Departure at 8am, water bottles fall, tires explode, in short, we are 300 cyclists.

I take the lead group which drags me at 30 km/h average towards Aosta before I get lost.

The climb up the pass is hell. 30 kilometers at 6% average, the bike loaded with 23 kilos, I sweat and get overtaken a lot, by everyone lightly loaded who sleep in hotels, or those just more experienced than me.

Several breaks later, deliverance awaits me at the summit. A quick glance at the GPS, surprisingly I’m still not too badly placed. The descent is dizzying, 40 kilometers of asphalt smooth as a billiard table.

Unfortunately, an accident blocks the road halfway. The silver lining is that many cyclists gather, thus recreating a small peloton. I notably meet one of the Frenchmen from yesterday, we decide to finish together to sleep in Lausanne.

End of descent, we rejoin a group. To make up for the delay, the pace is even faster, during relays you have to drag teammates at over 30 km/h to avoid being replaced.

In Montreux it’s too much, with Sébastien, the French companion, we stop to do grocery shopping. 27 kilometers later, we arrive in Lausanne, a kilo of pasta and some tomato sauce on our hands.

The evening is short: shower, dinner, sleep, everything is done in 1h30.

Tomorrow morning a small pass awaits us again at sunrise, we need to be sharp. The second fellow, Laurent, struggling in the climb, will join us during the night.

Comments

Séverine

Go on Ivan! What a journey! And it’s only the beginning… You must be soaking it all in. Thank you for taking us along, I’ll take a few minutes each day to read you and admire your photos. Bravo 👏

François

Wow what a first day! Very beautiful pass, already tough without luggage 😄 and the view at the top is superb. Nice to ride in a group. Can’t wait to read the rest!

LO73

Cool, this little diary, so good!!! Have a great trip, it’s a wonderful experience :)