Ripping in the French Alps
More Euro Style
Words by Mike Wallace.
Date: 2008-11-24
It was time for something different so my wife Michelle and I decided to take a mountain bike trip to the Alps. I did what everybody does before heading off on a trip and started searching the web for ideas. The most stylin', organized and informative site I found belonged to FLOWMTB. Several emails later I realized I had found some really great people in a far away land. 
Found this sign at the top of the climb. Choose France or Switzerland for the descent
Flow MTB is run by an English couple; Guy Bowden and Sara Burdon. The company is based in Morzine, in the French Alps very near the Swiss border. In fact to get there you need to fly (or take the train) to Geneva. Morzine is one of many French ski resorts in the Portes Du Soleil area which is taken over by Brits in the summer months. If you want French culture this isn’t the place to come but if you want to ride your bike and not have to worry about language issues then it works out great.
Michelle dropping down into Morzine.
To get there we decided to fly into Paris, spend a few days and then take the high speed train (the famous TGV) for 3 hrs to Geneva. In Geneva we rented a car but alternatively Sara can arrange for you to be picked up if you prefer to keep it simple. It is only a one-hour drive up to the resort town of Morzine. Driving through the Alps is a spectacular experience in itself. It is probably as close as you will ever come to that flowy bike singletrack feel in a car.
Once in Morzine we settled into a large chalet which is completely set up for the biking crowd with a huge great room for eating, an honour bar full of French beer, a drying room for gear and the best mountain bike magazine collection I have ever seen. Why is it that British bike magazines are so much better than American ones? Guy’s bike repair shop (not really a shop but from the triage I witnessed it is just as good) and secure bike storage out back keeps things simple and bike-stress free.
Plenty of view from the Pleney.
Because both Guy and Sara are solid riders their Morzine experience works well for both sexes. As we all know (and are proud of) some mountain bike holidays can end up a little testosterone based. Sara keeps things real for the girls with her very civilized dinners - and she’s always up for a ride.
It had been raining all week so our first day of riding was looking to be a little muddy. To be honest the popular downhill racing tracks resembled a scene from a rain-soaked WWII movie. Guy had a solution though and we headed off for a long ‘all mountain’ style loop ride from the top of the local Pleney gondola. We were riding brand new Hecklers from Guy’s rental fleet so all the pedalling was fine. The scenery was spectacular and the cow bells were ringing just for us – a classic alps experience. At one point we crossed a small paved road and sure enough there was Lance’s name painted on the blacktop. Another highlight for me was when we passed a large group of French hikers on a trail. Instead of the dirty look (or sometimes the blank stare) riders often get in North America the group were all yelling French encouragment. Really, biking in Europe is different. The sport is loved by pretty much everyone. 
Lots of buffed fast singletrack.
One of the advantages of staying at the MTBFLOW chalet is that you meet lots of other bikers who are all there for the same reason. Guy arranges large group rides according to the tastes and levels of the group. For day two we headed out with three Scottish guys, two other English guys who lived in Morzine full time, Guy, myself and Michelle. The Scottish guys were there for a full two weeks of riding hard on their seven and seven bikes. Their goal was to only take one day off. I don’t know if they made it or not.
Day two’s riding was to be very different. We headed off for Switzerland on the shores of Lake Geneva for a one-hour pure downhill run which can be shuttled multiple times using a train. Yes a train. The train is set up with an open baggage car (looked like a giant utility trailer) so eight dirty mountain bikes are not a problem.
Waiting for the shuttle train in Montreux.
We had to drive about an hour and a half to the town of Montreux to catch the train. We were in Morzine in June but later in the summer when things are in full swing there are actually 25 chairlifts open for bikes within 2 hours of Morzine. Most of them are linked by bike trails if you would rather stay out of a car and on the pedals.
The trail started high in the Alpine amongst dozens of Marmots and a few view-seeking tourists. The first part of the trail was winding, rocky and fast. After a quick blast down a smooth double track past the busy paragliding launch it was into steep loamy switchbacks and narrow treed ridges. This section seemed to go on forever until reaching the top edge of the city. However, the trail continued through old narrow windy alleys and streets. I felt like I was in the Lisbon Downtown Downhill.
This is how the second run of the shuttle started. Up the escalator to the train.
After the last run we rolled down on our muddy bikes into the fancy pants Swiss town to have our beer (or a beer and Cigarello if you actually live in France) on the street and watch the convertible Bentleys, Ferraris and rich Russian women looking for a better life. Then it was up the escalator and back home to our digs in Morzine.
Après shuttle Swiss Style. Mike Wallace - our hero - is seated at far right.
As I said earlier, biking is everywhere in Europe. The day we decided to leave the Alps we were actually delayed on the road due to the Tour De Dauphine Libere road bike race. This race is the last warm up for the Tour de France and it was very cool to see the likes of Alejandro Valverde, Cadel Evans and LevI Leipheimer go flying by.
Imagining you are chasing Lance (or that you are Lance) makes a paved climb more exciting.
If the airfare doesn't scare you, and you’re looking for a place with great people, amazing terrain and good living, check out flowmtb.com in the French Alps. Whether you're by yourself or with a large group you'll feel welcome.
Have you ever ridden in the Alps? Give us some highlights? What's your dream riding location away from home? Send it here...
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