BIKES

HEADS UP
A preview of the
forthcoming Etape
Suisse sportive
taking in a tough
Alpine climb
Distance: 1
Big hills: 1
Challenge:
Cafe stops: 1
So long, farewell: the breakaway goes
but the chasing group are closing...
It hard to be neutral when it comes
to Switzerland’s natural beauty
Lush meadows splashed with bright
purple, pure white and the golden
yellow hue of delicate flowers, clear
waterfalls cascading through the
jagged Alpine rock and the melodic jingle of
cow bells; you would be forgiven for thinking
that, at any moment, Julie Andrews would run
over the crest of a hill in full soprano mode
belting out, “The hills are alive….”
Ok, I know that was Austria, but the von
Trapp family did escape over the border to
Switzerland at the end of The Sound of Music.
(In real life they actually escaped to America,
but I’m sticking with the Hollywood version.)
Thankfully I didn’t have to flee any
dictatorships to visit Switzerland. Instead,
I was lucky enough to be invited to preview
the routes of the upcoming Etape Suisse; the
one-pass 80km Albula Tour or two-pass
150km Albula/Flüela Challenge. As this was
my first European ride I was going to take on
the single pass of the Albula.
Guiding the 20-strong group was Robert
Simpson, co-founder of the event, and a
number of the investors who have helped to
fund the project, which has its inaugural outing
on September 5-8.
Switzerland may be more associated with
Toblerone chocolate and winter sports, but the
Alps make for good mountain biking and
hiking routes and the Swiss roads are long and
smooth — perfect for a spot of road cycling.
High point
Our ride began from our hotel, the Grischa,
opposite Davos Platz train station. It was
only 9am but we could already feel the sun
beating down on our necks. I smeared factor
20 on every patch of skin that wasn’t covered
by Lycra.
We were immediately led out onto super
smooth roads, and even though it was the
weekend the roads through the town were
quiet. The ride took place at the beginning of
June, although during the winter season Davos
is rather more bustling.
The municipality has a few strings to its
bow. It’s the highest city in Europe, sitting at
1,560m (5,120ft) on the River Landwasser;
is home to the country’s biggest ski resort;
and it is host to the World Economic Forum.
This is an annual meeting of top business
people, political leaders and intellectuals who
come together to discuss pressing issues that
are affecting the world. The theme of this
year’s meeting was: ‘The reshaping of the
world: consequences for society, politics and
business’, and it’s a pretty big deal as they book
out the whole of the city for around four days
at the start of the year.
SEPTEMBER 2014 CYCLING ACTIVE 141