lot. No big deal.
The living room
Challenging the mountains
2 miles from the house
French towns
Me, losing my mind from the climbs.
Today’s ‘easy’ day of 32 miles took us up a mountain, through two mountain passes, and about 80% as much climbing as the 115 mile ride I often do to Mount Wachusett back in Massachusetts.
The views are incredible, the descents are amazing, and the climbing is grueling.
Day one done.
Le Tour!
It’s been some time since I’ve had an update worth posting, but the next two weeks should prove to have quite a few.
Tomorrow I fly from Boston to Geneva with three of my cycling teammates. From there we’ll take the train to Grenoble, where we’ll meet two additional teammates before piling into a rented Mercedes sprinter van and heading out to our house midway up the Alpe d’Huez.
On July 18th we’ll spectate as the Tour de France conquers Alpe d’Huez twice in one day. Keep an eye out for us on TV. July 19th we’ll likely head out to see the staging and departure of stage 19 in Bourg-d’Oisans. The rest of the time we’ll be riding, wining, paragliding (maybe), and just generally taking in the views.
This is my first time traveling with a bike, and I have to say I’m a bit nervous. I was able to borrow a sturdy bike box from a good friend, but I’ve heard that while the TSA likes to open the boxes, they don’t seem to like to close them back up exactly the way they found them. So I’ve got my fingers crossed that everything arrives (and returns) as I packed it.
I’ve been in need of a break from Boston for months now, and this trip has given me something to look forward to. To know that in just a few days I’ll be watching the 100th Tour de France on the slope of the most famous Tour mountain is incredible. I can’t wait!
Stay tuned for updates and pictures once we arrive!
Temporary Travels 