Your best Morzine tips

Did the descent to Samoen last year and it was my riding highlight of the Year (Dry!). Col du Cou a few years earlier- although this may be considered v cheeky these days. The fast run from top of Les Gets back into the Morzine valley is great.Loads basically.

“Don’t drink more than 3 pints of Mutzig in one sitting…you have been warned!”
Hmmm I can only describe it as being like the men in black pen flash – all memory of the second half of the night erased!!!

zerocool
Full Member
The Harley Festival is great, everyone is really friendly and the first year the had Staus Quo headlining which even my wife enjoyed.

Be very weary of where you’re staying if there at the same time as the festival. “oh how quirky, that one has a siren” gets wearing very, very, quickly

Thread resurrection!

Probably a dumbass question. We’re flying and I’ll be taping up a cardboard box but WHICH cardboard box?
I have a large 27.5 wheeled bike – would there be much/any benefit in getting a 29er box as opposed to a 27.5er box? Any noticeable size difference between the two?
There’s 2 of us hoping to go to Luton airport in my Golf but not convinced 2 bike boxes plus luggage will fit in the car…

in my Golf but not convinced 2 bike boxes plus luggage will fit in the car…

2 chain reaction bags (which I imagine are about the same as a cardboard box – fork stays on, both wheels off) will go in the back of a 5 door audi A3 which is pretty much the same car

I think that bike boxes are likely to be the same size no matter what wheel size.

I’m also pretty sure that you’ll get two bike boxes in the back of a golf.

Don’t drink Mutzig, and have the week off drinking all other alcohol as well, best way to maximise your time there.

Scare yourself silly and do the Les Hauts forts hike a bike .. much reward coming back down.
And eat here the Keoran beef was devine https://www.google.com/maps/place/La+Chaudanne/@46.1865421,6.6968438,3a,75y,67.58h,82.97t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sPr8sT2ijT30B6HYfR_LvOQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!4m18!1m8!3m7!1s0x478c1d5daa6ea4cb:0x94def0ff3a70fb28!2s74110+Morzine,+France!3b1!8m2!3d46.179192!4d6.708877!16zL20vMDFxYmx0!3m8!1s0x478c1d3fe3474965:0xc989ee3ded68a0f5!5m2!4m1!1i2!8m2!3d46.185384!4d6.698772!16s%2Fg%2F1v6wn67b?entry=ttu

A friend and I will be going out mid July, can’t make up my mind on if we should drive or fly.

We are going for 4 days, Friday to Monday, but can leave Thursday evening.

How long from Aylesbury/Luton would it take? google maps says 11 hour, is that accurate?

How long from Aylesbury/Luton would it take? google maps says 11 hour, is that accurate?

Sounds about right non stop. Usually a little longer to allow for the tunnel and stops for petrol and food but the roads are fast and generally empty once you leave the UK. Our usual way is to leave straight after work, get an evening channel crossing, drive until late, but not too late, bed down in an F1 hotel (Reims, Troyes, Dijon depending on timing), get up and drive the last bit. There by lunchtime having had a decent rest and ready to ride.

the blue “family”* is probably a better warm up – similar style but much easier. The red is a very different style – and if its even slightly wet, its harder than the black.

*bizarre choice of name, it is in no way a family trail. always some scared looking parents to be spotted on it.

Yep. I quite enjoyed Family but we did it last thing before lunch and my wife is not happy when she’s hungry.
I was chasing our 11 year old down it while our 16 year tried to talk my wife down it.
She got down through the forest (though I think divorce was being considered) then caught her front wheel on a 2” water bar as you come out into a grassy area and went down.
The boys loved it.
We’re going back again this summer.  I suspect she’ll want to nail it.

Don’t drink Mutzig, and have the week off drinking all other alcohol as well, best way to maximise your time there.

Is this a wind up?

Has anyone managed to hire a 625 bosch ebike battery?
I am staying in samoens and Google is not helping much.
Mountain spirit and extream glisses don’t rent.
Landing in Geneva and even trying some large bike shop there won’t reply to messages.
Also looking for vehicle hire recommendations please, possibly van for 3 bike boxes.
Cheers Steve

Mutzig is rank! My top tip is to completely avoid it and the places that sell it.

Has anyone managed to hire a 625 bosch ebike battery?

Can’t speak for Morzine / Samoens, but round here (Les Arcs) nobody rents ebike batteries. It’s just not a thing. It was something that got talked about when the issues of travelling with ebikes became apparent, but in reality it’s just not practical or financially worthwhile for shops. There are far too many different proprietary batteries / mounts.

Don’t drink Mutzig, and have the week off drinking all other alcohol as well, best way to maximise your time there.

Is this a wind up?

Well, there’s nothing more sure than some eedjit wrecking themselves on the first day straight after a well “hydrated” lunch. As for temperance, meh. I think somewhere in the middle works quite nicely, just with something nicer than Mutzig. I spent enough of my youth drinking that pish on roids.

me and a group are there from 1st July until the 9th.

Luckily one of the group has been every year for the last decade, so is a perfect tour guide!

I havent been for ages, so looking forward to it. Will be a change to Finale etc.

I haven’t been since 2019 in ‘the before times’. Since then I’ve had 3 new jobs, 2 car crashes, bought a house, had a kid etc.

I’d love to go this year but I think it’s getting too late to book anything.

Well, there’s nothing more sure than some eedjit wrecking themselves on the first day straight after a well “hydrated” lunch.

I can understand that! I’ll be looking very much forward to sinking a beer or 3 after a day in the mountains! Mutzig or otherwise!

Some random thoughts on riding:

Avoid les gets other than the mt Chery lift, super rough and not especially fun trails. Used to do a warm up day there but really it just batters your arms.

Pleney black is incredible, the blue is okay but pedally and the red is super rough and not worth it imo.

Supermorzine is good fun, as is the avoriaz trails, especially the newish red down towards supermorzine from avoriaz.

Lindarets red is great, our usual way down when going further afield.

Upper chatel is good fun, as are the blacks lower down, but the blues in the lower section are usually totally blown out.

The Swiss side has the best riding imo, deffo worth a couple of days out to the grand conche, Champery etc. The blue in-between those two is the best flow trail in the PDS imo.

Then there’s the off-piste, if you’re a fan of very, very steep loamy tracks go down the pleney black/blue and head down the dozens of trails branching off them. I usually tend to end each day with 3-4 runs on these. Also some even steeper stuff on the supermorzine side but i think there some issues with land owners there nowadays.

Also some even steeper stuff on the supermorzine side but i think there some issues with land owners there nowadays.

TBF there have been land owner issues with lower SuperMorzine trails since the dawn of time. Varies from year to year just how serious those issues are though

I could do Pleney blue into lower black (joining at 10%) all day, mixing it up with some off piste bits (including the ones off the blue) on the way down. In fact, I think I have done that all day before… For maximal terror, follow the fireroad down past the top of 10 percent and carry on into the trees instead of following it round to the left. Be warned though, there’s no pushing back up…

Not my tip as I’ve never been, but a mate has suggested not falling off – he went OTB at not much speed and ended up in hospital with a cut kidney…ended up with 6 extra days in France, but they were all spent in a hospital bed.

His advice is just don’t crash…but if you do, be like him and do it on the last day of the holiday, that way you at last have several days of good times before spending several in a hospital bed trying to sort out the insurance to pay the hospital stay and get you back on an available flight (which in his case, seemed to be the very last flight out on the day he was ejected from the hospital). Doctors wanted him gone in 3 days but his insurance was kicking up a stink about something so when it all got sorted he literally got turfed out the hospital into a taxi at 5pm and whisked to airport when he got a flight at 22.30 and was due to land at 01:00 but got delayed and didn’t land until 02:15 and his pain killers had worn off just as he got seated on his flight for take-off.

I’m going in 4 weeks, 10 days riding on a guided trip covering Les Gets/Morzine, La Thuile, and Alp Du Huez. Well be riding ‘wild’ natural trails though, not bike park stuff.

Just ordered a photochromatic set of goggles (already have a cheap brand x set) to go with my MET parachute convertible helmet. Trying to find a set of lightweight elbow pads, I don’t normally wear them but will if I can find a set in stock.

I’ll be taking plenty of pads, hope green are my usual but I’ll probably stick in a couple of sets of the purple e-bike pads for those big descents!

Trying to find a set of lightweight elbow pads, I don’t normally wear them but will if I can find a set in stock.

This is actually a very good idea. Opening an elbow at home is annoying, bursting open an elbow when on holiday can ruin the whole trip if it keeps opening back up (or you get really lucky and land on it again)

This is the first time riding in Europe, do I need to get a carnet or whatever they are for my bike?

when Brexit was on the cards, I remember talk of it for European motorbike track days, but never paid much attention after as I stopped doing track days.

Not sure if it also applied to non motorised bikes.

<script src=”chrome-extension://bmdblncegkenkacieihfhpjfppoconhi/scripts/in-page-script.js” type=”text/javascript”></script>

Nope

Someone above mentioned that the Col de Cou ridge line trail might be considered cheeky now. Can anyone confirm if this trail is ok to ride? I’ve admired the photos of that trail for years. I’ve been in the PdS many times, but have never managed to ride that trail. So I was hoping to cross this off my bucket list on an upcoming visit to the area. I’d be really disappointed if it was off-limits now.

johnhe – that was me.
It’s 8 years since I did that so not sure of the state of play now – interested in the replies as I intend doing it in 3 weeks again if it’s still a goer

I’m sure it’s off limits now. I last rode it maybe 5 years ago and it had new, no bikes signs up all over the place. Never bothered going near it after that

For maximal terror, follow the fireroad down past the top of 10 percent and carry on into the trees instead of following it round to the left

That bit’s not too bad.

If you want real terror, follow the black after the 10 Percent until you come to the wee tunnel. As soon as you exit the tunnel, turn right immediately before you go down the chute.

Absolute death!

Col du Cou Ridge was closed to bikers the last time I went in 2019. The guide we were using said absolutely no chance of taking a bike down it without repercussions.

I’m going with rascal and another mate in 3 weeks and have been bedding in sintered brake pads for the trip. However after a discussion this last weekend at the golfie one of the guys who goes on the trips run by stevomcd has said that if it’s dry we should be using organic or Kevlar as they don’t squeal and limit the heat transfer into the pistons. pointing to this thread

https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/what-brake-pads-for-the-alps-sintered-or-organic/

I’m a bit of a brake drager especially the rear, anyone used the finned pads from superstar? I’m considering using only in the rear because the kit comes with 4 sets of pads in the hope They’ll see the week out. I’ll run the normal ones in the front.
There is a 15% code on superstar stuff so would make sense cost wise. But are they worth it?

Ta!

My only top tip for Morzine riding is; on your first day, Just Take It Easy. Ride around, take a look at things, go steady, head out for a couple of hours max, and chill the **** out. A fella I was with was so excited that he completely ignored the advice of a guide to “watch out for the water bars, they just dug them out last week” and got a wobble on after riding one, and broke his ankle in a freak accident. He managed to ride about 400m…

Also; learn some French. It doesn’t have to be a lot, and while you can get on just fine in Les Gets and Morzine without it, it doesn’t hurt to be able to order food, or chat to folk.

Wrong thread linked above, should have been this one 🤦‍♂️

https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/sintered-or-organic-pads-for-the-alps/

If you want real terror, follow the black after the 10 Percent until you come to the wee tunnel. As soon as you exit the tunnel, turn right immediately before you go down the chute.

Absolute death

Ha ha maybe save that for the last day, i took a friend down there whose a really good rider, he stopped and said what the **** have you brought me down 😈

It’s almost impossible to push down too. . . Can’t wait till August to ride it again

Forgot about that bit. It’s brilliant. You’ve just got to aim for a rut and hope it catches. This one doesn’t in the wet.

I have to say that I used organic pads in the Alps last year and they lasted 1 day per set.

Kevlar pads for me seem to work well without too much wear. Buy a new front tyre – might be psychological but having fresh rubbber with sharp edges on the knobs  is good. Panoramic (only a green but) is a great warm up with lots of air if you want. The long more natural run from top of Mossettes, past the lake and along and above the long valley back to half way down the Chaux Fleurie runs back into Linderets is a belter for me. The reds in Super Morzine into the woods (dry!) are great. Swiss National into Les Crosets too. Don’t push the last run of the day when tired.

Any returnees that can report if there’s any good new runs? I read one cryptic article mentioning new building in the woods above linderet?

Am currently out here at the moment. First time in about 6 years (and that was a one off since about 5 years before that).

We have avoided pretty much every ‘official’ trail for a week & just ridden off piste. It’s been hot & bone dry so everything is looking pretty tired already, thankfully we have a local friend who is pointing us away from the motorways. Nyon off piste is still great, genuinely think there is now 50+ ways down the Pleney hill, it’s pretty obvious what’s being ridden & what isn’t, but they are some of the highlights for me, as a fan of steep & natural trails.

If you want really steep, the transfer between Pleney & Les Gets (before you cross the road) has some death in the woods. Some gold in there.

Made the mistake of riding the Pleney black after someone crashed, don’t plan on that again. It’s shyte & got more arm pump from that half a run, than the whole rest of the day.

The French approach to trail maintenance apparently hasn’t changed in 15 years it would appear 😆