At the moment I have a fat bike and a 2012 26er cannondale scalpel.
Neither are really ideal so I may sell the both and buy something else – but what?

Most of my bikes are road based so there are a total of 8 coming with me but nothing burly enough for the mountains.

Kind of gutted I missed the cannondale trigger offer at Paul’s.

What would you suggest up to about 3k ? I’m thinking cannondale bad habit

Both will be absolutely fine.

Don’t say that. I want to spend some money – my isa is paying **** all 🙂

You need a bike that is in good order because you wont be able to afford to get it fixed in Switzerland!

This is my 26″ Scalpel, having just been over the Schilthorn, under the Eiger and through Grindelwald on a Transalp through Switzerland

Wrong colour.
You need something gold.
Stolen, if possible.

Or possibly a smokey deep purple, depending where you’re staying.

OK then this one of me, also in Switzerland, Transalping, this time in 2008 with a Scalpel 1 Team

(well nearly in Switzerland, we’d just crossed over to Italy)

ChrisE – Member
You need a bike that is in good order because you wont be able to afford to get it fixed in Switzerland!

exactly what I was thinking

I ripped a brake hose out on a trip to champery from morzine, it cost me more than the brakes to get an olive and a bleed from the lbs!!

Just make sure it’s got something like a 24×38 chainset as you’ll need proper low gears for the climbs (as opposed to a 1×11 setup).

I’d also try and get something that can lower its front end for climbing. I’m not sure if there’s anything on the market that does this any more. DT Swiss XMM forks used to have a remote ‘climb’ option – great for long long climbs….

I’ve done plenty in Switzerland and if I had a one bike choice it would probably be a scalpel, all be it a more modern 29er. Habit would definitely be good too though. Depends where you are going though.. for me the best riding in Switzerland is big days out on footpaths and tracks, in the alps you can get some uplift help but hour long pedals uphill are pretty much par for the course.

I think in your shoes I’d probably take the scalpel and buy something a bit more enduro for lift assisted riding. Look at purecycling.ch, once your out there you can buy off canyon direct in that guise (they can’t sell as canyon in Suisse) and some of the prices are pretty keen. Tanking pound makes the savings not quite as good though.

And now the latest Scalpel. Just after Switzerland, now in France, on the GR5 heading towards Nice this year

I’ll stop now. I’m on my 6th Scalpel now, all of which have been round the Alps!

Buy my Trigger 😉

This one

Muppet , I’m already bidding.

So I may convert to 650s on the scalpel. The slrs are pretty fecked and could do with changing.

Steve,
Let me know if you want a pair of 650B Crossmax SLR Lefty. I might have a pair of new ones somewhere.

Could be interested. Feel free to ping me a mail if you have any pics or details.

Where is CH?

Congrats on the move OP 🙂

As he is working in Switzerland earning Swiss wages he’ll be able to get his bike fixed just fine

You don’t say where you’ll be living and what sort of riding you like. We coukd recommend anything from anroad / gravel oriented CX-er to a full on big travel enduro/dh orientated machine.

I primarily ride my Covert there pedalling up a bit too but have also spent many happy days on a 80mm hard tail (which my Swiss mate has the audacity to ride down Alps trails faster than me on my Covert – damn that talent)

Where is CH?

Do you mean which country?

It is Confoederatio Helvetica

Switzerland.

Sorry, bad typing, I meant ” where in CH?”
I know what it stand for … i lived there for 8 years …

I’ll be in Geneva. I lived there 3 years ago but mostly did road in that time over the winter months.
This time I want to make the most of the mountains without snow.

I have a Cervelo s3 and cannondale synapse for road, pickenflick for gravel, fixie for town, Dahon for uuurrrr , stuff
Fatbike for snow, scalpel for most other stuff by the sounds of things.

Take up Alpine Mountaineering and join a club or find a dependable like minded partner, fill yer boots. It’s maybe a once in a lifetime opportunity to bag the big alpine peaks, I wouldn’t bother mincing around on a bike on the lower slopes other than on ‘off days’.

I was going to sugest an out and out DH bike but now I would like B.A.Nana to elaborate.
Have you done it? With what club? How much time do you need? Training? Equipement? Which peaks?

Surely the answer is a really smug one so that you can blend in?

Geneva. You have road bikes so personally I’d go for a 160mm Enduro bike. You can ride Haut Jura pedalling up or via train to St Cergue, Roche du Naye above Montreux or Verbier is 90 mins away etc (lifts open till end Oct). Chamonix is an hour. So much great riding

Ludo May has a shop in Martingny I’m sure he advise 🙂

Cotic Rocket if you want to buy British

Airdrop

Liteville 301 or even 601.