Shipping

July 19th
The whole goal of today was to first get the bike sent off along with the bob trailer and our other equipment. Then after sending everything off our next goal was to make it to Geneva where we hoped to find an overnight train to Barcelona, Spain. So, after waking up and grabbing a quick bite to eat we continued our packing process from the previous night. Finally at about 11:00am we had everything in the box including our tent, sleeping bag, pads, riding clothing etc. The next challenge was to find a way to the shipping drop off spot at mail boxes etc.. After some thought we decided it would just be easiest and best to call a taxi instead of trying to piece together several different bus routes while carrying our large box. This ended up being a very smart decision and a huge time saver. We got to the shipping place at about noon just after they had closed for lunch. However, this ended up working out for the best as this allowed us a chance to get a bit of lunch while we waited. Then after they opened back up we got the bike all shipped off and everything (we hope) sorted out with customs. Finally at about 3pm after a rather large shipping bill we found ourselves at the train station figuring out how to get to Geneva. As it turns out they only offer bus rides there so we bought two bus tickets and headed off. We arrived in Geneva at about 6:30pm and tried to book an overnight train ticket to Barcelona. As it turns out this wasn’t an option as everything was completely full so we were stuck in Geneva for the night. So we hit the streets trying to find a hotel. After several stops at different expensive hotels we found a small family owned one down the street from the train station and called it a night.
Nate

Beach Day

It takes a lot of boxes to fit a tandem in... a whole tent full of them!!



Windy and stormy weather at least make for beautiful lake scenes



The beach

July 18

We finally have a day just to enjoy the beach. We were able to sleep in and check the internet and then hit the beach…It is just too bad that a hurricane (or at least gale force winds) hit our beach for the entire day! So we never really actually got in the water but we did sit on the shore and watch the waves crash as others were trying to suntan. However, watching the waves and lake only kept us occupied for so long so we decided to head to the nearest gas station and try our luck at getting some fuel for our stove. This was only mildly successful at first as no one was there and once again our card wouldn’t work in the machine so we waited for a passerby to come and ask them if we could pay them in cash to fill up our bottle. After about 45 minutes of waiting the first person pulled in on a scooter and filled our bottle with a bit of convincing. After topping off the fuel bottle we headed for the shelter of the campground TV room and watched Le Tour with several other campground patrons. After the tour finished we decided to cook dinner and box up our bike to ship home. As you can imagine the boxing process for a tandem can be very time consuming as it is so fragile and large, but finally at about midnight we finished with it and called it a night.

6km to the gas station
Nate

July 17th one last ride

Sun set after a long day


Castle we passed on the ride


Our last col of the day


Scenery of Lake Annecy from col de la forclaz

The plan for today was to ride the loop that our nice neighbors suggested. We needed to go out with a bang so the loop was 94k and included 4 cols: the Col de la Forclaz (a different one than before), Col de Marais, Col de Croix Fry, and the Col de Aravis. We wanted to go for one more ride just in case we did sell our bike. The ride was very enjoyable, but we were trying to beat two things: weather and the clock. The temperature was perfect for riding, but threatening to rain the whole day. Second, we needed to go back to the bike shop from yesterday to see if there were any buyers. We started up the Forclaz which is the take off point for the paragliders around here. After that, we had an easy climb up to Marais. Then, the Croix Fry and Aravis are at about the same elevation with a short descent in between. We found some great scenic points today. One of my favorite little towns that we ran into was called La Clusaz. It is a ski town that reminded Nate of Snowmass (but not as nice). And the road back to Annecy was almost all downhill. In fact, we had a cyclist drafting us on one of the downhills. Then the cyclist either decided that he would pull for a bit or try to pass us, but as it turned out we actually were coasting and hitting the brakes as he was going all out (its great on downhills having the weight of two people). The only place we have an advantage on other cyclists: straight downhill. We took a few wrong turns, but ended up back in Annecy at a reasonable time. Since it was Saturday, we needed to stock up on food and then we needed to clean up our bike in case we had a buyer and get to the bike shop by six. Our grocery shopping trip was an adventure. We went to the normal grocery store. Then, we decided to go to a butcher to get meat for philly cheese steak sandwiches. Nate tried to order 200 grams, but the guy asked him if it was for one person or two. Nate answered honestly: two. 15 euro and one gigantic hunk of animal later, we had plenty for dinner. We arrived at the bike shop to find out that we did not have a buyer, but they did give us directions to another bike shop out of town. We tried two more bike shops with no takers. Disappointed, we were ready to go home. The only bad news was that we desperately needed fuel for our stove and it was well past time for anywhere to be open…and tomorrow is Sunday. We rode to three gas stations and put on another 24k for the day with no luck. They have self-serve gas stations here, but only with the correct kind of bank card. Apparently, they have special chips in their cards here instead of the strip. So, we decided to go home again without any luck and try to cook our block of meat with what we had. We’ll try to get gas tomorrow. We enjoyed dinner at about 10:30 and passed out.
~140k
Mo

Please take our bike!!!

The Island Palace



A canal



Our beach at night

July 16
It was down to business today. We needed to find a couple things in Annecy: the mailboxes etc to ship our bike and some bike shops to get bike boxes/packing material or bike shops to buy our bike. We took off in the morning and searched every nook and cranny in the city and neighboring cities. We finally had to ask a local to find the street for Mailboxes etc. after cruising the streets for about an hour. We finally found the place after some guess work. It turns out that our bike is not quite as expensive as the quote the internet gave us, but still more expensive than we’d like to pay to ship. The problem is that no one we’ve found actually “ships” packages but sends them by plane. We would definitely be willing to wait a month or more for our bike to arrive if it meant paying less, but everyone just really wants to fly our bike to America within the week. We also tried at the post office and they gave us the name of another shipping company that ships by train, but we could never find. We also saw DHL and UPS trucks, but they all ship by plane. As a break in the day, we visited the office of tourism to ask what there was to see around the city and where bike shops were. They have these offices in every city and they are very helpful. We went to see two sights that the lady suggested and then it was back off to find a bike shop. The bike shop was easy to find and he had exactly two bike boxes which is what we needed. He did not, however, want our bike or know anyone who did. So, we went to the other bike shop in town. That owner said that he might know someone who wanted it but we would have to come back tomorrow to find out. He even told us that we should ask for more, but Nate said we would just be happy to sell it. After our long day of searching, we finally went grocery shopping, made dinner, and relaxed by the lake before going to bed.
~30 k
Mo

Road to Annecy

Notice the very small AG2R cyclist




July 15 Chambery-Annecy
Today we started out a little slow. We decided to leave our campsite to go buy breakfast and food for the day before we even packed up. Once we ate, we definitely needed to catch up on our internet usage and blog. So, we packed up most of our things and used the internet until the last minute before checkout time. When we took off, we decided on a route to Annecy that would have a little bit more climbing, but the map said it was scenic. We hit two cols today. They can barely qualify as cols because of their elevation, but they’re still two cols under our belt. We saw some good scenery and even a real AG2R rider who must not be in the tour anymore. We tried to wave to him in good cycling camaraderie, but he did not wave back. The descent into Annecy was gorgeous. The road was twisty and turny and tree-lined and every now and then when you could see through the trees, you could see beautiful scenes of Lake Annecy. Finding camping in Annecy was difficult, but we finally found some 6k away with its own beach!! We met the nicest couple near our campsite. They let us borrow two camp chairs (a rare luxury for us) and tons of books and maps of Paris. We spent a good part of the night talking with them. They gave us some suggestions for what to do and see around Annecy. They suggested that we ride one of the loops around here that included 4 cols and beautiful scenery. We are excited to see what Annecy has in store. We have heard its gorgeous and even has canals like Venice. We also hope to find either a buyer for our tandem or somewhere willing to ship it for a reasonable price.
~60 k
Mo

Le Tour stage 10

Andy Schleck's bike (current race leader)



Levi Leipheimer



Jens Voigt



Spectators

July 14 Chambery

We weren’t sure what was going to happen with the second half of our day today when we woke up. All we knew was that we were going into Chambery for the start of stage 10. We strolled into Chambery at about 9:30 even though the race didn’t start until 1:00. Regardless, it was still packed. I’m not sure if all starts are that crowded, but today was also a national holiday so I’m guessing people didn’t have to work and came down for the festivities. At the start, there are booths, lots of people, and a Tour de France stage with commentators. Of course we couldn’t understand much of what was going on until the riders actually showed up. It was fun to experience the difference in personal space between us and the French. In fact, later we ran into some British people who were commenting on it as well. We also ran into one of the guys from the Seattle crew that we met on the Col de Madeleine. We hung out with him for the rest of the start. He and Nate were able to get some pretty sweet spots next to the barriers as the riders came through to start the race. Then afterwards, they also jumped the barriers to take a picture in front of the Tour de France banner. Of course, they were ready to play the foreigner card and just say that at home everyone jumps barriers. Coming out of that unscathed and starting a trend for the onlookers who also wanted a picture in front of the banner, we headed to lunch. All the cafes and restaurants were packed because of the Tour yet all of them were understaffed because of Bastille Day. It took us a while to even order and our Seattle friend had to leave to catch his train before anyone even waited on us. Capitalist moneymaking idea #37: overstaff your restaurant the day the tour comes through your town (and throw a tv in the mix with the tour on). After lunch we tried to go grocery shopping and discovered that stores are also closed on national holidays. So we stopped at a side of the road produce stand and bought fruit to get us by. (We had some dinner but no breakfast with us). Then we headed to our campsite where we decided to stay another night. We watched the tour, caught up on the internet, did laundry, ate dinner, drank our 3 euro bottle of wine and went to bed. Tomorrow we will head to Annecy.

~10 k
Mo

Le Tour de France!!!

Part of our hat collection Some famous cyclists (video to come later) The road just below us-the first group we could spot our "after" tent spot The boys watching the tour on the tiny tv until the actual cyclists arrived
July 13 Le Tour Stage 9
Yes, the late night stayer uppers once again woke up before us. In fact, they woke up at six this morning. So, we got up and started the day too. We found out that some of the people even ended up sleeping in the road. On today’s agenda were going to the top to see how some of the paint jobs on the road turned out and waiting for some guys in spandex to come through. We started seeing traffic cars and police at about noon. We ended up meeting more Americans(identifiable by the flags and the English they are speaking). We started scheming how we could profit off of this event with so many things (very capitalist-I realized I really am American). First, we would definitely sell more food. They come with a bread truck and a fresh produce truck, but if you stuck some sandwiches in a cart or popsicles and went up and down that road, you’d be a millionaire by the end of the day. The next thing, the restaurant at the top could make tons of pizzas and send people down selling them (of course not after your bathroom overflows). And of course, hike your prices way up just for this one event. It’s okay I kind of like the way it’s laid back and fun, but definite money could be made. After those Americans, some more showed up. If you remember our before picture of our tent spot, you should see the after because a whole group from Seattle showed up right before game time. They are riding around and catching the mountain stages of Le Tour. After the scheming, we started to see intermittent caravan vehicles. After some more time had the caravan came through! They passed out all kinds of goodies including a million and one hats that Nate happened to catch. Along with that, they threw detergent, candy, pastries, coffee, etc. Many of the floats were very entertaining with things from big plastic horses to jungle scenes. Our least favorite but entertaining for some were the male stripperesque men in speedos(with poles) passing out laundry detergent. Why they would have male strippers at an event that had mostly male spectators I do not know…I guess they figure it’s just like spandex. Once the caravan passes through, you’ve got about an hour til the riders actually start showing up. It turns out that one man had a tiny tv with the Tour on. When word got out, a crowd showed up at his doorstep. Nothing unites people of different nationalities like television. It was cool though to see the Tour on the tv having seen that whole stretch of road before and then seeing them pop up around the corner coming straight for you. Once we could finally see riders everyone scattered away from the tv and we waited for the cyclists to show up at our corner. Let me paint the scene: two helicopters were flying overhead stirring up the trees and frightening the cows. The cowbells joined in for a chorus of cheering from down below. The gendarmeries were leading the pack with cyclists and support vehicles close behind. The race was about to approach. The breakaway group rounded the switchback right before ours and started heading right towards us. In staying with tradition, a few people started running next to the riders. I readied my camera to capture a live video of the epic 2010 Tour de France and what should grace my screen but a man running with the riders in nothing but his birthday suit. I bet you didn’t know it, but I came to France to be a director of X-rated films. I’ll have business cards made up soon. Nate also ran with the riders once, but stayed fully clothed. I got plenty more videos and pictures, none quite as exciting though. The videos go a bit fast, but if you watch them and pause them every few seconds, Nate could pick out guys like Armstrong, Cadel Evans, Contador, and many more. Our videos and pictures are nothing that could be sold to the media (well except that one for a different reason), but it is cool to have footage that we shot ourselves. All in all, our first stage of the tour was very exciting. Nate and I were talking tonight, and both of our heart rates went up when we could finally see the riders. Plus, seeing them go up a hill compared to how fast we climb on our tandem is quite impressive. Once the final rider came up our corner, Nate and I (already packed and ready to go) got on our tandem to go back down the mountain the way the riders went trying to beat most of the traffic. This was relatively easy to do since the police stop traffic to cars at the top and let bikes go through. However, it was somewhat hairy trying to navigate two lanes of traffic, people parked on the side, cyclists everywhere and such. I was high-tailing it out of there like there was no tomorrow. We finally made it to the top where someone offered to take our picture. Shortly after that another man jokingly “stole” our camera but quickly gave it back. On the descent, we were able to pass traffic because the oncoming lane was closed for a good distance. You should have seen the flock of cyclists using the lane to get down. When we descended the 20k into La Chambre, we needed to get dinner and groceries before the stores closed. Then, it was off like madmen to Chambery for the start of the next stage. We had 60k to go and it was already 7:00 by the time we ate, busted a valve, changed a tire, pumped up our tires, and found a place to use the restroom. But, since we had just had our rest day, we decided that a time trial would be the perfect thing for today. We arrived just short of Chambery in an hour and forty minutes. We showed up at a campsite that was supposed to be closed, but thankfully stayed open just for Le Tour. We enjoyed a fireworks show for Bastille Day with hundreds of locals and then went to bed. Today was quite a day. Stocking up on food for the wait………………………………………………………………………………….........21 euro Climbing to the top of a mountain lugging 60 pounds…………………………………………………painful Camping next to hundreds of other drunk people……………………………………………………...…..sketchy Being close enough to Le Tour de France to feel some of their sweat With the added bonus of seeing a naked dude right next to them………………………………....................priceless
80k
Mo