My Latest Book Review: Guide to the Great Road Climbs of the Northern Alps

The most recent in the Rapha Guide series to mountain riding is "The Great Road Climbs of the Northern Alps."  I previously reviewed the guides to the Southern Alps and the Pyrenees at Pezcyclingnews.com and now you can find my latest review of the latest volume here.  It is a really beautiful book full of remarkable information.

The 2012 Gruyerè Cycling Tour

August 26, 2012

With the new fashionability of the timed Gran Fondo/Cyclosportif in North America, event organizers need to find that special feature that will attract cycling enthusiasts, such as the presence of pro like Ryder Hesjedal in British Columbia or a brutally hard course or a great jersey.  But looking across the Atlantic, sometimes just riding in the most beautiful scenery on the planet is enough.  At least that’s what participants in the Swiss-modest Gruyerè Cycling Tour held every August should feel  entitled to believe.

The view from my little rental chalet in Charmey

Oddly enough, in multilingual Switzerland the name of the event is in non-official English but you can expect French to be the primary language when you line up at the start in Bulle, with Swiss German in strong evidence as well.  The Gruyerè Region is located about 60 kms south of Berne, the nation’s capital and of course includes the famous cheese town of the same name, although one will simply pass through Gruyerès on the way to the finish line.

Registration is accomplished online and while not inexpensive does include a special jersey for the ride.  The rules require that all participants wear the jersey during the ride (although there were scofflaws to be seen).  I was planning to ride with Dan, a friend from Zurich, and was pretty sure that I would lose him in the first ten minutes among all those blue/white/red jerseys.  Spendthrifts can also buy matching bib shorts.

Dan's train arrived in Bulle ONE MINUTE LATE!

 The evening before the Sunday ride you can go to the Espace Gruyerè, a large multi-function hall in Bulle and pick up your jersey, start number with timing chip.  Organization is excellent (we were informed of our start numbers by text message on Saturday afternoon) and we quickly had our cloth start bags, which included the aforementioned items as well as a very green water bottle promoting Canton Vaude, the French-speaking province in with the Gruyerè Region sits, a reflective band and some brochures.  Saturday also sees a children’s event and a ride for the mobility-impaired. 

The Espace Gruyerè also housed a cafeteria and a number of exhibitors selling familiar brands such as Trek, Pinarello and Polar.  The Swiss Cycling Federation had a stand to encourage membership but had a few things to sell too, including Cancellara Bouillon which, to our disappointment, contained no Fabian DNA to make you go faster but was just a $19 container of dehydrated vegetable stock.

Switzerland appears to be going through a boom time in cycling, certainly due partially to the omnipresence of the Great Fabian, who appears on Trek advertising as well as a campaign to encourage helmet use.  One of the brochures listed all the various similar cycling events, both timed and not, taking place in the country and this coordination, which did not exist only a few years ago, shows the rising interest.

Dan fondling a new Trek and drooling.

Returning to our little chalet in Charmey, we were discouraged by the pouring rain that began in the evening and continued relentlessly through the night.  In the morning it was cool but the rain had stopped and the grey clouds looked to be breaking up.

Home sweet home, for a week

Registration can take place on Sunday morning but everyone was ready to leave when the starting gun went off precisely at 9:00.  Although the Gruyerè cycling event is timed, it is quite different from other sportifs in that the timing is not the overall time spent on the course but just a particular section of the course.  The shorter 85 km route’s timed section was an uphill stretch of 9.3 kms, while the longer 125 km route had timed sections totalling 22.44 km, also uphill.  The purpose of only timing only these sections was to prevent the kind of mad and dangerous dash at the start of many gran fondos as thousands of riders attempt to force their way to the front before the first climb.

The masses await the start in a very relaxed manner.

As we left Bulle en masse, it seemed pretty fast to me but a walk in the park compared to the Italian ride I had done in May where cyclists were colliding in their haste.  The Swiss riders were careful when overtaking and the first challenge, a 1.2 km long tunnel that ran downhill at high speed until it emptied out in a traffic circle, was very well-managed.  Of course, I lost Dan immediately as we jostled for position but I never lacked for company during the day.  And everywhere we rode there were escort motorcycles and flagpeople at intersections to ensure the safety of participants.

In Broc, an old house and arched bridge

Soon the road headed up and as expected the group began to break up as we rode through the villages of Broc and Charmey, where small groups of people stood and cheered us on.  To our right across the valley one could see the impressive fortress of Gruyerès high on its ridge.  There was a steep section after Broc but this was not going to be the big challenge for the day, judging from the profile.  After Charmey, we rode a marvellous section of flat road, surrounded by the lush green fields and rugged hills of the region.  Although Gruyerè lacks the drama of the High Alps it is nonetheless stunning, with the beautiful landscape, near-flawless roads, picturesque villages and flowers everywhere.  The sun was starting to break through and all were enjoying the ride.

Well, until we came to Im Fang and the first of a number  of sections of road construction.  This was the worst as it required everyone to walk their bikes through loose gravel.  Soon enough we were on smooth pavement again and then the road turned south and we found ourselves on a very narrow road that began to climb noticeably.  It got narrower and narrower and steeper and steeper:  we were now on the big ascent of the day, the Mittelberg.  The road was only as wide as a single car and was closed to traffic although the odd official vehicle as well escort motorcycles passed us.  This was the first time section and we would climb more than 560 m in the 9 kms.  I rode with some Quebecois, and then an Englishman living in Zurich and heard other languages and accents around me.  While the climb was hard, the scenery was distracting us and the sun had now come out for our glorious summer outing.

As we approached the top, people were standing and cheering loudly and with a final little sprint I crossed the timing mat to bring me to the first food stop.  There were masses of riders there but compared to the German food stops at events there the selection was a bit limited, with bananas, some fruit jellies, oranges and water and some energy drink.  There was also a great deal of Gruyerè cheese in single-serving packages and I stuffed my jersey pockets full.

 Now I was thankful I had brought my rain jacket and long-fingered glove liners as we began to descend.  The ride down from the Mittelberg, again on a road the width of a single car (so small it does not appear on my large-scale Michelin map), was an amazing high-speed experience through Swiss forests and alongside  a little stream.  Down, down, down we zoomed, surfacing again  at Saanen.  Here the route split, and those heading on the 125 km stretched continued south to Gstaad while the rest of us rode west towards Chateau-d’Oex and the direct road back to Bulle.

Me, wearing the Official Jersey

Although the road is marked in red on my map, it is definitely suited for cycling and with the majority of the climbing behind us, it was time to go into time trial mode until the next food stop at Les Moulins and at 60 kms.  Although we had to stop several times to allow what must be the world’s slowest train to cross the road, we made excellent time, including chasing and passing escort motorcycles, on the flat/downhill run that brought us through Gruyerès proper and then back in Bulle and the finish line.  My transponder was removed from my start number and I retain the number (which is personalized with your first name) as a nice souvenir. 

After taking my bike back to the car, I walked back to the Espace de Gruyerè and took advantage of the facilities to have a shower and get changed.  There were lots of families and friends at the finish, cheering on the cylists who continued to ride across the line.  I used up some of my Swiss Francs and bought two beers but before I could get started Dan rolled up so I passed one to him.  The longer route he had done included two more climbs, but neither was as hard as the Mittelberg but I was still impressed he had completed his ride so quickly.

After looking around at downtown Bulle and finding a light meal (and $4 ice cream cones that were worth every penny), Dan took his train back to Zurich.  Just as he left, he received another text message giving him his results for the time section and his standing.  Talk about Swiss efficiency!

A storefront sign in Bulle

I rode 88 kms for the day and climbed 1200 m, according to my GPS.  I apparently placed 66^th in my class for the Mittelberg climb and suppose I would have done better if I had not stopped to take photos.  I have to admit that for me the big attraction of the Gruyerè Cycling Tour  is not how fast I can finish it since this is the kind of ride that, on a fine summer’s day, you never want to see end.

My Latest Book Review at Pezcyclingnews.com

You can read all about the latest book from Rapha, yet another excellent guide to the mountains of Europe, here.  There one covers the Southern Alps and is a delight.

Tour d'Enfer Day 6: A Long Day Indeed (Part Two)

Now for the second task of the day: the Col de Vars. This pass has been included in the Tour de France some 33 times, so a lot of exciting action has taken place on it but it seems to be overlooked when considering the “great” climbs. As we were to learn, this was no pushover.




Riding with the Badger

Leaving Guillestre full of coffee and looking forward to riding on into the sunshine, we soon joined up with some of the other Tour d’Enfer crew and began our gradual climb. The incline was fairly reasonable for the first kilometre but then we were suddenly going up on an 8.5 percent grade. The road twisted and turned and we had good views of Guillestre, soon far below us.




At one curve we stopped and admired the view, but also noticed a small memorial stone. It was dedicated to the memory of a postal employee, Monsieur Court, who apparently went over the edge with fatal consequences in January 1938. Considering most of these passes are closed in winter, it was surprising that he would have been out there at that time of year, but neither rain, nor sleet nor hail etc.


We continued to make our way upwards. The road was not sheltered by trees and it was becoming quite warm, and the road showed no sign of flattening out anywhere. Michelle asked me how far we had to go and I said “not much further,” but of course it turned out I was totally wrong. Relief did come around Kilometre 8, when the grade dropped down to a more manageable 4 percent and then we found ourselves on a plateau. As we came into the village of St-Marcellin, we discovered some other Tourists d’Enfer sitting down for lunch and we joined them.

The waitress was clearly having a good time with the boisterous cyclists and we contributed to the confusion. The menu was somewhat limited, with mainly local specialities. As a vegetarian, France was not always the most appealing destination to me at lunchtime but the waitress was happy to get the cook to make up a cheese omelette with frites for me, a meal in which I was joined by Ralph the Badger. Most of the others ordered steak/frites, but Tim the Tornado said he would go with the burger. I was surprised that a hamburger would be on the menu and when I looked I saw he was referring to the “Assiette Berger,” which translates out to “the Shepherd’s Plate” and was a cheese-and-bread collection. Foreign travel is full of discoveries...

Refuge Napoleon

Dr. Chef and Michelle rolled up but decided to forego lunch and keep going up the climb. After enjoying a nice piece of blueberry tart, we got back on the bikes and began to climb again. I was riding with Indiana Greg and we set a nice pace going up the climb, which was not as steep as it had been closer to Guillestre but was still hard since we were feeling a bit stuffed from the meal. We passed a small ski area, Ste-Marie-de-Vars, and saw a sign inviting us to a restaurant inviting us in for “fooding and drinking.”

The road continued to be around 7 percent grade as we came up to Vars Station and I was getting tired in the heat. Greg rode on ahead and Ralph soon came up to me and we rode together, passing the next Refuge Napoleon and the little lake in front of it before finally coming to the col sign. I think that I had underestimated how hard this climb would be as the profile looked reasonable compared to some of the other climbs we had done on the trip. But in the end we had ridden 19.4 km (12.4 miles) from Guillestre, climbing 1111 metres (3645 feet) to the summit at an altitude of 2109 m (6925 feet). Having a full stomache and adding in the heat probably made it all that much harder, without forgetting that we had already begun the day with an Hors Categorie climb!

Me descending (photo by the Badger)

I felt better having reached the top and looked forward to the fantastic descent ahead of us. This was an excellent one, with lots of nice, open curves and great scenery all around. It was cooler now as we descended into the valley, dropping quickly down the road, which is much steeper on this side. We were finding sections of well over 10 percent and the cool air really revived me. Ralph was close behind me and when we came to St-Paul-sur-Ubaye, a small village that apparently featured a 12th Century church, I suggested that we turn off the road and look around.



The baker at the St-Paul market

St-Paul was enjoying market day and we looked at the stalls in the village, set up in the square beside the church. There was a range of meat products, cheeses, liquers and bread. We tried some of the baker’s olive bread and then he persuaded me to buy some of his special high-energy cyclist’s bread. This was like very hard gingerbread and he suggested breaking off small pieces of it during a ride and washing it down with some water. It would provide an energy replenishment and supposedly will be good for months. We shall see.

The Badger and I looked into the church, which is an excellent example of a mountain-style church begun in the Middle Ages and featuring a shingled roof and a Romanesque bell tower. We walked around the tiny village for a few minutes and I took a picture of the Badger in front of the 1714 fountain. Then we got back onto the main road and aimed our bicycles towards Barcelonnette and our hotel.


Fort Tournoux

After leaving St-Paul we came to a short tunnel but after a week in the mountains I had lost my fear of them and thought nothing about riding straight through it. The road was very quiet, and we found ourselves riding past the Berwick Redoubt, a massive stone citadel. Our route continued downhill, running alongside the Ubaye River. Ralph was clearly fading so I went out front and pulled. As we joined up with the D900 the traffic, which was coming from Italy, was getting heavier but the road was good, with probably a 1-2 percent drop. I went into time trial mode, going steadily along at 44 km/h or so. Well, that worked until we passed the impressive Fort de Tournoux, which was built from 1843 over twenty years and saw action in both World Wars, and ran smack into a brutal headwind.

The last stretch of D900 took us past La Condamine-Châtelard and on through Jausiers. The wind was dry and hot and peppering us with nasty bits of sand or gravel. We finally saw Barcelonnette ahead and immediately found the sign for Le Sauze, where our hotel was, and turned left on the straight road, getting out of the wind.

While it was nice to get out of the wind, we discovered now that we had a very nasty climb ahead of us: 2 kms that appeared to be going straight up. Ralph and I dragged ourselves in the summer heat up hairpin turns at a snail-like pace and finally pulled into the parking lot of the Hotel l’Équipe. We were met by some of the others and made our way in for a cool shower and a well-deserved beer.

Several of the other cyclists had ridden into Barcelonnette and were picked up by Udo and the bus rather than ride this last brutal hill. This was probably a good idea as they enjoyed ice cream in the town square!

Today's profile, with a sting in the tail

Over dinner we had a great time, reliving our individual adventures for the day. Day 6 of the Tour d’Enfer had been a classic, with 103 km (64 miles) and 3,120 m of climbing (10,236 feet), incredible scenery and one good workout.