Category: Biking

The Uphill Struggle to Fitness

Hard to believe that another Thursday promised good weather. Despite the holiday season, 8 keen GIN Bikers signed up for a tour that was described initially as simply “lunch in France”. The BLeader once again asked for the meeting place to be at his apartment since his physio would be preparing his still repairing Achilles tendon and shrunken muscles for the ride ahead. Almost at the designated hour, PeterD, Mark2Ts, Mervyn, Ivan, e-Rudi, e-Drew and e-Richard appeared in Arnex. Admittedly, a couple of participants had to have last minute instructions to find the rest of group. Drew showed off his new car bike carrier whilst Rudi persisted with his more makeshift open hatchback and elastic tie. Ivan’s bike was intact (compared to the last viewing) although with a 33% loss in gearing. No changes in the rest of the group: from museum pieces to relatively recent acquisitions.

With everyone captive, the true extent of the BLeader’s plans were unveiled: direct to Bonmont hill, a short reprieve before the Vesancy hill and then another short reprieve until the Gex-Echenevex hill…..an unpleasant final climb before the rewards of lunch at The Auberge des Chasseurs in Echenevex. The choice of the restaurant was made by default, due to the French habit of closing down all hostelleries during August. However, this particular restaurant had been on his wish list for a time and it was with relief and gratitude that the BLeader discovered it to be operational. Not so for our usual coffee stops. The  O’Château stop in Vesancy, which has been a favourite for coffee and lunch, now seems to be only open on demand, according to the website. Other potential beverage stops in Gex were also shuttered.

Anyway, I digress and am getting ahead of the true purpose of the day: the cycling. The e-bikers revelled in the hills, although 2-gear Ivan tried to give them an early run for their money, until his propelling muscles realised the enormity of maintaining the task. On the flat, the e-bikers were more reserved and conserved their batteries at the back of the group, whilst the muscle-powered bikes did the same at the front. Sufficient stops were made to regroup and check that there were no losses in personnel……which has been known in the past. Several participants did try to select individual routes but were brought back into the fold. Peter decided that continuity without stopping has merits and forged ahead alone up the Vesancy hill, getting to the summit first and ensuring the dotted jersey.

Bonmont Hill success – one down two hills to go

Trying the PeterT selfie touch

With the deficit of suitable coffee stops, we arrived at the lunch restaurant ahead of schedule, for once . Our table under the trees was ready and waiting, with a pleasant view overlooking the Alps and the Maison Blanche Golf Club below. Local brasserie beer was rapidly ordered and consumed before we settled into the 3-course menu du jour. The standard was high: fresh mushroom ravioli, crevettes in a coconut milk pasta curry, mirabelles and ice-cream. Somehow the economy of the set lunch was lost in the final bill once the drinks had been added. The benefit was our usual lively conversation covering an eclectic range of topics. The food and ambiance led the discussion towards obesity and possible remedies. Some thought that food intake could not be offset by exercise, others suggested metabolic rate variations resulted in different weights. Peter had the solution: stomach bacteria. If you get the correct balance then all is resolved. Those with the correct balance can benefit from their good fortune, bloating their bank balance whilst aiding physical thinning in others. Was this a load of crap? Apparently, yes. The use of  body waste from a finely tuned individual can work wonders. Further details were lacking (happily) and the conversation moved on towards the return route home.

Happily installed and beers to hand

Thoughtful contemplation of the waistline impact

Now on a roll, Peter volunteered to find a route back to the disused train track. An previous outing attempt had not been 100% successful and he was keen to make amends. He got it mostly correct using his Swiss route finder (in France!), the rest of the group contributing their input where appropriate to ensure crucial decision points were successful. Once on the straight and narrow it was easy cycling to Divonne. A suggestion of a further beer stop at the Grilly brasserie was overturned as siestas (and grandchildren) beckoned. The group separated at Divonne, some on a mission to Carrefour, others realising that this was the quickest way home. The Arnex parked e-bikers followed Stephen through Divonne and onto the old train track to Crassier and back to Arnex.

Statistics: ca. 47km, ca. 600m of climb, average moving speed 17.2 km/hr

Re-cycling of the BLeader

The BLeader contacted the group asking for support in his re-cycling efforts after almost 3 months in recovery from a torn Achilles tendon. PeterT, Mervyn, Mark 2Ts and Ivan responded to the call and the one e-biker, Paul, had to withdraw initial enthusiasm when he realised that he was not fully prepared for a long Asian tour starting the following day.

BLeader looking fit and ready to defend his jersey

So, unusually, a fully muscle driven group met at Stephen’s apartment at 10 o’clock, without an e-bike in sight. Ivan proudly displayed his own bike, renovated and repaired for the occasion….. the hazards of borrowed bikes now firmly behind him and the 3 gears offering sufficient variation for all tracks. Stephen had taken the precaution of a physio session prior to the ride to ensure the best for his damaged tendon and withered muscles. A gentle ride was promised and, for once, adhered to.

We made our meandering way from Arnex across the fields on farm tracks to Signy and up the well-worn track to Grens and Gingins. Ivan impressed with his ability to accelerate up any slope. Mark and Mervyn allowed the youngster to have his fun whilst protecting the back of the peloton. Stephen and Peter pretended to have reserve power should they choose to use it. Promised coffee at our usual Givrins stop spurred us on but not only was this closed for the annual holidays but the back up restaurant in Givrins also was closed. Peter seized the initiative and phoned Rob in Genolier suggesting that he might like guests to join him in his mid-morning coffee. Not only was he at home but he graciously accepted hosting the lycra crew. Mark secured the last ham croissants from the butcher in Genolier. A satisfied relaxation pervaded after the food and drink. A barbeque grill was eyed in the corner of the terrace and for a moment it was tempting to curtail the ride and stay through to siesta-time. However, the BLeader was on a quest to prove that he was on the road to fitness and rallied the group, encouraging them to head on the loop round through Begnin, Coinsins, Duillier to Nyon, with the promise of the famous Landi crossing.

Relaxing with coffee and croissant at Café Rob

As we progressed through Eysins, we were exactly on time for the designated lunch destination of the Nyon Tennis Club. However, there was slowing at the rear of the group which wound down to a stop. Ivan’s customised machine had sprung a leak and the back tyre was flat. Backpacks were emptied and puncture repair kits, spare inner tubes, levers, etc. were unearthed and dusted off. Unfortunately, no-one had the required spanner to release the wheel. The GIN network sprung into action as Dave Gwilliams was contacted by Mark. Once again, fortune shone on the group: Dave was at home with suitable spanners and only 5 minutes away. Off rode Mark. Peter and Stephen realised that too many hands does not make light work of puncture repair and, more importantly, beer was waiting if we got to our reserved table. Several beers later, or about 40 minutes, just as we were wondering whether to order food, Mark, Mervyn and Ivan appeared at the Tennis Club. Apparently, the first round trip to obtain the required spanner resulted in all but the correct size. A return trip to Dave was needed to get an adjustable spanner before repair could be executed.

Ukranian technology being repaired by Ukranian (and helper)

More beers later, food an coffee consumed, we were ready to head for home. An offer of more, home brew, beer at Stephen`s was graciously declined and we headed home in two directions: Peter, Mervyn and Ivan along the lake road with subsequent steep climb and Mark and Stephen up the gentler, but longer climb towards Crans away from the lake road. Subsequent reports from the larger group indicated that all was still not smooth: “..…more bits kept falling off Ivan’s velocipede, in particular a vital bit of the gear mechanism. Search party has so far failed to find it, lost somewhere in Founex Grand Rue….”

Oblivious to this latest twist, the BLeader was gently snoozing on his terrace, pleased that his re-introduction to the GIN Biking Group had, from a personal perspective, gone well. The siesta lasted longer than expected as his wife had inadvertently locked him out on the terrace when she went off to play tennis………

Statistics: 32-47 km depending upon starting point. Ca. 450m climb.

Most of the regulars were Saas Feeing, mending bust legs, in foreign climes or had other feeble excuses so there were just 4 of us turned out for this ride: Peter D (leader)and Mark 2Ts (push bikes), Mike Muller and Richard Flett (electric).

We started at the Everness and followed a route roughly equivalent to the map below. Our leader had thoughtfully provided this in advance in case anybody got detached from the peleton, seems like a bit of history there!

We followed the old railway line up to Gex and then across to Vesancy to find the restaurant closed so we continued, coffeeless, through the golf course at Bonmont and onto Gingins. We decided to miss the usual Bonmont hill as the other Peter would be upset if we did it without him. At least the reasoning went something along those lines.

We made a slight detour at Gingins to see Mike’s new house, last week a hole in the ground, now about to put the roof on, moving in tomorrow.

By now it was lunch time so we dropped down to the auberge in Founex for well deserved beers and a great plat du jour.

A very pleasant ride and not too hot, at least at first.

All the regular B-leaders were either ginjured or away so Mark 2Ws led this bike ride. Five of us met at 10:99 by the ice cream hut by the lake in Divonne: Mervyn, Ivan (with another new old bike), Paul and Richard Flett (both on e bikes), and Mark. Ivan had brought this bike from Ukraine so does not have to rely anymore on Mark or Peter’s old bikes.

We set off up the old railway line to Gex and then to Vésancy, arriving exactly at 11:00 when our leader had confidently predicted the café would be open. Sadly it wasn’t so we proceeded via St-Gix to the camping above Divonne where we again failed to find any coffee. On to La Rippe and Bonmont (by the legal route) for the inevitable photo call.

Then Gingins, Grens, Borex, Arnex, Céligny, past our old meeting point, the god spot, and onto the sports centre at Founex where we met Nathan now almost recovered after his fall.

Conversation included: details of where a previous outing had lost and then abandoned Nathan, Wagner group in Africa, China’s belt and road success, and many other subjects.

Then the group dispersed to all wend their ways home, Paul had the furthest to go at 19km but fortunately had a powered bike.

In the event, six intrepid members of the biking group assembled at the Divonne Lake (ice-cream shack) starting point: Bill, Ivan, Mark, Mervyn, Paul and a late-entry – our man from the mountains, Peter T.  

Several apologies for absence had been submitted exhibiting varying degrees of justification (no names, but you know who you are!).

Monsieur Météo promised to be benign – warm, dry and no wind. So, it was agreed to accept my proposal of a ride through the open fields to the relative shade of the Jura hills up to the 888m point on the infamous Barillette ascent.  It wasn’t long before Peter (then Ivan Ed.) took over the lead as we headed onwards and upwards.  We suffered varying degrees of pain and fatigue as the gradient increased from a modest 5% up to a more daunting 10.5%.  e-Paul once again demonstrated the clear advantage of bike battery technology over raw lung and leg power as, with the mere touch of a button, he showed at least one fit-looking young interloper a clean pair of heels (or in this case, pedals).

The investment of all that time and effort on the ascent was rewarded by a swift and exhilarating descent down the sweeping bitumened bends, where Ivan demonstrated impressive slaloming technique, to Gingins and thence to Trelex and finally Prangins.

This passed not entirely without incident as, no sooner had bits started to fall off Mervyn’s bike, than Mark decided to do a mini-Nathan and part company involuntarily with his machine. Thankfully only pride suffered a minor injury this time.

A table with seven places laid out awaited our arrival at Les Abérieux restaurant down on the lakeside at Prangins.

Beers were swiftly ordered and consumed before the mystery missing diner – our BLeader, Stephen, no less – made his welcome appearance, fresh from 15 minutes “re-education” on a stationary exercise bike. Now that’s solidarity for you, in the “I share your pain” sense!

Lunch-time banter covered the usual old chestnuts plus a intriguing discussion, initiated by our resident man of letters, Paul, on what constitutes the toughest sport. Cycling uphill in the heat of the midday sun, notwithstanding, other candidates ranging from mountaineering, ultra-marathons and competitive saunas were proposed.  The common denominator seemed to be utter madness.

With that we dispersed and wended our ways back to our various starting points in the Terre Sainte and beyond.

Vital statistics:  44 Km, 580m deniv. 3hr in the saddle (+2hr lunch)

Author:   Mervyn Powell, faithful member of the peloton and frequent lanterne rouge.

At the picturesque spot of  Chavannes de Bogis, seven adventurous bikers gathered at the renowned Everness hotel (to GIN bikers at least). Their mission: to embark on an exhilarating ride along the old train track leading to Gex onwards to Versancy, Bonmont and finally Founex for lunch. Little did they know that this journey would be filled with unexpected turns, lost companions, and tales to be shared over a memorable lunch.

With hearts brimming with excitement, the group set off from the Everness hotel, their bikes gliding along the old train track. The promise of scenic vistas and the thrill of exploration lay before them, beckoning them to embrace the open road.

As the bikers approached the charming town of Versancy, their bodies yearning for refreshment, they stumbled upon a delightful surprise. Ivan, our eighth companion, welcomed us having sneaked up through Divonne. Thereafter most of us  indulged in a delightful selection of alcoholic delights. Amidst laughter and camaraderie, Richard offered to pick up the tab which was much appreciated.

As the sun approached its zenith, the bikers set their sights on the renowned Bonmont hill. Alas, for some, fate had a different plan in store. Nathaniel,  inadvertently veered off course and vanished from sight. Concerned but undeterred, the majority of the group, led by Peter and Mervyn, chose to proceed after stopping to observe a rather beautiful field of poppies.

Following the floral intake most of the group decided to conquer the reverse Bonmont route, some without the assistance of electric power. Meanwhile, Paul opted for the thrill of the mountain route, and was not seen again until lunch. Peter T, desiring a less challenging path, ventured towards the easy route, meeting up at the traditional Bonmont photo op location.

Amidst breathtaking views (of trees) atop Bonmont, the group celebrated a significant milestone: capturing the 500^th (or so) photo of the group.

With spirits soaring, they began their descent down the hill, opting for the most direct route towards their well-deserved destination—the Founex Tennis Centre, where a delicious lunch awaited them. Along the way, they passed God’s Crossroads, a symbolic reminder of the serendipitous encounters that colored their adventure.

Seated around a table laden with large beers, the bikers engaged in lively conversations that spanned an array of topics. Tales were shared, including humorous anecdotes of waterlogged water boots while serving in the fire brigade and humorous accounts of Peter T’s driving skills as attested by his car (much to the amusement of his wife who already new about this). While the food was generally satisfying, the frites drew a bit of critique, inspiring laughter and banter among the riders. Amidst the laughter and camaraderie, Peter D promised to provide a route for their next outing, fueled by the hope of keeping their missing companion, Nathaniel, (not to mention Paul) with the group.

As lunch drew to a close, the bikers reflected upon the incredible journey from Everness to Gex and beyond. They marveled at the unexpected turns, the bonds forged through shared experiences, and the enduring spirit of adventure that united them. They eagerly anticipated their next outing, with hopes of uncovering the whereabouts of Nathaniel and creating new memories that would enrich their friendship and love for exploration.

18 May 2023

The wind had died down from the horrors of the previous day when we took shelter in the Founex Auberge for a GINClub lunch. PeterD organised this outing – a prize to him for 2 days in a row !

A new member attended (for the second day in a row), Richard Flett, or E-Richard as our BOOT-bound BLeader would call him, with connections to South Africa. Welcome Richard.

Attending – PeterD, PeterT, Paul, MikeM, Mervyn, Mark2ts and RichardF. Three e-bikes and four pushers.

We set off slightly into the wind on an anticlockwise circuit cunningly designed to have the wind behind us on the worst uphill section (Vesancy Hill). Tracking past Lac Divonne, skirting round Crassier in France, up to La Rippe and glancing at the Bonmont Hill before turning left for the traverse to Vesancy under the Jura forests.

An almost good weather day which turned a bit chilly, and was slightly marred by the coffee stop in Vesancy being closed for Ascension.

So, we trekked on down to Gex before heading back up and across through Echenevex to Maison Blanche, avoiding the down-the-field approach.

Lunch was served at a fine circular linen-laid table – this is how golfers expect to dine. Mark had celebrated becoming Swiss the day before, and he was keen to buy the beers. Affligem from Belgium went down well but a second glass was needed to verify its excellence.

Conversation seemed to settle around religion, atheism, Dawkins, UK non-resident banking (Barclays is throwing us out), Darwin, memes and memeplexes (religion again), natural selection and mortality. Paul’s excellent new book on Wallace’s unheralded but vitally essential bird-collecting Indonesian assistant, Ali, is coming out shortly.

Paul tells us that he believes we have all must have had an “Ali” in our lives, getting us through to where we are today. Something for us all to ponder..

We drank the health of our absent BLeader, resting up at home.

The nems were excellent as were the burgers and triple fried chips. We actually met a couple of GIN members (well at least one – Werner) who had come in from their golf round.

All too soon it was time to take off back home via an interesting riverside path below Gex with a bike staircase, before saying farewell to Paul and exiting Gex on the beloved bike path to Divonne, as we pondered on “who was my Ali ?”.

I made it 49km and 479m from Coppet.

With our honourable BLeader incapacitated – perhaps for the summer – Peter T and Peter D have taken control of biking Thursdays for the interim til Stephen is back on 2 wheels.

With a number of apologies, some sound and others more flimsy, four of us turned out at the Evenness at 10am on the morning of a really fine and warm day, shorts weather!

Attending – Mervyn, Ivan, PeterD, PeterT

PeterT had booked a table at Gilly on their sunny terrace for 12.30pm. The plan then was Bonmont (not the full top), Gingins, Givrins, Genolier, Le Muids, Bassins, Le Vaud, Burtigny, Gilly and home. This is quite a challenging ride for 4 non-E bikes and sadly it did not allow time for coffee stops at some of the watering holes we passed along the way.

There were many agricultural vehicles out and about, some very large. We were overtaken near God’s Crossing by a large muck spreader. One comment was that it was like being overtaken by the Daily Mail. There were quite a number of bikers about, many of whom were on racing road bikes and who had little problem overtaking us.

All went well until Ivan stopped to pick up what might have been his brake block but found it was a spurious reflector. He then missed the junction at Givrins and we needed to reassemble at Genolier after guiding him back by phone.

The hill of La Joie Clinique is (after Bonmont) the “low” point of this ride and it is pushed back into dark recesses of one’s memory. But having passed it we were up in the fresh spring air as the day started to warm up.

We had fabulous views out over the Lake to the Alps on the road from Burtigny before dropping down to Gilly. Altogether the riding was brilliant as was the weather and the scenery even if our legs were a bit sore after all the climbing.

An excellent and refreshing lunch was devoured at around chf25 for three courses and some fine beer and great service, al fresco on the terrace. I was glad that I had remembered to bring a sun hat, and we all carried factor 50 cream.

All too soon it was nearly time to be off, so we called ahead to our BLeader who had spent the morning at Nyon hospital and was now at home. He invited us to call in at Arnex to check out his new BOOT and sample his home brew in return for our commiserations and moral support. We ambled back at a leisurely pace with some fabulous views to Mt Blanc. Sure enough the BOOT was real and the ale was too. Stephen seemed in good cheer, as was Kate. We shall have to help ensure this stays that way over the coming months. Merci for the fine beer Stephen.

I logged 63km and 780m denivellation from Coppet.

20 April 23

I set out this morning to head up to the Everness. I was wearing two jackets, a buff under my helmet and cycling shorts over my lycra leggings. It was cold and spitting with rain. I considered turning back, but I did not want to let my BLeader, PD, down. So I arrived to find Peter with Rudi and Nathan. Two e-bikers and two bikers. Rudi told us a tale of his tail-gate opening on the autoroute and his e-bike nearly falling out; happily he arrived intact.

PeterD suggested a normal Gex gambit opening, somewhat adventurous perhaps for a lunch at the Trois Tilluels in Genolier.

See https://www.aubergegenolier.ch

The rain systems for the day were coming from the Gex direction so it was with some relief that our Leader relented at Grilly and ordered a right turn into Divonne, enabling a coffee stop to be engineered at a warm favourite:-

http://www.au-coeur-des-saveurs.ch

We actually arrived in Crassier surprisingly dry, if a little chilled by the 7C temperatures, but coffee and croissants revived body and spirit and we set off to the inevitable Bonmont in good cheer. It was not long before the Hill of Legend was in front of us, and we turned left at the junction to ride the final few hundred metres to the summit.

We rolled down in 5C or below teperatures into Gingins, passing Givrins and thence to Genolier remaining amazingly dry still. It was a relief to enter to warm and pleasant restaurant at Les Trois T, and we began to fell even better after the first beer and fresh vegetarian roll starter. There followed sausage and mash and a wondrous dessert.

We discussed many topics including the excuses of absentees, several of whom were eating pork pies. The food was so good I immediately booked to bring my better half next Saturday. Good choice PeterD!

There remained the route home, billed as downhill all the way. It was not. We were into a slight headwind and the rain came as we passed Signy. Nevertheless a fine but unseasonably cold ride after a hesitant start, with a super lunch (set menu 27chf).

Stats for me 48km and 500m denivellation.

Sadly Ivan could not join us – he had a good excuse. Others had others…

In the event 3 of us (Mervyn, Peter D and me Peter T) turned out for what turned out to be a fine and sunny if chilly morning, at Everness, heading for Refuge de Florimont – we had biked up there on 31 March 22 for a full Gin Club lunch. Floriment is at 960m and is one of our more challenging rides with over 600m of up. However with no BLeader and no E-bikes we could take it slowly.

And slowly we started. Within 2 minutes Peter D had punctured on his replacement “fast” bike. We attempted a tube replacement but even after a trip back to his house Peter could not get any air into the new tube. So we all biked the 400m back to Peter’s house where he changed back onto one of his regular steeds (which had some form of faulty gear change – apparently he could not access the very lowest gears (somewhat necessary on a Florimont ride)). How he managed I’m not sure.

Thus some 40 minutes later we set off again – Peter D seeming now to have the bit between his teeth led us up through the forest of the Bois de Portes, across La Versoix River and up into Grilly and the Train Track. A very pleasant ride to Gex followed as a precursor to the potentially very unpleasant ride up out of Gex through les Maladières to Florimont, pretty much all of it avoiding the main road but on good if sometimes somewhat steep tarmac.

The slope seemed unrelenting and we took time out to rest several times. My heart monitor afterwards showed 20 minutes at over 136 bpm and another 45 minutes above 115 bpm. This is not a ride the preparations for which involve a fondu the night before. In the event (for me at least and I believe for the others too, each in our private torment) it was not too bad and we arrived in time for our reservation shortly after midday.

The beers were excellent (local craft brew) and the menu-de-jour lunch, at Eu17 for a big fresh salad, chicken pierrade (we cooked on a hot stone) and large baked potato, with sauces, fresh bread and followed by coffee gourmand, with good friendly service, rivalled the old days of the Vieux-Bois. And the view from our table was/is one of the best in the area. NB Peter D enjoyed a good-looking/tasting sauciflette.

We missed our BLeader from last year (gallivanting in Blighty)

We settled up and it was time to go, wrapped warm for the still-cool air. This restaurant descent is one of the easiest, if a little steep at first, as it’s pretty much downhill all the way.

A very good ride (looking back) that tests the legs, with a fine lunch as reward. I’m tempted to drive up again soon. Recommended eatery.

37km 650m from Coppet.