Wow - I have just had the most amazing day out. Robin Oldfield told me about the mountain bike ride down the "World`s Most Dangerous Road" and I decided to do it while I was here.
The World`s Most Dangerous Road, is nearly 70km of downhill fun. At one point 200 to 300 people a year died on the road. While they`ve built a new road around the worst bit (which is still dangerous) they keep a count of fatalities, and this year over 60 people have died - including mountain bikers. The reason it`s so dangerous is that it`s a single lane (only 10 feet wide in parts), dirt road, with sheer drops of up to 600 meters - straight down to the valley floor. You can still see the wrecks of buses and cars at the bottom. I decided to bike down with Gravity - who have the best reputation and from what I hear from mountain bikers, the best equipment.
Everyone meets in a cafe in the morning, and then they drive everyone to the start point which is 4,700 meters above sea level (Mont Blanc is 4,800 meters). After some tuition, they take you down the tarmac section, and then onto the road itself. The views are incredible - not that you can look much - because you have to stay on the left of the track, and at some points you`re a foot or so away from the edge. Matt and his team were excellent guides, and let everyone go at their own pace.
While I was usually at the back of the group (there were some mountain bikers on the trip who went really fast) Matt said it was one of the fastest groups he`d ever taken. You stop every 10 minutes or so, while the group reforms, and then it`s off again. As you go down the mountain it gets warmer, and the air is thicker, and eventually we ended up at an animal sanctuary for lunch - 3,600 meters lower than at the start of the day. An awesome day - thanks to Robin for the info, and thanks to Matt and Gravity for an incredible, fun, and safe day out.
Here`s some pics:
The World`s Most Dangerous Road, is nearly 70km of downhill fun. At one point 200 to 300 people a year died on the road. While they`ve built a new road around the worst bit (which is still dangerous) they keep a count of fatalities, and this year over 60 people have died - including mountain bikers. The reason it`s so dangerous is that it`s a single lane (only 10 feet wide in parts), dirt road, with sheer drops of up to 600 meters - straight down to the valley floor. You can still see the wrecks of buses and cars at the bottom. I decided to bike down with Gravity - who have the best reputation and from what I hear from mountain bikers, the best equipment.
Everyone meets in a cafe in the morning, and then they drive everyone to the start point which is 4,700 meters above sea level (Mont Blanc is 4,800 meters). After some tuition, they take you down the tarmac section, and then onto the road itself. The views are incredible - not that you can look much - because you have to stay on the left of the track, and at some points you`re a foot or so away from the edge. Matt and his team were excellent guides, and let everyone go at their own pace.
While I was usually at the back of the group (there were some mountain bikers on the trip who went really fast) Matt said it was one of the fastest groups he`d ever taken. You stop every 10 minutes or so, while the group reforms, and then it`s off again. As you go down the mountain it gets warmer, and the air is thicker, and eventually we ended up at an animal sanctuary for lunch - 3,600 meters lower than at the start of the day. An awesome day - thanks to Robin for the info, and thanks to Matt and Gravity for an incredible, fun, and safe day out.
Here`s some pics:
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