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(Mr MC posting from MC's account to confuse things)
Our original plan was to ride the passeport over a long weekend, flying out there. Passeport has sold out, and my work has effectively extended the period I have off to just short of 2 weeks. Having just bought an MPV specifically as a bike transporter we have decided to drive down and visit a couple or three areas hence the various threads, we are looking at a bit of a road trip like you cha****ng.
We'd ruled PdeS region out on the basis it will be busy, we'd struggle to ride over the passeport long weekend, and having ridden there something like 8 times it would be fun to try something different. We're not after 2 weeks of dedicated DH but functioning lifts extends your riding possibilities, and had ruled out catered/guided/organised out-of-hand on the grounds of assumed expense, and having seen how easy it was to find trails and navigate and eat cheaply in the PdeS region. From various posts it looks like 1) PdeS is unique in being so easy to self navigate, and 2) some areas like verbier are no more expensive going the organised route.
Appreciate all the posts, looks like we might have to reconsider organised, I'm sure MC is amenable to a luxurious catered chalet for a few days rather than tent+pasta 😉
Munqe-chick..... If great riding is your priority, then a guide really is a must for Verbier. I've spent about half a year riding & guiding there, and many of the best trails are impossible to find without one (despite what some might tell you - after all, how do they know what they've been missing?), and arguably the best trails of all aren't actually in the resort or the Verbier bowl at all - they're backcountry trails in the surrounding mountains, often accessed by van. Go it alone and you'll spend almost as much dosh as you do with a company by the time you've added it all up, and you'll miss the best trails (if your definition of 'best' is a huge selection of ridiculously fun and mildly/moderately/massively challenging singletrack going on for many miles and dropping thousands of feet). There's only one company worth looking at, Bike Verbier - no one else comes close for knowing Verbier and beyond, and their holidays are the stuff of legends.
Okay but next question is will they do a trip for just 5 days or does it have to be a week and from Sat-SAt as that could put a spanner in the works? If that geniunely is the best then I don't mind, it's just lots of peopel on threads on STW before say you need a guide for Morzine and I know full well from being there you don't, but sounds like Verbier may be significantly different. That's not a problem though this is ALL in teh planning stage at the minute so I may have to carefully construct ANOTHER e-mail to bike Verbier and see what they can offer us.
Cha****ng, got your e-mail I'll send you a message tonight when i'm at home and not having to switch screens so the boss can't see 😉
Just email Bike Verbier - they're very helpful. There are dozens of trails in and around Verbier that only Phil & Lucy know - even other guides and local riders haven't discovered them, never mind holidaying Brits, including the more adventurous ones.
Another great descent that the Bike Verbier boys and girls might show you if you're lucky.
*Waves to wl*
Got response from BV only problem is we don't want to go for a full week. Will be there for 4-5 days depending on how long we spend in Chamonix as well. Anyone suggest any companies that will take us for a shorter period of time? I'll have a look at the video later when I get home from work! Cheers for your help guys.
Nice one Stu,
Going to ride the bottom half of that trail this afternoon.
That video has got me in the mood 😀
Ayup, Stu - hope all's well.
I'm heading to Verbier this summer - June 29th to July 9th - will you be there then? Be good to see you both.
September 3-10 here, already itching for it!
So other than Bike Verbier has anyone else here gone with any other tour companies? Now looking for the possibility of guiding, accommodation etc everything in but only for 4/5 days which we may struggle with as most places tend to want to make it 1 week. Anyone have any experiences of this and if so who? thanks.
try Poweranddust.com or Bikeverbier.com
Good luck with self guiding and keeping costs down. Can be done but you'll never find the secret and frankly frickin awesome 1500m plus descents or 3 hr plus singletrack heavy rides through terrain you cry yourself to sleep about. Ohhhh the lord of riding prey down on me 😉
Your Sincerely
Former BikeVerbier guide
MC - This operation has been highly recommended to me by a couple of different people I ride with...
[url= http://www.mtbverbier.com/ ]http://www.mtbverbier.com/[/url]
here's a few more pics to tempt:-
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So I'm awaiting responses from Bike Verbier and MTBverbier.com, mountainbikeholidays.net and bramblebike.com I'll look at the powder one. I'm happy to pay for a guide and I dont' mind particularly about not keeping the cost down. My point was I don't want to go to Verbier for a week and have an everything in holiday. I didn't particularly want to be dictated to with food etc, however if that's the best way to do it then fine, but I'm looking for only 4/5 days. Thanks though.
Cow shots
This one picked it nose on Abigales brake lever
[img] http://images.fotopic.net/?iid=yxqsx6&outx=600&quality=70 [/img]
In Sept 08 we drove to the Zermatt valley & rented a chalet for £240, chipped in for food & spent the week riding from the lifts & trains using the maps we bought in a ski/mtb shop - really good & cost less than £400 each.
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Navigating wasn't to bad due to good signs but I suspect the best stuff would need a guide to find.
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That Jackass is easy
i remember riding up the moraine in cp's photo, and being overtaken by a truck, it is alot further from the bottom to the top than it looks!
How was the bottom half of the trail then cupid?
wl.
Unfortunatly we'll be there the week before you so won't see you.
We'll have to catch up soon though.
Munqe-chick, send me an email to trailhunters@googlemail.com and i'll give you all the info you need
chris