What are we doing?

This has been in planning for a long time. Long service leave had to be taken, letters written to schools, bikes bought and upgraded, camping gear sorted, the vagaries of the SNCF elucidated and, of course, a whole lot of work work and housework completed.
If all goes well we will fly to Paris, train to Bordeaux then commence cycling (each on our own bike now that Noah is capable) east and south till we get to Provence 7 weeks later.
Along the way we will camp, stay in gites (one in the Dordogne and one in the Luberon), follow the market days and eat and drink very well. Hopefully the Euro crashes!
If the kids have any say, and they usually do, we will eat a pain au chocolat (chocolate croissant) each morning

Monday, June 28, 2010

Ventoux

I was given a lovely birthday present! As well as a nice laguiole
knife, Bri let me cycle up Ventoux on my own.
I left at 7.30 am from Bedoin and ate 2 pain au chocs and ( ahem)
drank a coke then set off. I followed some Lycra dudes and
inadvertantly cycled and extra 14 km around the back of the mountain
to Malaucene ( which was mostly uphill) and then the 21 km ascent began.
It is a hard climb. Average gradient is 8% and it hit 12% in places.
There is no real relief except for a couple of places where it feels
flat but isn't quite. Anyhow, I was the only non Lycra person (and non
racer - boy did i wish for light wheels) heading up and I felt proud!
The top was teeming with club cyclists ( it was Sunday morning) and
took a couple of quick pics then descended on the other side. I was
going very fast (the advantage with heavy wheels) but it still took
about 45 mins to get to the bottom.
On the way down I saw a guy who had crashed on a 10% bit and it looked
bad - potential broken neck.
The picture looks out towards the alps.
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4 comments:

  1. TimJune 28, 2010 at 7:23 PM

    Wow, what a day! Isn't it just the best cycling country in the world.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousJune 28, 2010 at 11:21 PM

    Hi Stan looks like you are all having a wonderful time and enjoying a variety of food. I bet you'll be trying to cook some of those dishes. I am sure your bike ride on your birthday was a memorable one and one to treasure for a long time. You all look well and relaxed. have fun.
    love mum xxoo

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousJune 29, 2010 at 5:44 PM

    Happy Birthhday Stan, and what a wonderful place to be... Only 4 days until the tour. Looks amazing x
    Andrea

    ReplyDelete
  4. Owen and Sue from Hobart.June 30, 2010 at 5:27 AM

    OMG, that ride sounds fantastic.

    You guys have brought new meaning to cycle touring for me. I will never, ever, again be satisifed with spaghetti bolognaise cooked in one pot on an MSR stove! Particularly after the 10th night!!

    Keep having fun
    Sue

    ReplyDelete

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