On Tuesday Ben and I set off very early to head off for the Pyrenees. We had a goal of riding both Soldeu Bike Park and Vallnord Bike Park; they are in the main valley in Andorra, a small country between France and Spain. The drive was about 2.5 hours to Soldeu. then another 40 minutes to Vallnord. As with most bike related activities, the available information online was mediocre and in this case in another language. So this was a bit of an adventure. We arrived at Soldeu, geared up with Commencal Supreme DH bikes, this years' models. Very nice bikes, probably nicer than mine or Ben's. As with La Poma, they did not open on time, but lifts were spinning by 10:30 and we were off.
The terrain here was rugged, steep, loose and in some cases, live stock filled.
Of course Ben found the most challenging parts of the mountain and sent them all. Nice road gap here.
Here Ben is pushing the limit again, he rode really confidently. The fantastic part about riding here is surrounding environment, big mountains, some still with snow, surrounded the bike park, which itself was 5-6000 FT. The only downside of the day was that he clipped a tree with his elbow and tore a bit of a gash into his outer forearm. The medics patched him up without stitches, he wore pads like the old man from then on.
Part way up the mountain there was a golf course. It was at the mid-station, connected to what is an on mountain ski lodge in the winter. weren't there to golf, but after our bacon and cheese sandwiches Ben and I hit a couple of buckets. The driving range was just out into space off the lodge deck, we assume the balls roll down a ski trail and someone must pick them up?
That's the finish of a golfer that never goes below 100.
After riding soldeu, we drove on to La Massa where the famous Vallnord Bike Park is. La Massa is a town made for and by skiers and mountain bikers. I've never been in a place like this. There was bike shop on every corner, every corner! They were filled with the bikes and gear that we regularly use. We again rented primo steeds for the next day. I counted a least 6 shops while standing on one corner. The gondola that brings you up to the base of the mountain is in the middle of town. Truly bike nerd paradise. In this pic the billboard is for the mountain bike world championships, which will be here in September.
We pulled in and parked underneath the main town square. IT was the nicest garage I've ever parked in, each space was painted, walking aisles painted, light in the ceiling informing if the space was open or not. Swanky if not a bit over designed.
We stopped in the tourist information center to get the low down on where to get the bike park tickets and where we could find housing. The people working there were super helpful. Although when I asked where to stay the man working there recommended 2 places, The Font and the Magic. Mind you I look like a homeless drifter as I have not shaved since leaving the USA, and we were a bit dirty from the days' ride. So Ben and I went to the front desk of the Magic to get a room at the sister hotel The Font. I gave the woman my info and she gave me the bill, 18 euro. Should have been a red flag, that is a Vegas flea bag price, it was a 2 star hotel.
We went anyway thinking how bad can it be? Well if you want a room to interrogate a terrorist in or cook meth in I've found your place.
The room was tiny and gross, and the main corridors were 30" wide and the lights didn't work, but the last straw that sent us packing was no wifi (pronounced weefee in Andorra)
So we bailed and changed our room to a 4 star and I'd say both of their ratings were a little fluffy..
We then hit a bar than a restaurant for some beer and Fanta. I had the strangest piece of lasagna, it was a small casserole dish with one flat noodle covered in melted cheese, pretty marginal.
The next morning we were up early and again the park opened late. But we were on in short order. There was 4,500 sf of vertical here. That is 9x more than what we are used to riding at Highland, our home park. Brutal, we had to stop quite a bit, between the altitude and the massively long runs we were exhausted quickly. We put in a full day tho and had a fantastic time. It was challenging to ride such a loose and rugged place, not much room for error.
Two happy guiys after 2 full days of riding. After changing we hit the road for the 3 hour long drive back to our house, Domaine De Nerige.
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