Into October and still the weather forecast was indicating a sunny day. However, we hadn’t prepared ourselves fully for the chill of the morning which carried on throughout the day. Seven GIN Bikers met at the Everness at 09.30h, some wearing shorts and some having changed to their winter wardrobe ith long leggings. The starting team were:
Mervyn
Mark2Ts (back after many absences)
PeterD (back after some absences)
PeterT (back)
e-Paul
e-Philip
Stephen (Bike Leader)
Paul arrived last having been contemplating the wasted fruit on the ground in the neighbouring orchards…..seemingly good fruit but for some reason left to recycle into the ground. His panier basket seemed fuller than usual.
At this stage in the biking season, muscles should be fully formed and lungs ready for the more strenuous rides. E-bikers circumnavigate this need and can perform at all times but the purists can be caught short if they haven’t been active on a regular basis. The BL had chosen a route to test physical condition… the famous 3 hills circuit of Bonmont, Mourex and Vesancy.
“Cycle gently towards the Bonmont climb. Warm up with the climb up to 727m. Down to Crassier and a coffee. Along the old train track, through Divonne and onto the Mourex hill test. Down and then up to Vesancy. Down to the Accor Parfait for lunch. Home after lunch.”
Compromise was made in the shape of a coffee break after the Bonmont hill and serious calorific restocking at lunch.
We set off in the now usual circuitous route towards the first hill, passing a fellow GIN member, Martin Vaughan, walking his dog, Terence. Martin declined the offer of joining the group blaming an ageing bike with a puncture in his shed.
PeterD commented at one stage that the route to the base of the Jura was a little too wayward….but he hadn’t been on the previous outing to make a balanced judgement. The group spread out considerably even in this warm up period and it became obvious who had not been exercising regularly and/or had older equipment. The potential to switch to e-bikes was discussed again but there are some stubborn classical cyclist in the group and they do not want to be seen to crack first. PeterT set off at pace up the Bonmont hill, anxious to dispel the demons of the previous ride. The rest followed with the e-bikers looking decidedly more relaxed and the BL doing somewhat of a corralling role to ensure no-one was left behind. At the 727m junction, the wait for the usual photo seemed prolonged as the backMarker was running on low Wattage. The photo was taken with the potential opportunity to photoshop in any missing member later and then the congregated group departed downhill, eager to get a warming coffee in Crassier.
Time and tide wait for no backmarker
The BL, feeling the responsibility associated with his position, backtracked to ensure that the missing biker was still pedalling uphill…which he was only a couple of hundred metres down the road. The summit attained Mark and Stephen sped down appreciating anew the chill of the day and the impact of wind chill. They arrived at the coffee stop in time to add their order to the open bill, which PeterT kindly settled, adding in some patisserie as well as a bar of house made chocolate.
Happy BL but doubtful GIN Bikers….where are we going next?
At this stage it became apparent that the group was going to fracture. PeterT was called away due an unwell Jill and Kobie, who was in need of his daily part-Everest ascent. Philip had earlier mentioned that he would not be able to complete the circuit as he had to get home for other commitments. Mark part-accompanied Philip on his way before finding an easier route to lunch, avoiding two thirds of the hills on the planned itinerary. The remaining 4 of us manfully adhered to the predetermined route and enjoyed (?) the challenge of the Mourex uphill slog followed by the lesser Vesancy climb. Even e-Paul found that he had to work hard….maybe a case of too many apples in his bag? However, we all made it, age and fitness levels deferring to sheer will-power.
The downhill from Vesancy in the direction of Divonne, via the hamlet of Saint Gix, was a joy apart from that persistent chill factor and we got to the Accord Parfait in good time to have a round of drinks before Mark joined us. Except Mervyn, who decided on the excellent maigret de canard, the rest of us opted for the three course 19 Euro menu, although Paul would have had the copious spare ribs had they not been out of stock. As indicated earlier, the three menu courses were plentiful: pâté en croute with salade, cheeseburger and fries, and an interesting desert of chocolate sauce with mint ice-cream and a thick layer of whipped cream (for those who could manage this). Paul’s often fruitless request for “super croustillant” fries was met on the second attempt as a fresh bowl of indeed crispy chips was supplied without argument by our friendly waiter.
Refreshed, vitalled and warmed we wrapped up again for the quick descent through Divonne and to our respective homes. Such was the eagerness to get to that siesta that the farewell formalities were dispensed with and we peeled off at our individual appropriate points.
Overall ca. 50km and 750m ascent with quite large variations depending upon the individual.