First day on the Bike Park is in the bag!

First day on the Bike Park is in the bag!

Well, that’s it. The seal’s broken! My first day on the Bike Park is in the bag!

We were all a bit slow out of the blocks on Saturday morning after our bright idea to just have a couple of drinks on Friday night and get to bed early went out of the window. Another great evening though… two different BBQs, we caught up with some friends, met a bunch of new people and we got in plenty of French practice. Friday was a beauty and everyone jumped at the chance to squeeze a BBQ in before the rain returned and man, did it return! It was so heavy during the night that there was no discernable pitter-patter, it just sounded like water was pouring out of the sky!

My bike on the chair in front on the Chavannes Express, Les Gets
My bike on the chair in front on the Chavannes Express, Les Gets

 

The rain, my woolly head and a few pre-ride nerves meant I wasn’t brimming with enthusiasm to get out there and on it but… it was the first day of the season proper and it’d be rude not to. After a bowl of cereal and a couple of brews, I got my kit together and rolled off down the road leaving Nina and the kids cuddled up on the sofa, watching TV in their PJs. A few minutes later, I pulled up at the ticket office and was taken aback by how many riders there were AND by the state they were in! They were all completely soaked and covered from head-to-toe in mud.

I don’t know why I was surprised. I’ve spent many a day covered in muck but I think having spent the winter here, having just had the quiet inter-season and having had a mental picture of riding in Les Gets on dry, dusty, sun soaked days, to suddenly see so much mess was a bit weird. There was mud everywhere. On the chairs of the chairlifts, the turnstyles, the pavement, the loading platforms. I stuck out like a pristine sore thumb but I knew that wouldn’t last for long.

The Les Gets website had told us that there was a 50% discount available for the 260€ summer Portes Du Soleil bike lift ticket when you hand over your winter season pass which was very appealing when there’s four of us to pay for. We’d only arrived in February and had taken advantage of discounted winter half-season tickets. I handed mine over at the ticket office hoping I’d still get some kind of discount… Nothing! I held my tongue while the lady looked through all her blurb and then rang someone else to double check but still nothing! Jeeze! Never mind. You win some, you lose some.

Photo of somebody getting some air from the chair Bike Park Les Gets
Photo from the chair of a rider getting some air.

 

With my new ‘full price’ summer season pass in pocket, I pushed my bike up to the Chavannnes Express lift and hung back to watch the lads in front scan theirs and move through the turnstyle whilst leaning over and rolling their bikes through the adjacent gate before queuing up to board the chair. When the chair in front passed, they popped their bike onto its back wheel and wheelied it forward until the front wheel rolled and slotted into the bracket on the back of the chair. They then took a seat on the next chair behind. I followed suit, slotting my bike onto the back of theirs and took a seat on my own. I love riding on chairlifts. It’s great in the winter and it’s a pleasure to do it in summer, sailing over the juicy green grass, breathing fresh mountain air with the bike bobbing around on the chair in front. It beats being squashed in a minibus in Wales, bouncing over potholes with a bunch of other smelly blokes… Sorry lads! 😉

The view from the chair gave me a chance to scope out some of the trails and gauge the standard of the other riders. The verdict: Pretty flippin’ decent! Given the slippery conditions and my  fuzzy head, I decided on the lift that I’d take it steady to start off, with some greens and blue trails. We’ve got all summer after all, I’ve got nothing to prove, and I’m pretty rusty. Trails, like pistes, are graded Green, Blue, Red, Black and then Expert! There’s cross country (XC) and downhill (DH) trails in the park but it’s the DH we’re after here!

Looking back down 'La Roue Libre' red from the chairlift, Les Gets
Looking back down ‘La Roue Libre’ red from the chairlift.

 

At the top of the lift, the lifties unhook your bike and leave it in a stand for you to collect when you’ve stepped off. I collected mine, checked my brakes again and made sure the wheels were nice and secure before setting off for the nearest green. There’s always the temptation to head straight for the bigger stuff but I’ve learnt the hard way that it’s worth easing into it. A few turns in and I was glad I had. Even though it was a green, the wet had made it pretty tricky. The trail weaved through the woodland swooping left and right. I slipped, slid, hucked, splashed and hurtled my way down to the bottom. I felt a bit sketchy here and there but my season’s biking was properly underway and I was buzzing. The only way is up! When I pulled up back at the bottom I looked like everybody else. Covered in muck!

Covered in mud after mountain biking
After one run! The back was much worse.

 

I boarded the lift again and headed up for a couple more descents and it was more of the wet, sloppy same. Great fun though! The next runs felt much better and I was feeling more relaxed on the bike but it’ll take a few more to start clicking properly again. I’m really looking forward to making some progress and improving over the summer. I’d have stayed for a few more but I was clock watching as I wanted to get home to watch the rerun of the Senior TT that we’d missed on Friday night. I arrived back at the bottom of the Chavannes lift totally caked in mud and joined the queue for the bike wash. I rinsed my bike down and next time, I’ll hose myself down as well. The washing machine was set for a real workout!

Queue for the bike wash after my first day of the Bike Park, Les Gets
Queue for the bike wash.

 

I set off pedalling my spotless bike back uphill to our place and just as I reached the halfway point, a massive rumble of thunder kicked off and the heavens opened and started pelting hailstones. I was glad I still had my lid and goggles on and rode on wondering whether bike tyres were big enough to insulate me from a lightning strike. Nina and the kids were still cuddled up on the sofa when I got home and it turned out that the TV guide had lied to me about the TT Senior re-run being on. I could have stayed out for a few more runs after all… Ah well. We’d thought about taking the kids out for a ride in the afternoon but given the weather and the tricky conditions, I jumped in the shower, wrapped up and joined them on the sofa.

Only a few laps but a great way to spend a Saturday morning and blast away a hangover. I’m looking forward to more of the same. It’s probably going to be rammed this week with Crankworx on but you can’t pass up an opportunity to share some trails with the best in the World. More practice tomorrow me thinks and fingers crossed that rain clears off for the pros!

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