The road-sign on the top of the Passwang, just before the gallery's entrance. SIONGRIE 2008
BIG trip - Daniel Gobert - day 1
day 1 - day 2 - day 3 - day 4 - day 5 - day 6 - day 7 - day 8
Wednesday 13th of august 2008
This B.I.G is a german swiss BIG
This wednesday leads me to the german part of Switzerland.
Left very soon , at half past 5 in the morning, splitted like each time between the guilty feeling to let my family alone and far from me during 8 days and a deep wish to fight a few BIGs dreamt on maps and papersheets, I've ridden the traditional motorway with my renting car (a Peugeot 207 Europcar) : Namur, Arlon - Luxembourg - Metz - Strasbourg - Colmar - Basel (Bâle).
In the swiss border, the policeman sticks the "vignette" on my front window of the car. Let's note that at the end of the trip, I'll have four "vigenttes", two on the left, two on the right, and one paper more for Hungary. Let's note too that among the 9 different countries that I'll travel through, only the swiss border will give the presence of policemen.
Basel is back of me, I leave the motorway and I find a car-parl in Balsthal, a small "allemanic" city, on the foot of my first BIG : the Passwang, east-southern side. Not very long (9 km) with 6 km nearly flat to begin, one can't say that I come directly in the hardest part of the trip. Only the last 3 kilometers give the opportunity of a good slope in a very open and green landscape. On the top, only a curve on the right and immediately after the small car-park, a gallery. If the "+1" was succeeded without physical difficulties, the moral was a little less strong because a phone call from Nathaly explained me that there are difficulties in Belgium with the banks (in fact, French banks have done great mistakes counting two times the operations in the beginning of the month of august : I'll learn very soon after that it's ok and that the french banks will immediately give the money back but well, it's not good in the brain). Another bad thing was the clic of my left shoe. Or, it is not well scotched to my pedal or if I scotch it too much, it's not goor for my legs who bacome to be not parallel. I frightened about the fact to have a "tendinite" in my knee all along the trip but finally, I found the good way to do. To scotch it halfway, not too strong, not too less, and it will be ok, just asking me frequently to look at my shoes and to fix them.
The road-sign on the top of the Passwang, just before the gallery's entrance.
Well, this first claim took me one hour , between 11h45 and 12h45. Small road-signs all along the way showed the kilometers : 96,97,...,101. I'll recall too about this climb that it was the fifth time that I tried to include it in my tours. The first four ones missed because of several different reasons : a lack of time, the bad weather, a road's mistake, closed pass,... BUt this time, this was the good one and I'm happy with that fact !
I ride again one more time on the swiss motorway to Bern and its traffic , before going down to Riggisberg. I use one of the city in the way, to change my euros into swiss money. Afterwards, I ranged my car in a car-park in Riggisberg. I start for the last climb of the day at 2.30 PM. First, a small pass (which one I ignored the name), up Riggisberg and before a short downhill leading to the real foot of the hard climb to the Gurnigel Pass. Switzerland manages time-trials in some of its good climbs during summer and Gurnigel has the favour of these Swisschronos. On the road, I read the signs : swisschrono km 8,7,4,2 and 1. It helps the cycloclimber during his ascent. At the km 0, it's not really the end, just the Gurnigel Haus. 1 kilometer further, there is the real pass, with a smal bungalow and a small outdoor pub where one can have a drink.The last 10% kilometers are something different than the Passwang, believe me, but my shoes given't me no more problems and I'm well in my body after the effort. I take my K-way for the downhill on my back. I would like to stay a little longer on the top because it's a nice place, but well, the day is still long. "+2" : it's ok for me !
The precise place where is the Gurnigel Pass with the bungalow . 
After a difficult 50km national road, I find again the motorway, south direction to the Leman Lake and especially Montreux where I fetched during more than one hour the street where Ard Oostra, our stickers'manager lives. Finally, I found it. This end-road is marvelous and the open window of Ard's house offers a magnificent scenery on the ake and the surrounding mountains. I spent half an hour with him, drinking a beer, and speaking about the swiss way of life, the weather, the challenge and the climbs in the swiss Romandy. Happy to have met him, I left him and went to use a last time the motorway until Sion.
I arrived at Sion, around 9.00 PM . I knew this place, spending holidays with my family in the campsite Botza, where the crossroad is previewed, three years ago. But before, to find my guest house, where a kind madam Moren welcomes me. A good bedroom with a television and a belgian broadcast inside : I'll be able to follow the belgian athletes in the Pekin olympic games.
I tried to find some BIG's members so late in the campsite but nobody appeared. I only found a Mac Donald to eat something : it's not so good for the bike tomorrow, but well, let's sleep : tomorrow is another day.