First meeting with Gabór Györgyi, in the tree's crossroad, ( carrefour de ... l'arbre). SIUNGARY 2008
BIG trip - Daniel Gobert - day 8
day 1 - day 2 - day 3 - day 4 - day 5 - day 6 - day 7 - day 8
Wednesday the 20th of august 2008
My first slovakians
Dring,here, Gabór Kreicsi, the morning-clock of the big days. And it's gone ! We leave with two cars . Yesterday evening, we left Ferenc who went to meet again his family in the southern area of the country, and we left Janós too ! Today, in Slovakia, we'll meet again Csaba and we'll have the honour to meet the great BIG number 1 hungarian man, called Gabór Györgyi, who left his home near Budapest soon in the morning with the bike znd will climb the first BIG with us before going back home. The last man of the Salgotarjan team, István Ispán, called "strong man" is also with us today .The two days before, he worked as a driver of ambulance. Strong man, very strong. Perhaps alittle loud for high percentages but some bodyguard appearance !
Just the time to say goodbye to my dear hosts in Salgótarján, we go along the slovakian border to the west. It's the first time that I'm on my way back. We cross the border without any policemen. Just the time to buy (but GK wishes to pay for me, too kind!) thz "motorway vignette of the country" and we go to the north through a national road and afterwards, a narrower road where we get Gabór Györgyi a few kilometers before our stop.With an hungarian jersey and a short with the name "challenge B.I.", it's impossible to miss him. Hell , Gabör, we'll meet in the crossroad of the foot.
First meeting with Gabór Györgyi, in the tree's crossroad, ( carrefour de ... l'arbre).
This unmarked crossroad is just in the south of the village Svety Antón,without any sign to the Sitno. I tell to my collegas :"the Felsö-Borovnyak yesterday or the Sitno today, I would be alone, I had never found them" . Then, we decide to scotch the sticker on the tree of this crossroad. It's now the tree's crossroad (just like the cobbled section in Paris-Roubaix). Seeing it, ride the hairpin and go up, Sitno is at the end of this end-road. We begin all tgether the climb of the Sitno.
A stocker to show, this time, the ... foot . 
The Sitno, it's not easy. we immidiately begin in the red points with a 15% slope, we cross a small village on a short flat area, we begin again with an hard slope and suddenly, the surface becomes worse and the gradients become steeper. Succession of numerous walls between 15 and 20%, 200 meters approximatively each time, enough to get your heart in extreme pulses. Be careful the last wall is terrible, over 20%. The last kilometer gives an average gradient of 13%. The road is quiet, no trafic and we see the TV tower on the top since the beginning. We know where we are but now, we also know how steep it is !
Succession of walls until TV tower.
On the top , the time differences between us are very ghreat. Just before me, Gabór Györgyi arrives, terribly strong and in full form, getting photos, leading his bike with one hand in 15% slopes and discussing in english with me . Gabór Kreisi arrives soon and Csaba completely tired because he has only 42 gears in front. "I only walk one time ", he cries before falling on the grass just down the Sitno house. György Domonkos comes a little later, and then István Ispán and we wait longly the peaceful Gabór Vincze, who reaches the top on his MTBwith some courage because Sitno is hard . Congratulations to everybody !
Daniel Gobert and Gabór Györgyi behind István Ispán and Csaba Hollo-Vasko to the Sitno.
On the top , we stay with happiness on the grass because the sun shines hardly.The gradients of the Sitno : it's really something when we think about afterwards.
In the Sitno's heart!
We go down quickly again. Infat, slower for me, because of the holes and my back brakes completely out. We say good-bye to Gabór Györgyi and we go to the north to Kremnisca for attacking the Skalka, the last BIG of my Siungary trip.
It's the moment chosen by Gabci for the lonely mistake in his perfect management : in a crossroad, he misses the curve and go straight to finish a few kilometers further in a village, where after the road, begins a path and that stops there. Obligation to go back. We miss time and we understand the diffiuclty in our way back seeing the hidden road-sign in the crossroad.National roads and motorway to Kremnica. Here, the BIG is obvious ! .Immediately, when coming in the city, lighting road-signs indicate "winter resort Skalka". The road for the station is open. The last chapter of my Siungary tour is ready, the last chapter of a very beautiful story.
After a cobbled section in the city , we start the climb. Csaba is immediately near me with a recorder and answers me some questions for his pupils. Questions about cycloclimbing. Why ? No, not why, How, of course ! Cycloclimbing : the why ofthe how for 5 minutes with his pupils. We laugh a lot ! Then, he follows the way with the other ones and it's my host Gabci who comes on my left. Well, it's the last one, we increase the speed : 15 km an hour with Gabór for the last one. Come on, boys ! 6-7% during 10 kilometers : it's fine and sport.
The goal of my dream !
A short break to wear my bike in front of the road-sign marking the end of the trip .Afterwards, a swing with different paths and finally, the top in a new military field and of course the traditional TV tower to mark the arrival.
Military top of the Skalka for Gyorgy and Csaba.
Gabór and I, waiting the other ones, talk together aout deeper things, personal subjects, we soon leave one another for our different families and tasks. He tells me that the hungarian members will be there next year in Sonthofen for the official meeting this time ! We go down, proud of ourselves to Kremnica. We dress for driving car, no more bike ! It's the time for good-bye ! A short sentence for everybody that I try to be right, but it's too short, I haven't enough time to thank them for so a warm welcome. I have much and much respect for you, hungarian friends of the BIG. You're a great country for the challenge, believe me ! They go back to Hungary, I go beck to Belgium but we are together in our experiences. Just a 1300km way to go.
Top fixed by a happy end of a trip.
Backway located between 15PM the w<ednesday and 8 AM the thursday. Marked by difficulties with the road-signs in Slovakia (it indicates a direction, that suddenly is closed with a cross on the name and mo alternative way, what to do ?); a complete trafic stop in the czech border, one hour of reserach to find the entrance of the motorway just before Brno, the beautiful and free of trafic motorway to Prague, the unfinishable narrow german motorways and my coming back in my country very soon in the morning hearing for the first time a french radio. Also marked by the fantastic music of the group "Muse" that turns round in my car during the trip.
And finally the happiness to find my family at home, some sadness in the eyes, the heart clocking. Happy to have done, happy to come back. Happy, but terribly tired !.
I will take one week to be fit and well again . Normal,the 24th of august, with my 5 children (the 3 oldest with their girl or boy-friends) and with my wife around the table, we feast my birthday. I'm 50 years old. I had a thougth to them who wished me an happy birthday like Etienne and Gabci, the two managers of this crossroad. "First when coming back, recalls Gabór, "your feast , your birthday!".
All the BIGs done turn around in my head and their names turn one to another: another half a century is called ! We are old if we seem angry, we are always young if we do Siungary !