Continental Col Climbing

Road Red

I'm thinking of driving to the continest at some point to do a few days training in the mountains.

How far do you have to travel before you can get some good mountain runs?

Thanks

mrushton

Germany, Spain (North or South), France, Italy,Austria, Switzerland. 2 hours flight time. How big a mountain do you want to go up?

Kléber

If you're in Kent the closest climbs are in the Alsace, you can tackle the likes of the Ballon d'Alsace, 12km long at 6% I think. This has the advantage of being hours closer than the Alps, you can leave early in the morning and be climbing by lunchtime.

But if you want more, then head for the Alps, you can go towards Geneva and then head towards Morzine or Albertville for the start of many of the famous climbs, but it's a full day's drive.

ugo.santalucia

The closest real mountains are around Morzine-Annecy, 8 hours drive from Calais. The Alsatian mountains are little more than hills, things you would find in Wales without having to go all that way.
If you go to Haute Savoy and you have time to cross the border, I strongly recommend you the climbs in Valle d'Aosta, not as well known, but much harder than the french ones...
IActually some are featured on my website

http://ridewithugo.xtreemhost.com/

Talking about another 2 hours drive (including crossing the Mont Blanc via the Tunnel, which is a bit pricey at 33 eurs each way)

mrushton

Depends what you are looking for in gradients/lengths/time of year. All those mtn areas as above. If you stay in Bourg st.Maurice you can climb over the petit Col St.bernard into Aosta. You also have the choice of the Cormet de Roselend and the Iseran plus others if you use the train or a car.

Road Red

Thanks guys,

Not having ridden any climbs of any significance, 12km at 6% seems a reasonable/challenging 'hill' to tackle. My ultimate goal is the Etape so the bigger climbs will be necessary at some point. However, with reasonably cheap crossings available, it would make for a very good training weekend to pop accross on Sat and return Sun evening, take in an afternoon and morning ride. Certainly better hill training than I can get around here.

But I take the point that to get to the real climbs it looks like a days driving. It does seem though, that with a days driving I will be spoilt for choice.

Regards.

Kléber

ugo.santalucia wrote:

The Alsatian mountains are little more than hills, things you would find in Wales without having to go all that way.

I agree that the Alsatian climbs are not as big as the Alpine ones but they are far bigger than anything in Wales. The Ballon d'Alsace is 200m higher than Snowdon and you can ride to the top, plus there are other similar climbs.

By way of comparison, this is what Dave Lloyd says: "the notorious Bwlch y Groes… Probably the most feared and hardest hill in the whole of Wales" but this road is 10km long and under 4%, reaching a lowly 546m above sea level.

FJS

Ballon d'Alsace is by no means the toughest in the Alsace; Grand Ballon, 14.5 km at 7.2 % is, and some other significant climbs around there. Still, you could do most of the tough Alsace climbs in a day and a bit, most are clearly not as tough as the bigger Alpine climbs, and whether those climbs are worth the travel time depends. If you're based in Kent, perhaps; being based in the Peaks (or of I would be in Wales) I wouldn't bother, and save for a trip to the Alps. Still, doing some serious traning in the Alsace should be an excellent Etape preparation.

CumbrianMan

Road Red

There's a sportive run in that area every year, called La Vosgienne (www.vosgienne.org/fr/).
If you have a look on the site under parcours, it'll show the 2 routes (100km/160km), taking in a few good climbs, and the Ballon D'Alsace.

You could base your ride around some of this.

Anonymous

Kléber wrote:

ugo.santalucia wrote:

By way of comparison, this is what Dave Lloyd says: "the notorious Bwlch y Groes… Probably the most feared and hardest hill in the whole of Wales" but this road is 10km long and under 4%, reaching a lowly 546m above sea level.

Bwlch Y Groes....10Km long...what?.....averaging 4%...what?.....that must be the flat 7.5Kms making those silly stats....Bwlch Y groes is 2.5Kms is....0.5Km at 12% avg, 2Kms at 15% avg.....

Yip maybe the Uk doesnt have the big massive high altitude climbs of the Continent, But heres a bit of comparison....Ive done many Continental brutes...Galibier,Tourmalet,Croix de Fer,Aubisque,Ventoux,Gavia,Mortirolo,Stelvio etc.....and Id much rather tackle these Giants than the likes of Bwlch Y Groes or Hardknott....Im near trembling with fear at the bottom of these horrors.....

To save yourself money...why not head upto the North Pennines....and do the huge long draggish climbs up there....Hartside,ShotMoss etc...then have a pop at Great Dun Fell.....thats 7kms at 8.5% average....and tougher than Alpe De Huez,Luz Ardiden etc....good long climbs which builds endurance......maybe not as long or high as the bigboys abroad....but I always find that losing a fair bit of weight and building lots of endurance helps immensely....sign up for a few UK sportives and that should give you a good fitness boost....

Hope this helps

Road Red

Thanks guys..........loads of good advice and options there.

Doing my first sportiv, the Hell of the Ashdown, on Sunday week. No doubt that will give me a feeling as to where I am in the preparation stakes.

RR

ugo.santalucia

RICHYBOYcp wrote:

Kléber wrote:

ugo.santalucia wrote:

By way of comparison, this is what Dave Lloyd says: "the notorious Bwlch y Groes… Probably the most feared and hardest hill in the whole of Wales" but this road is 10km long and under 4%, reaching a lowly 546m above sea level.

Bwlch Y Groes....10Km long...what?.....averaging 4%...what?.....that must be the flat 7.5Kms making those silly stats....Bwlch Y groes is 2.5Kms is....0.5% at 12% avg, 2Kms at 15% avg.....

Yip maybe the Uk doesnt have the big massive high altitude climbs of the Continent, But heres a bit of comparison....Ive done many Continental brutes...Galibier,Tourmalet,Croix de Fer,Aubisque,Ventoux,Gavia,Mortirolo,Stelvio etc.....and Id much rather tackle these Giants than the likes of Bwlch Y Groes or Hardknott....Im near trembling with fear at the bottom of these horrors.....

To save yourself money...why not head upto the North Penninnes....and do the huge long draggish climbs up there....Hartside,ShotMoss etc...then have a pop at Great Dun Fell.....thats 7kms at 8.5% average....and tougher than Alpe De Huez,Luz Ardiden etc....good long climbs which builds endurance......maybe not as long or high as the bigboys abroad....but I always find that losing a fair bit of weight and builsing lots of endrance helps immensely....sign up for a few UK sportives and that should give you a good fitness boost....

Hope this helps

In principle I agree with you... a bit less when you say that Hardknott is to be feared more than the Mortirolo... but you are probably speaking about the weather...
Alsatian "mountains" are just not challenging enough. There are tougher climbs in the UK

Kléber

Yes they are not that challenging but they are still long steady climbs to replicate the effort of Alpine climbing. I only mentioned them because they are closer than the Alps. But I'll repeat, go to the Alps. Probably the closest place is, as mentioned above, somewhere like Annecy or Morzine.

Anonymous

Continental climbs v's UK climbs...I reckon they both demand different efforts....the toughest climbs Ive did abroad are very steep aswell....I did the Pico Nieves climb in Gran Canaria...thats way tougher than the Mortirolo....don't get me wrong the Mortirolo was a brute aswell....but although they are steep they are not 'UK' steep....and taking it steady they never send me into the same planet as some UK brutes...

Whereas with the Likes of Bwlch Y Groes and Hardknott,Wrynose, Rosedale Chimney etc you are put into a very 'unique' pain platform....and although it only lasts 10-20mins the pain and effort involved is so extreme it leaves a permanent stain on the memory....as deepdown you know it put you right on the very limits of your ability...

On the bike climbs abroad you cane usually get into a nice steady cadence and saunter up the hill from anything between 1 to 3.5 hours.....

At the top of the Mortirolo(then followed byt the Gavia) I asked all my colleagues....what do you fear more....Hardknott or the Mortirolo...all said Hardknott....

Hitting Hardknott at 100miles on the FWC is the most extreme effort Ive ever did....Im petrified of those efforts...no sauntering up that :shock:

toolonglegs

Heres a good website to see whats open... most roads over 600 meters have a good likelyhood of ice for a month or two yet.
http://www.infotrafic.com/route.php?reg ... s.php?ALPN
But it is warming up a bit here lately...sure it wont last!!!.

term1te

Driving fairly regularly from the Alsace to Kent (I live in sight of the Ballon d'Alsace) I wouldn't want to do it twice in a weekend and get any decent cycling in. You are looking at 6 hours non-stop from Calais to get to Strasbourg, another hour to get down to Mulhouse. Plus you'll have to account for the motorway tolls, I think it is about €35 to Strasbourg.

Having said that, there is some excellent cycling to be had in the Alsace and the neighbouring Jura. Personally I'd save my pennies and come over for 3 or 4 days at least. Easyjet fly to both Basel and Geneve, why not fly to Basel, cycle down the Jura to Geneve, and fly back? You won't miss out on the "hills" and you'll have some excellent views of the Alps. As toolonglegs said, there is still snow above about 700 m at the moment.

JamesB

Take heed of richyboy and ride some of the UK climbs ---mid Wales has some good long testing climbs, eg Milltir Gerrig out of Llangyndir is about 7 km long of continuous climbing; routes over The Eppynt (much beloved by Devil Ride riders), 6 km up from Builth, Bwlch Groes from the northern side good long climb, plenty in Nth England too which others more familiar with area could speak more of.

If it`s any help to you last Sept I rode Coast 2 Coast trans Pyrenean crossing Marie Blanque / Aubisque / Tourmalet / Aspin / Crousettes / Port and Jau, for which my training was based on riding the above climbs, never having ridden on Continnetal climbs before and I felt well prepared