This British summer means a trip to Pass’Portes du Soleil is in order

SO, it’s British Summer Time and that can only mean one thing; with the start of the Tour de France imminent and cycling on my mind, I decided it was time for my annual pilgrimage to the French Alps for the Pass’Portes du Soleil.

It was time for a weekend of some serious biking!

I set up base in one of Rude-Chalet’s beautiful retreats. Nestled in the idyllic setting of Morzine, Chalet Christophe is only a stone’s throw away from the tracks and trails of the Alps. Part of the Portes du Soleil, Morzine attracts thousands of cyclists every year. It is easy to see why we cyclists come here, but this trip for me was a little different from its predecessors.

After heading over to the ‘dark-side’ of cycling earlier this year, I’ve found that it isn’t always necessary to get mucky on a bike to have fun. Instead I headed over armed with not only a mountain bike, but a road bike too. I was lucky enough to be given the chance to ride one of Halford’s new Carrera Viragos. A special limited edition carbon fibre road bike, that comes complete with a great spec and weighs in at a mere 8.6kg, perfect for those long Alpine climbs. As I headed out of the chalet my sexy new steed was already turning a few heads and causing some interested chatter amongst fellow bikers. This bike seriously looks the part, yet retails at a very affordable price tag.

I had a clear idea of the route I wanted to do; something to put the bike through its paces with a monster of a climb at the start and a good long decent to finish. I programmed the route into my Garmin Edge 800. Also new to the market, this clever little computer is invaluable for the keen cyclist, especially on trips such as this. It makes navigation a doddle and, as it comes complete with a heart rate and cadence monitor, provides a plethora of interesting stats and figures to boast about over a beer, post ride.

My first test of the day was the back breaking eight mile climb up to Avoriaz. This climb featured in the Tour de France a few years back and I knew it would be a challenge in the 33°C heat of the day. Teamed with the Virgo we made light work of the rhythmic switchbacks that took me a whopping 2466m to the top. It’s fair to say that I’m reasonably new to road biking, however it does not take an expert to realise the potential of this light-weight machine; As I headed down the other side of the mountain I figured it was time to see how well the bike handled the fast Alpine descents.

The bike took everything I threw at it. It held corners well and was effortless to manoeuvre as I swooped down the snake-like tarmac. As I continued I quickly checked the Garmin to see what lay ahead – another seven miles of pure adrenaline still to come! I felt more and more confident as I got to know the bike, enough to leave off the breaks and hit some high speeds. I couldn’t wait to check my highest attained speed at the bottom of the mountain!

The next day it was back to my old stomping ground and time to take advantage of the yearly Mecca for mountain bikers. My trip coincided with the Pass’Portes du Soleil, a three day long mountain bike trek, which takes in some of the best trails the Alps have to offer. This time my partner in crime was a Voodoo Zobop.

Swapping the tarmac for dusty trails I headed out early morning to see how well the bike would fair. I must admit I usually hit these trails with my big, heavy downhill bike - but this nifty demon of a bike left me wondering if it was ever necessary. Taking all of the hits thrown at it, the bike handled the rough terrain tremendously well and left me feeling certain that the all mountain, shorter travel bikes are the future of mountain biking for me.