peeps fingers crossed i will be going next yr for the first time just me and my bro. as i have never been i was wondering what i really need to take.so heres a quick list please add to it if you can.
Bike, Cube Fritzz
tubes, pads,mech hangers, glovers x3, riding tops based on staying 4-5 days 6-7 tops, shorts 4-5, socks plenty and boxxers, body armour helmet etc aw a cash!! anything else??
Condoms? The chalet girls in Morzine all have spotty bottoms and crabs - so be careful.
Rain jacket that can go over your body armour. Get stuck up on a chairlift in the cold and wet (it happens - trust me!) and you'll be glad of it.
Insurance?
chain, power links, brake pads, special tools that might not be common to other bike types, goggles, swimming togs, will think of more in a sec...
Are you flying or driving? If you're driving then take a spare set of tyres as replacements cost a fortune out there. Indeed, any spares tend to be pricey so stick a rear mech and gear cable in there and absolutely take a spare derailleur hanger. That's the kind of thing you'll never be able to source while you out there. Brake disc bleed kit will be very useful as well and you may as well take a spare chain. And if you still have room, a basic tool kit, including a chain splitter, 4,5 and 6mm allen keys, cable cutters, a dozen zip ties, adjustable wrench and some decent tyre levers.
+1 geetee1972
Tyres were frighteningly expensive.
Some basic 1st aid stuff might be an idea. We had plenty of spills in our group, thankfully nothing serious.
How many pairs of shorts?! Think i used 1 pair for the whole week and that was doing xc and i didn't smell too bad for thw wife to complain. Put all your clothes in a bag. Then discard 20%.
I just take a spare pair of brakes when I'm on a biking holiday.
Worth thinking about if you're driving and have another bike you can borrow them from.
Did anyone mention DH inner tubes?
Camera
Swiss army knife
Sunglasses
Bike cleaning stuff
Bike maintenance stuff
Food
Camelback
Travel insurance
Tunes
Walkie talkies
CRC deliver to Morzine, so if flying, don't bother taking spare tyres
tidy cheers guys, i will be driving as i have a fully exp car so a bit of a freebee as transport goes. cant see me taking only one pair of shorts a new for a new day i say! my gopro will be well used!
is the bike shops that expensive over then??
is the bike shops that expensive over then??
Well they aren't cheap and for consumable things like tyres then they are silly expensive - maybe 50 blats for a 2.5 Dual Ply Maxxis High Roller Super Tacky. They work on the premise that if you need new tyres you're not going to be sensitive as to how much they cost! You can't really ride without them so you're pretty much a captive market.
For other items, you'll find that the prices are pretty much RRP with whatever effect the exchange rate is having.
I'm going to take some basic medical supplies too next year. The pharmacies over there are even worse than the bike shops for prices.
Blimey you are packing early.
Cheep disk rotors, the Alps aren't as rocky as somewhere like spain but both of mine were trashed by day 3, tweaked back into shape they last a while but make a lot of noise, now relegated to the spares bin for next year.
Spare spokes, for both front and rear, at least 4 in each size.
And make sure that everything on your bike is 100% working, you'll be doing twice as much riding every day as you probably do in a week in the UK so any weaknesses get found and broken.
Stick new tyres and drivetrain bits on before you go, you may as well as relative to the cost of a holliday £50 for maxxis high roller 2.5 supertakies and another £50 on a new chain and cassette is probably ~10% and means your not curseing your bike or having to hold back.
new rotors!!! CRC are going to have a good time with my orders then!!
i take that my bike is fine then?? cube fritzz 160mm fox 36's and my bro has a spesh enduro 2010 comp
spare rear mech.
take a spoke key if you can true a wheel.
cube fritzz 160mm fox 36's and my bro has a spesh enduro 2010 comp
You'll be fine with those bikes. If you are going to Morzine, it's also well worth heading over to Chamonix for at least a day maybe more. It's only about an hour by car and there are some amzing tracks over there. The new DH course from the very top of La Flegere is amazing and at over 1800m vertical drop from top to bottom, has to be one of the longest descents in Europe. For an average rider it's going to be easily a 20 minute non stop descent.
If there are say four of you going. Agree to the following:
One of you takes a spare rear mech
One takes a hollowtech BB
Everyone takes 2 spare innertubes and repair patches each.
One takes a big thingy of chain lube/oil.
theres only two of us going bud, me and my brother so i expect i will be buying the lot!! saying that he might stretch to a tube!!
this is where i will be buying most of my spares from, only up the road and cheap as chips www.cyclebasket.com [url= http://www.cyclebasket.com ]nelsons[/url]
check out the prices!!
In that case one of you packs the rear mech and the other the BB.
Plus take a spare mech hanger each. **** all weight to carry but a lifesaver if you do clout a big rock.
Really you only need to take innertubes IMO.
Oh that and alot of condoms- there are alot of girls in Morzine (and loose as hell).
If you put on a fresh set of dry weather tyres, they should see you through a week, provided you don't get some old Slow Reezay, which might last a few days. Then pack a set of mud tyres. In my experience, if you're there to ride, rather than party, for a week, and it rains, you'll want to go out riding. Some of the trails benefit from a [i]little[/i] bit of rain as it can help smooth out the braking bumps.
There's a heck of a lot of riding within a few chairlifts of Morzine now. Would thoroughly recommend going over to Super-Chatel or Morgins. Both are reachable by lifts BUT it can be better to take a car (remember to get a Swiss motorway pass in advance if you are going to need one).
Also whatever the area that was sometimes referred to as "The French National", near Les Lindarets in the valley between Avoriaz and Super Chatel, there are a handful of trails in there which are really great to ride.
A laptop can be handy too. If you decide to stay in (and at the prices for beer - you may want to get a crate from Carrefour and stay in the chalet) then having a few bike movies on a laptop helps.
And as mentioned - get insurance! It's really not worth not having it. Check that mountain biking (esp. DH) is covered, but most do in my experience, just not competitive cycling. Also, get an EHIC (European Health Insurance Card?) as I think they are required by most insurance companies in their small print.
cheers for that bud, i have one of them cards, what will the insurance cover me for?
i always use fat alberts or nobby nics, some times minions would they be good tyres over there??
Mud tyres, plenty of pairs of gloves, brake pads, sun tan cream, wine from the crossing (if driving) and the odd magazine/dvd.
After a week in Morzine in late August, i wished i'd packed my Mud X tyres for XC. And that was even with the trails drying out.
Full DH tyres & tubes are a good to have. All the previous comments hold true.
Everyone's said brakes are essential - true enough, take lots of sets of pads. £10 from Discobrakes here, £25 (if you can get them) in Morzine. 2 full changes (i.e. 4 sets) will last you a week, even if it's horrifically muddy.
Mud specific DH tyres are a good idea - trying to get hold of them in Morzine can be hard if everyone's trying to buy them at the same time.
Decent tyre levers to swap DH tyres - probably not needed, but it's a PITA if you're halfway up a mountain and keep snapping levers.
If you're driving, and you have space, take your full toolkit and workstand. Check all your bolts etc are tight every day, because stuff gets shaken to kits very quickly.
A basic first aid kit is advisable.
Re the riding, Chatel's a must - fantastic fun, and they've really made an effort in the last few years. By contrast, Morzine and Les gets have a hell of a lot of braking bumps, so they can be unpleasant to ride unless you're prepared to ride round this (brake earlier, smoother, and just ride through the braking bumps). Some of the lesser-known runs in Morzine are well worth seeking out - for example, there's a blue below Pleney which is deserted and a lot of fun. Handly the most challenging, but ride it at speed and it takes on a different persona.
The insurance that I've had (and never had to use, but other people with same insurance have used) generally covers all the bills after some sort of excess/co-pay. Small things - minor X-rays, hand injuries etc, you may have to pay up front and then claim back.
If you have a major injury then they will come collect you, sort you out and the paperwork is done later. I recall after a friend broke his arm, the paperwork wasn't completed for a few weeks after. Thankfully my memory is little hazy on the particulars as it's been several years since we had any injuries of note - saw plenty though.
However, you can generally read all the conditions before buying online, so check what your policy will cover. I've always gone with Endsleigh.
Whilst a lot of the riding is not rocky, there are a good number of tracks which are sidewall eaters, especially the off-piste stuff. So if you think you might want to explore a bit, I'd recommend something with meaty sidewalls - dual ply Maxxis tyres are everywhere, and it's not just fashion! I've found Minions to be perfect tyres for the dry weather conditions there. Swamp Things when it rains.
Just in defence of Morzine bike shops... last year our ([url= http://toricomorzine.com ]toricomorzine.com[/url]) 2.5 maxxis tyres were 45euros a go - compared to 34gbp on a well known website - pretty comparable I have to say - plus we're gambling with the weather when we order our tyres... nice dry summer = muchos wet screams left in the shop - lots of rain = disappointed customers if we sell out.
It's not all bad - try buying tyres in Whistler! then you'll know expensive (how does 90-100 canadian dollars a tyre grap you?)
I would recommend bringing a mech hanger though - we do carry a lot of brands, but can't guarantee we'll have everything.
too many clothes, not enough brake pads.
cubemeup- get Pete(Valleydaddy) to give you my phone number.
defo get over to chamonix depending on what month you are going
geetree1972, is the flegere d/h course fully open?
have you ridden the top section? what was it like?
when we were there end of june only the bottom section was open