TOUR DU MONT BLANC
Fifteen years in the dreaming, five days in the realising. The Tour du Mont Blanc has played on my intentions for longer than it had any right to. Though I’ve spent enough time in Europe to have crossed it from the wish list many times before, factors beyond and within my control prevented any earlier attempt at circumnavigating the mighty massif.
Fast approaching 50, sporting one titanium knee and another that probably should be, it was now or never, and the biennial family visit to Switzerland was the ideal chance to give it a crack. An overdeveloped obsession for exploring Switzerland by bike has forced my in-laws into a general acceptance of my absence during family holidays, so all that remained was to book some accommodation and recruit a suitable accomplice. I needed a keen adventurer who would tolerate my inevitable suffering while still having a great time. Enter my good friend Malcolm Stoney—able to book a European holiday at short notice and renowned for his ability to simultaneously take me seriously and ignore me completely.
“‘HOWEVER, DISAPPOINTMENT IS A CALLOUS BEAST THAT TAKES NO PRISONERS, STRIKING WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT.”
Day 1 – 35km; 1000m up, 1200m down
Fast forward through all the depart, transit, arrive, say hi to family, borrow a car and get on the road stuff, and Malcolm and I are steaming towards Les Houches, France, where we’d meet up with Jamie
