Anyone recomend somewhere a bit off the beaten track to go and stretch the Pitch's legs wheels?
Went to Sierra Nevada last year, loved it, a good ratio of uplift to riding up, rocky/loose/fast/natural trails, but there's always somewhere better/different.
Seen loads pics of the Alps and TBH it looks a bit smooth but with big features and too many braking bumps. This may be a prejudice, but your not going to convince me otherwise.
Italian Lakes!
Do you want uplift? or do you want to ride up? obviously of the beaten track will mean no lifts?
The alps is probably the worlds largest area for biking, you'll only find braking bumps on the DH tracks,
" a bit smooth " depends where you're looking i guess?
Seen loads pics of the Alps and TBH it looks a bit smooth but with big features and too many braking bumps. This may be a prejudice, but your not going to convince me otherwise.
Shame to miss out on some truly amazing biking because you've got a bit of a closed mind isn't it?
Just for example, Verbier and much of the riding I did in the Les Arcs area were quite the opposite of your description.
The Pyrenees?
Ok, it generaly looks like soil based singletrack rather than rocks? Comments from people who ride there and have been to Spain said they were very different and the differnces they noted were things I liked about Spain.
Off the beaten track usualy means a van rather than ski lift. I'm happy enough to climb, but I'd rather the first few 1000ft were done for me or the day didnt have to finish with a ride back to the top.
Northern Italy is definately on the shortlist, either Finley Liguere (SP?) or Riviera Bike.
Dirt features a lot of DH bikes from Eastern Europe, so theres obvioulsy mountains worth riding over there, but there doesnt seem to be much in the way of hollidays. Odd as theres loads of budget airlins flying there.
Shame to miss out on some truly amazing biking because you've got a bit of a closed mind isn't it?
Shame to miss out on some truly amazing biking* because you've got a bit of a closed mind isn't it?
*outside of the Alps
That and the French seem to have outlawed biking guides via a technicality.
This months dirt has a 2 page spread advertising different holiday operators - Finale looks v good.
Romney Marsh?
I'm off to Luchon then Andorra in just over a week, I'll let you know what it's like. 
Dismissing the alps as one style of terrain is fairly bonkers though.
You'll be all right on the marsh, Romney Marsh Mountain Rescue will look after you if you have an accident 
Dolomites? Croatia?
No braking bumps here! No banned guides either, for that matter!
Just lots and lots and lots of windy, twisty, flowy, rooty, rocky singletrack.
Riviera bike,nice people, a top place to ride, and great food too.
We did a week with A Quick Release in and around Luchon in the Pyrenees. Not much uplift but superb riding.
lake garda is awsome riding on a 6inch travel bike, try the 601 route 2000m descent over 20k an no chain needed.
it's full on tech riding it makes the descent off fleetwith pike to gatesgarth in the lakes look like a trail center blue route.
there is also night life with plenty of chicks (winds bar) unlike morzine.
With all due respect, you're totally nuts to write off the Alps. Verbier's nothing like what you've described, although certain other Alpine resorts might fit that bill. Check with other folk who've stayed with Bike Verbier - they'll tell you the same thing. The riding BV do is out of this world.
+1 for Lake Garda. Base yourself in or around Torbole and use Luca's bike shuttle (van) uplift service.
Plenty of gps routes available to download although you'd be ok with a basic trail map as the signposts are quite good.
We did sections of the 601 in May and it was the toughest techfest trail Ive ever ridden.
El Diablo / Skull trail also amazing.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3QQN2lPeGU
* edit - the vid doesnt show any of the 601 / Diablo before everybody says it doesnt look that bad!
Just got back from guiding in Finale for Finale Freeride and can fully recommend it - though its more of a shuttle area. Great built trails that are a mixture of gradients and because the valleys change so much depending on the height the trails change too. If you link up trails from the top of the drop off point to the villages you drop into you're looking at 800m of descending. You can do around 6-7 of those in a day. Its really all about the cornering here - fast and a mixture of bermed, flat and off camber - really good practice for getting your ass out and in the the 'DH position'. May be worth taking a full face though. Good for about 3 days of riding without repeating much BUT-
An hour away is Molini where I spent 4 days as a 'holiday'. What a valley! So beautiful and the trails are blinding. 1000m descents through steep forests and a much more 'natural' feel to the trails with loads of switchbacks more reminiscent of the Sierra Nevada. Great accommodation, food and guiding with Jo and Adi at Riviera Bike. The town feels like an Italian Bubion too. Its also possible to do more extended all mountain days here than finale, worth checking out the mountain to coast run.
Added to this is Calizzano - another shuttle area run from Final Borgo square in Finale, plus all the possibilities in Sospel, Peille, San Remo and others and you could spend months in one stretch of coastline. Riviera Bike can organize days in all the other spots. You can also fly into Genova and get close to all these areas by (cheap) train.
So basically Finale to get your corners dialled, Callizano for a quiet version of Finale, Molini to get into inbred mountain towns with full on techy trails.
p.s. I took my pitch with 160mm forks and Dh tyres - ideal bike for the area.
i was in morzine for the ppds and the week after. We (well my mates, I just followed) found loads of off the beaten track dh runs. Smooth?
Don't go to Verbier it's totaly rubbish.
If you go with Bike Verbier it's even rubbisher as they take you to all these trails that are so rubbish you don't even see any other bikes on them.
Some of the trails are so bad that the're not even any other tyre marks on them.
Another one for RivieraBike in Molini. Would go back again but for the need to experiment and try more but will go back at some time because riding, for me, was the perfect holiday riding where you want to see stuff and not spend time sessioning things. Lots of natural fast fun runs.
Eddie
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