Pre season update from Ride the Alps

The Alpine mountain biking season is almost here. Pre season riding conditions are great!

Post by Mary on May 21, 2019

It’s pre season here in the Alps and like last year the snow is hanging around above 2000m. We’re told that the snow pack is lower than this time last year but not as deep so a few weeks of warm weather should shift it fairly quickly. We could have quite a bit of snow to contend with on the cols during our June Tour du Mont Blanc trips but nothing Jamie hasn’t dealt with before. Despite the persistent snow higher up the mountain we’re still getting some great pre season riding in below 1800m. All of our favourite local routes in the valley are in great condition. Jamie and I had a brilliant ride off the Col de Joux Plane last week, making the most of the work of our local trail builders who have opened up some cracking singletrack in the woods there.

Our kids are both on new bikes this year so they are super-keen to get out and ride. Juliet has a beautiful hand-built frame from Alexander Plaisted of Selwyn Handmade Bicycles, who has recently moved to our valley. Cameron is loving jump practice with Jamie and definitely prefers that to uphill pedaling! We had our first pre season family mountain bike ride this Sunday and they loved it. I am definitely next in line for a new bike given that I’m still riding my much loved but tired-out 13 year old Orange Five with 26″ wheels! Jamie is investigating a new (second hand!) Orange for me hopefully coming very soon!

We still have two weeks of availability during high season this summer. 26th July – 9th August is available for any of our trips. All the lifts will be open and all the high passes should be completely clear of snow. It’s the perfect time of year for Alpine mountain biking. Our holiday apartment is also available during this time, which is ideal for small groups of 2,3 or 4 people.  We can run our Alpine Singletrack Week for just 750 euro p.p for a group of 3. This includes: 5 days fully guided mountain biking, 7 nights self-catering accommodation in our holiday apartment and van support for uplifts and to get to other areas as required. Contact Mary if you’re interested in this trip or any of our Alpine tours.

Last but not least coming very soon are our custom designed Ride the Alps headbands. Handmade in Samoens by Asa from Popcorn Vintage. Perfect for all sports but especially useful for popping under your helmet to keep your ears warm on a chilly day out on the bike or on top of a col in the summer. Jamie has an extensive collection of Popcorn Vintage headbands that he regularly loans out to our guests on biking trips. We’re very excited to be getting our own Ride the Alps range. We should be getting them within the next week or two so keep checking the blog for news. The price will be 20 euro and we can post globally!