Wednesday 7th July - Classic Lake Como Ride Loop

The group now includes Mark and Dominique so there were 5 to take on a classic Lake Como ride which included a legendary local climb and a visit to the Madonna Del Ghisallo.

Here is a link to the ride map and elevation graph, photos, blog and movie to follow.

Link to Lake Como/ Bellagio loop.

Day 7 Zurich to Como

Day 7 - Zurich to Como


We packed the car, I got in the drivers seat, fired up "the missus" and headed off to Como. Once we got to the point where the missus wanted us to start from we were off and running with very little trouble getting out of town and onto the highway.

The drive to Como involved going back towards where we started our ride from yesterday, we passed the Altdorf turnoff then continued on going through very long tunnels. One of them was many kilometres long and looking in the rear view mirror we came from under a massive mountain that was covered in snow. We had gone straight under the alps. The tunnel was a constant rise and the other side was much drier and hotter.

We stopped at Riveira for a coffee stop, had a bit of trouble finding somewhere to park but got there eventually. We went get some money out of the ATM but were a bit confused when it only offered Swiss Francs, every thing was sold in Francs but people looked very Italian and spoke Italian so we thought we were in Italy.

We didn't bother getting any money out, we went to the nearest coffee shop and ordered from a very nice waitress who thankfully spoke excellent English.We asked her if we were in switzerland or Italy and she informed us that we were in fact in Switzerland still. There are three sections to Switzerland, the German, French and Italian which all speak their respective languages.

So we ordered our coffees and of course some pastries to go with them, we got the traditional type of coffee in very small cups, strong but very nice. We had used all our Swiss francs so we had to pay with a 50 euro and get the change in francs.

So now we had a heap of francs that we wouldn't need, we soon fixed that though by going to the local post office and changing it into euros, we are so clever. Now back on the road again, only about 50kms to go until we reach our destination. The views are very impressive but very different to Switzerland. Much drier with different vegetation.

Driving in Italy is an experience thAt has to be experienced to be believed. Luckily I am told my driving style suits Italy, as it is mad. I had a good time driving like they did just charged into where ever I needed to be. Had to do two laps of one block to get a car space. The car only just fits into the space provided. I didn't quiet have it parked right and was told by the hotel staff to get between the lines. Hmmmmmmm

We went for a walk down town and along the lake. This is a very large tourist place and the main square area is very large. So many small alleys to walk through and check out the shops. We had lunch at a cafe and were amused when the menus came out advertising XXXX. We had Aussie beer with our lunch lunch of salad and cold cuts. No where near as good as our two previous lunches which seen the plates wiped clean with bread. These had a lot of salad left in them.

Another walk through town with the temp around 32 degree's and a stop to get more Euro and we got back to the hotel for a rest and to watch the Tour.
I went for a walk with Bob to a bike shop to get chain lube. We walked a long way and were amazed again at the traffic. The young guys on motor bikes are mad as hatters and go so fast it is ridicules. Boys are the same the world over.
A shower and off we went to have dinner. We again walked to he city centre but ventured further and checked out many restaurants. Most were very we priced. We had a beer at a cafe and got potato chips and a terrible Bruchetta with it. Cheap for 9 Euro tho after wandering through some very interesting and extremely old neighbour hoods we cam across a little restaurant and had dinner. The waiters could not speak English some had a good time with them and they had a good time with us judging by the talking and then laughing. We laughed as well.dinner was very nice with myself having gnocchi Bolognese followed by chicken salad. Schnitzel with tomatoes and rocket. So simple. So yummy. Another beer followed by Vino del cassa (house red) was very good. Off for our now standard after dinner ice cream and we walked along the lake taking in the beautiful look of the water with the yachts and the house up the steep hills directly Round the lake. We got home in time to see Holland get 3-2 up over Ururaghy. Dom, Jo, Mark and Sue have arrived and are out dinner so i am going to make a phone call or two (you have to love Skype). Had a couple of drink with Doom And Mark as they arrived while I was making calls. Another great day and looking forward to tomorrows ride.

Swiss Alps - Monday 5th July, 2010

Link to the Swiss Alps ride map and elevation

Click here to see the Swiss Alps ride map and elevation

A Day in the Swiss Alps

The Elevation graph of todays ride

Composed by Van Velo

It was going to be hard to top yesterday but we thought web would try with a ride up the Swiss Alps from Altdorf to Klausenpass.

We started with another nice breakfast and stocked up on energy for our ride by making it a big one. Sorting and packing our gear to a short time and soon we were of to Altdorf with Bob piloting the pre tour tool van. We arrived in Altdorf and went shopping in Aldi. I kept the Garmin in my pocket and got some interesting looks when the lady in our lives again started issuing advice frequently telling us we were not heading in the right direction or that satellite reception had been lost. The Garmin is now officially known as "The Missus". Some food and sunblock in the kitty and we went to find a map as a had neglected to get the name of our destination. Again the young local ladies excelled themselves and happily gave us excellent advice, showing us on the maps they sell and didn't expect us to pay for it as it was 24 Franks. About 24 Aussie dollars.wow.

Some time was spent putting our bikes together and sorting Andy's rear derailaur.
We headed off not really knowing how far or how steep the road would be. We soon found out that it would be around 7-8% for the full 25kms with one short down hill in the middle. It was overcast when we left with the tops of the mountains obscured. It was a pleasant 20 degrees which turned to a much lower number the higher we went. Be the time we got to the top we were among the snow in the rain.

Now I need to try to describe this ride from a scenery perspective. Fucking amazing keeps come to mind. The mountains are amazingly high and so so steep with many waterfalls streaming down the rocky slip areas. Huge monoliths of rock tower vertically into the clouds (damn the clouds). I kept riding along totally absorbed by the changing views that seen small villages miles down the valley with 5 water falls heading straight for it only to merging at the bottom to form ever widen streams. Simply sensational. There were many many small farms on the way up that ilk a living from the very steep slopes. I struggle to comprehend that they farm on the amazingly steep slopes. The smell of cow manure is strong lower down as the farmers use little tractors and spray all the manure from the dairies out on the paddocks. People along the roads were cutting their grass using long scythes. Nice and quiet. Many sawmills are along the side of the road with a couple among the houses.

Back to the ride. This was a long ride and Andy and Bob soon scootered away from me. A few picture stops to gather evidence to back up my claims were had. The overcast but warm day soon disappeared as we entered the clouds and soon it was raining. It became very cold with no more farm land to be seen. The end seemed like it would never be reached with my legs hurting a lot. Many walkers were up toward the top, hiking along trails and motor bike numbers were very high also.

The landscape became less steep, but not the road, and low and behold, farm land appeared again. I don't understand how they make a go of it up there. I assume it is by having the stock in sheds and bring the grass to them. At last the end was reached and we were very happy with our efforts and believe this to be one of the most amazing ride we have done to date. Ahead was the decent which left me in two minds. Almost 25kms of beautiful down hills was going to be sensational but the cold would be not so nice. As expected it was extremely cold for the first part but there was a distinct line on the road that had rain on one side and sunshine on the other. A dry run down to Altdorf. Heaven. Andy set his helmet cam up and away we went. A coup,e more photo stops and it was bikes in the car and off for lunch. What a beautiful town and again we were not disappointed with the quality of the meal. They do amazingly good salads in Europe.

A reasonably uneventful drive home was good and allowed me time to do this. For all our photos, videos and other interesting bits, head to the Tools on Tour web site and look for the links.

Baden Baden to Zurich

Baden Baden - Zurich Day 5
Another early start to the day. A nice cool night with some rain. Slept with the door to the balcony open all night and still slept with no covers. Andy did some early morning blogging while sat around. Decided to go for a ride. Sleepy head Bob, who had his own room wouldn't get up so it was Andy and myself who headed off to towns unknown. Rode out the way we drove in. The first 1.8km was interesting. Started at 6%, didn't take long to get to 11% and peaked at 14%. the majority was around the 11%. Got to the bottom and rode through Selbach, another nice town and then onto Gernsbach. A nice 10km ride there and 10km back. The ride back down the hill was sensational. Top speed of 79.79km/hr on a wet and winding road. A nice shower was followed by a beautiful breakfast. The cereal was great. It tasted just like Specula's the Dutch spiced biscuits. So yuuuummmmmmm. Muesli , fruit and yogurt was nice as was the rolls with scrambled eggs, Swiss and Edam cheese with ham and 2 different types of sausage. Some nice bread and cake with coffee ended a very large breakfast. 9.30am and we are on our way zurIch with Andy in the pilots seat. An interesting trip with Andy's driving skills shown to be deficient when the trip was well underway. Andy has been happy to deride driving skills due to stalling etc by Bob and myself ( mainly myself) but Bob and I are happy to not have stalled while driving down a hill and running up the gutter. A stop at the Swiss border seen the purchase of a travel pass which allows us to use all main roads. We stopped at a quaint Swiss village and had morning tea. Coffee and walnut pastry was very nice as was the highly pierced and tattooed young woman who served us.
Memory from last night: a guy walking up to eat looking like a Mafia boss. Super slick, short and sooooo up himself. By his side was a very trashy looking blonde with tattoos. They were a very odd
Looking couple.
We arrived in Zurich and found the hotel after a few detours which tested our female navigator to the max. To her credit she remained calm at all times.
After checking in we exchanged euros for franks and purchasing a 24hr tram ticket. Franks are about the same value as aussie dollars. We headed into the city and i don't believe I will be able fully describe the afternoon that we had, it was so amazing.
We arrived at central and walked into a crowd of people that numbered in the hundreds of thousands. There were hundreds of stalls and many rides. There were at least three claw rides, a very large ferris wheel and lots of side show stalls. We had the pleasure of being at the top of the ferris wheel when there was a very loud clap of thunder. Yiiikes.
There were approximate 15 stages with people singing, with one of them being very large and a large area for the crowd to gather and bars all around. Many of them were behind large bars with the purpose of getting the people in to drink. The music and singing was very diverse and very good. The food was amazing with so many stalls it is hard to believe. They were selling every type of food you could think of.The crowds filled the streets on both sides of the river with each side being at least 2 streets wide. Kilometres of crowded streets with such a diverse range of people it was a real treat to stand and watch them. We walked a very long way an enjoyed every step of it. This was one extremely sensational day that include a stunt plane show which was something i have never seen before. The plane was very fast and would scream towards the water of the lake, fly in a loop and then straight up till it stalled. It would just sit there going flat out but not moving until it would fall down and start spinning in all directions for a long time till it would straighten out and once again head to the water only to do it again. The guys skiing down a long ramp with a jump at the end was another new thing to see. They would do their acrobatics and then land with the skis in their normal position. Must be hard on the knees! Lunch was a very yummy schnitzel burger (I can't remember the correct name. Mine had Sweet Chilli sauce with Bob and Andy having mustard. Andy bight himself a man bag. Very nice and now makes a good pair with Bob.
The whole city is very beautiful with so many large old buildings that have been restored to their former glory. Many pictures were taken from the ferris wheel so check out the blog for a view once we get them uploaded. I estimate there was at least 150,000 people there and that is probable un major under estimate.
with a beer in a cafe and a slow walk back to the tram listening to singers as we went. This is one expensive city as the prices were much higher than in Germany.
As a bins to the end of our afternoon we got to our room with 20kms to go in the tour and witnessed the amazing finish with so many crashing out in the final moments. Well down Renshaw for getting second. Aussie aussie aussie oui oui oui.
Now it is time to get cleaned up and head back for dinner.
We went back to the festival for dinner and had Italian with a bottle of good Italian red. Nice meal of pasta for all. We walked around again and realised it was all a lot bigger than we first thought.
The music is so loud and some of the stages around the corner from each other so you walk through a wall of sound only to have it mingle with different sounds and then become a new sound. Fantastic.
The end of the day. My legs are sore from walking. Looking forward to driving to Altdorf and riding up the Alps in the morning. Altdorf to Linthal or when ever we stop on the way.

Photo from the Zurich Festival

We were very fortunate to be in Zurich for a massive Festival, heres a couple of photos from on the big Ferris Wheel.