Riding at the Right Speeds
Zen and elation on the roads and trails of Catalunya
Zen and elation on the roads and trails of Catalunya
Pachim,pacham,pachum – this melodic Catalan idiom would become a common refrain in my head – and response to anyone who asks how I’m feeling during a ride – throughout my bike trip in Catalunya, on the roads or on the trails.
Catalunya (or Catalonia in English) is a region and autonomous community in northeastern Spain. It includes Girona, which is a hotspot for winter training and hub for pro road cyclists, but there are many other routes to the southwest, on the other side of Barcelona. Mountaintop towns, castles and monasteries provide a purpose to those endless scenic climbs, other than fitness. Bike-friendly hotels with secure storage give you peace of mind when you leave your rig at the end of a ride. I learned my new saying on my first day in Catalunya from my guide. It’s similar to commeci, commeça in French – so-so, neither good nor bad. It perfectly describes the neutralization of my emotional state between sheer exhaustion from pedalling up steep grades and elation from being on a bike in a foreign country.
We grabbed our road bikes in Mas Miró, the country retreat and studio of celebrated Spanish painter Joan Miró, near Tarragona. Art and bikes are the perfect way to start a day. Since I’m an mtb-in-baggies girl in a spandex world, I chose to ride the 16 km with 556 m of elevation option to the castle of Escornalbou instead of the 44 km with 1,248 m option. My route felt like the long one. I got pushed around a bit by sudden cooling gusts of wind. A few stops were made under the guise of photography – though I legit needed photos – putting me pretty far behind. Before attempting a steep 16 per cent grade turn, I put a foot down and saw the top. My first ride was complete.
My second day started with an early alarm to watch the sun rise from the beach across from our Tarragona hotel with a couple of my new travel buddies. After fuelling up on breakfast, we met the folks from Rodabike in Maspujols to get fitted on road bikes to cycle around the Priorat area.
Our guide was Marc Tugues, a mountain biker and bmx rider. He coaches cross country racer Janika Lõiv from Estonia, who I’d just seen compete at the world championships i n Mont-sainte-anne a few weeks prior. During our chat up the mountain, I learned Tugues is also working on building a bike park ( bikeaventurapark.com) and runs summer camps. “I have 167 kids,” he joked.
We stopped i n Prades where I enjoyed a hot cup of tea in the square (don’t judge me, I don’t drink coffee!). Tugues remarked that it will give me energy for the second half of our ride, though I eventually fall behind the pack – again.
I felt, however, that being the slowest in this situation turned out to be a bonus. I kind of ended up getting a one-on-one coaching session as Tugues helped me mind-over-matter the hard climbs. At one point, we ran into Tugues’s friend who was coasting down the mountain. He gamely turned around to ride back up with us. The two chattered away happily in Catalan, with Tugues occasionally giving me encouragement and tips. Today’s refrain: breathe, take it easy, recover.
A couple of times Tugues offered (and asked permission) to give me a push. I happily accepted. I’m heading up 25 per cent grade hills. I managed to stay out of my head and just enjoy the ride. I have to say, this trip sparked an interest in covering longer distances on roads – though I think in Ontario, I’ll start with gravel. Tugues’s road bike with its flat bar even inspired me to go after the same setup. Take that, drop bars.
The roads we took were smooth. The cars, even in hairpin, mountain turns, seemed to be aware they’d come upon cyclists. The drivers were patient when they couldn’t pass immediately. Part of the day’s route was a section of the 1984 world championships course. The red rock reminded me a bit of Sedona, Ariz., but with more verdant surroundings. Tugues wouldn’t let me quit. He accepted a toe down and a quick breather, but I ended up pedalling the whole way up – and later found out a few in my group walked the
last torturous climb. Pachim,pacham,pachum.
Next, my day of mountain biking made me feel like a superstar. I was back in my element. It started with a mechanical (not mine) and ended with a mechanical (unfortunately mine). While we waited for a chain to be fixed in the village of Vallbona, I spotted an elderly man in his garage cracking almonds and greeted him, apologizing for interrupting when he noticed me. He told me the almonds are used to make turrón (a sweet nougat confection), cracking one with a hammer for me to try. It’s moments like these that I hold on to in my memory “album.” When all was sorted out, and a coffee break was had, we were off to continue mountain biking part of the Cistercian
Route ( Larutadelcister) – a 108-km network of doubletrack, with some challenging stretches of singletrack. This was what I’d been waiting for. I confidently seeded myself near the front of the pack, gradually moving up right behind the guide after others encouraged me to go ahead. On a particularly gnarly descent, I felt a swell of pride when the super-fit, impatient roadie from our group had to walk down a sketchy stretch after I’ve cleared it all.
A company called Bicipark provided us with the e-mountain bikes we were on. I zoomed up loose, technical, rocky sections, and pedalled through rock gardens with ease. The only thing that made me a bit nervous was the weight of the bike if things happened to go sideways, literally. But I stayed upright, even as I hurtled down a hill and heard a loud bang. My bike nearly came to a complete stop, almost chucking me out of the saddle. My tire was flatter than flat. Damn. Things were going so well. Luckily today’s guide was able to fix things up and we continued on toward lunch.
Our last day took part during the Penedès 360 Challenge, a festival that includes an 82-km “race.” I opted for the “slow biking,” which featured riding through vineyards and visiting a couple of wineries. After all, the event is set in a wine region. I even stayed in a boutique hotel that was built to look like stacked bottles of bubbly (Mastinell Cava & Hotel, hotelmastinell.com) – it’s not cheesy, I promise. I like the idea of “slow biking,” taking your time to enjoy the scenery and sampling some wine, instead of racing through. That’s the beauty of biking in Spain, though. Even if you are training or on a serious ride, you can’t help but notice the surroundings. And there is nothing pachim, pacham,pachum about Catalunya. It’s pretty incredible.