Chocolate Log

So, here I am, sat in my top floor flat in London looking for the best line out of the window box, down the tree to the grounds below. Verbier has done something funny to me; I have discovered that the closer my bike is to being vertical, the more I seem to enjoy myself. Which was a good job really.

I have a load of photos which do a frankly quite appalling job of doing the place justice, but I'll put them up anyway so you can all accuse me of taking them at Thetford. I can't remember all of the trail names - we rode so many of them, so I'll go through what I remember and throw some random photos of trails in for the Jordie Lunn types who prefer to look at pictures than read words.

We stayed with Bike Verbier, who did a superb job of looking after us. Apart from guiding us down the most amazing trails I've ever ridden, the food was fantastic, the chalet beautiful and the view from our balcony stunning. But to the bike stuff. The important stuff.

Fontenay

The first day all twelve guests - Jon, myself, Sophie (my sister) and Bill (her bloke) and eight northern strangers - went out as one group of twelve. This was the day our bike competence was assessed. Fontenay was fun and a good test of capability with a varied mix of rocks, fast blasts, switchbacks, some roots thrown in and a couple of steep sections. Nothing too tricky, but it was a very enjoyable introduction to the trails of Verbier, and also a demonstration of how much our riding had progressed when we rode it again later in the week. The first time, some sections looked steep. The second, it didn't.

Shrek

This is a moderately steep section of rubbly singletrack. Fast and fun blast down a mountain. According to Lucy of Bike Verbier, there is another trail in the area called Wayne Rooney which looks similar. Shrek Leads into..

Transcontinental

Another fast, rubbly blast but with added rock-gardens thrown in for good measure.

Nuthouse

I loved this trail. My introduction to rooty steeps. Starts off at the top as very narrow singletrack cutting through the grass in tight switchbacks winding its way down the mountain. Rocky patches are frequent in the top part. The single track leads down into the forest, where roots and steeps take over.

Valon Darby

This trail starts with a climb and a push to get to the other side of the mountain. Jon carried on up the next mountain and rode that. It looked steep. Again the pic looks like Thetford by comparison.

The first part of Valon Darby was long, uber rocky and technical with some exposure in places. This leads into the forest through a rooty section to a fast forest blat between swtichbacks. Lots of wide smiles. Well, until we got to the bottom where we had a 500m vert climb back up again. Still, we had plenty to keep us entertained - our Swedish guide Jonas knew Abba song lyrics in English AND Swedish. Time flies and all that....

The Cobbly One with Grass

Yeah, ok it starts out smoothish. Then cobbles. More cobbles. Steep cobbles. The cobble greaser had been out too. Drainage ditches. Damp grass. Damp grass on greasy buffed cobbles. Uneven cobbly switchbacks. We all stayed on though. Incredibly. Still grinning like an idiot.

Chute de Bisse

I remember some tricky switchbacks involved in this one. My camera died about then.

Toboggan

Best 'til last. Well, joint best. 1700 metres of utter joy. This starts out as fast, flowing single track traversing the mountain, the standard Verbier tight corner thrown in here and there, as well as bovine obstacles on the trail. This leads into fast double-track - one you can really rip up, and carry your speed into the slightly banked corners. Cobbles, rocks and donkeys try to keep your speed down here. The donkey didn't do a bad job. Then the second part of this trail starts. Loose steep into tight switchback. This levels out and then you hit the part of the trail which gives Toboggan its name. Yes, it's steep and rubbly. Steep pretty much all the way to the bottom now, but it feels like you're IN the trail with its steep chutes, high banked corners, and plenty of sliding around. It's just so much fun.

Jack of Clubs

Jon and I rode this cheeky Bike Verbier trail with Phil when the others had decided to go to the bar. Last trail of the last day. Had to be a good one, eh? Well it didn't disappoint. Just one word for this trail - steep. Maybe steeper. An ex-drainage channel, this is a new woodland trail and is loose in only the way a new trail can be. It really feels like freeriding, cutting across the DH trail in places, your back wheel disappearing over the edge of the course through the bushes. This trail rarely levels out, has steep corners and a few obstacles. And contains an obscenely steep roll-in to boot. I loved it.

The Other Ones

Here are some pics from other trails slightly forgotten but very much enjoyed.

My riding improved probably 50% in that five days of riding. The thing which struck me about Verbier was how it threw down the gauntlet to you. Some of the steep trails you must ride all or nothing. There's no half-way. No stopping or beard stroking. You have to commit, but you are rewarded most hansomely when you do. The shady geezers offering their chemical wares in clubs have nothing on what this place does to your head.

So I guess it's back to the North Downs until next year then. I'm pretty sure John Steep is going to look very different to me now. Roll on next summer and my next Alpine adventure.

If I can wait that long.

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