Ride the best of the Alps in 2019
too. Take the Stelvio Pass, the third highest pass in the Alps. At 9045 feet, it offers 75 hair-raising hairpins and views that will make your stomach lurch. Or the Passo di Gavia. It’s a single-track ascent with oncoming cars, bikes and bicycles, potholes galore, gravel, rock slides and unpredictable weather. For some it’s the ultimate challenge, while for others it was a risk too far, but no-one is forcing you to tackle the climb. Then there’s the historic St Gotthard Pass in Switzerland. While it’s not a fast road, it is both challenging and breath-taking with its cobblestone hairpin bends. Initially, I was wobbling around like Bambi, but after stringing just a few switchbacks together it turned into one of the highlights. But there are many more passes that are just as good without having achieved fame or notoriety, and even the roads that connect the passes are often gorgeous valley sweepers that ebb and flow through towns and lush lowlands, providing a welcome breather before the next ascent. There’s confidence and safety in numbers, too. Our gang of 15 thudding Harley-Davidsons was pretty difficult for drivers to ignore, and the range of experience and skills in the group meant we had a solution for every eventuality. As you tick off passes, you’ll also be racking up the countries. The tour threads its way through nine in total, and the transformation of cultures as you cross each border adds a subtly different flavour to each leg of the trip. From gorgeous Swiss mountain lodges, to chiming cow bells and lederhosen in Austria, and seemingly infinite local beers to enjoy after a day’s riding – travelling on a bike gets you closer to every country. Along with the incredible engineering of the mountain roads comes a refreshing exposure to the opportunity for natural selection to take control. High-altitude passes with sheer drops, exposed hairpins and the occasional throng of Lycra-clad cyclists adding to the challenges. It’s liberating riding in a place where your safety isn’t cocooned by the health and safety police. It’s sensory overload, too, as the potential for disaster spikes your pulse with adrenaline while your eyes struggle to drink in the scenery. It’s a riding nirvana that leaves you feeling like you’re living on the edge. Quite literally.