On the Bike. Around the Mountain Part 2 2014

Thursday 4th sept
Bourg-Saint-Maurice to Aosta (Italy)

Just a one pass day planned until Eric says - you just have to go over Saint Charles - it’s fantastic and steep on the back side - you will like it.  OK ok - i will see.

But first the col de Petit Bernard - it goes over the border into Italy at 2188meters and is 26.5 kms
Over this distance, the climb is 1,348 m (an average slope of 5.1%), with the steepest sections at 8.1% at the start of the climb. The Little St Bernard Pass was first crossed by the Tour de France in 1949 and has been featured three times since.

So the facts and figures out of the way - yes it is a little harder at the bottom but still nice climbing on good roads . The small video shows the conditions.

Two hrs 20 mins climb for 30kms about 13kms hr. I had a cold wind for the last 9 kms but the Crepe and coffee warmed me up.

The descent - 23kms to the Aosta valley floor  is nice twisting descent to begin. The road a little rough but not bad. The police pull in behind but i wave them through as i want to use the total road dropping into the hairpins and not sure that they would agree with that so much. As they leave I enter on a stretch of baby bottom smooth black tar 5 or 6 kms with nice sweeping hairpins The road is perfect - no markings just black tar forever. And so into Therox.

I wait for a minute for another cyclists who had been leaving the top but no sign of him and I turn onto the Saint Carlo climb. It begins easy enough but soon there is no more nice 5-6 % climbing Bottom gear - out of the saddle and climbing. I think it is at 12% average with ramps to 14%. It is honest enough that I take to zig zagging across the road to make it a little easier. (nice friend - he didn’t mention the up part) But it is not long and at the top there is a new sign that I have not seen before. Cyclists beware.

Sure enough - it is a steep downhill- corners flowing but brake pads are taking a hammering, and even the rear tire as I lock it up to dodge a wing mirror. Ops - better bring it back just a notch. But when a couple motards pull in behind I begin to chase them. It’s steep enough that they do not go away from me that fast and i can corner just as quick (sometimes)  The forearms are pumped when i reach the valley floor with a yahooo to the motorcycles parked on the right.

Turn right and head for home in Aosta. But its still almost 30kms away. A quick slurp of some gel and away - lucky its top gear downhill.

Again ice cream and coffee:  revival food.

Just a 90km day but feels like a bit more.