Whether it's in the parking lot or the pub, "How was the ride?" is a loaded question. Coming back from a multi-day, multi-country adventure with some old friends and a new bike, the question gets asked a lot. Fresh off the trail and filled with post-ride fever, I often find myself pouring a stream of expletives and hyperboles in reply.
I admit that in an effort to describe the best moments of a ride, the truth can take a bit of a holiday. OK, maybe not EVERY corner was bermed, and the drifts weren't ALL roosting shoulder high. Luckily for me (and for you!) the story of the Tour Mont Blanc has proof.
Please take a moment to explore the evidence behind this truly "epic" ride. Check out the scenery and the trail, and let your imagination put you in the saddle. Then get out on your bike and make your own adventure. -Matt Hunter
I've done the tour of Mont Blanc 2 years ago with this Mounainereeng-mountain biking-free skiing guide Gianfranco Sappa, the exerience was AWESOME. He is based in Courmayeur and I can assure he is one of the best guides for this kind of tour, with a lot of experience!!!!
Matt Hunter is the one particular rider, that has influenced my riding so much. For hell's sake, he is the rider, watching whom got me into mountainbiking, truth from the heart. I wish I could meet him some day.
Great adventure.
Agreed. I realise this is a fancy ad for specialized, but beneath all that (and in all the movies) you still get to know that Matt is a good dude. A rider still like the rest of us. Stoked on riding new trails. Would be great to meet him someday.
The ladies hunting for autographs. I swear they had no clue who he was Or they said: Hey Hunter, back in the days we rode this stuff on our chinese hardtails haha
After that video i´m realy looking forward to ride some hard-earnend singletrails.
SIIIIICCCKKK loop Hunter! Anyone want to ride in the same zone (Italy and Switzerland) but not have to deal with as much hike-a-biking as the Tour du Mont Blanc...check out Big Mountain Adventures: ridebig.com/adventures.php We've been guiding epic all-mountain & DH trips around Mont Blanc for 10 years. Ride big!
That was awesome! Its great to see what the world is like from a mnt bike while sitting at my desk pretending to work. Thanks for the tour of Mont Blanc!!
Not taking anything away from this amazing adventure, but it would be really cool to see some touring which actually involves more equipment than a day pack, passport and enough cash for all the nice accommodations and trimmings. Self-sufficient biking tours in some remote locations would be sweet. Nice to think some of these guys could pitch a tent if they had to. We all know it's not going to be the McCaul brothers in any case...
eh, the last camping trip the mccaul brothers did, they had a helicopter.....
From my experience - riding with a 60l pack full of gear makes for some shitty downhills. Or better said, a few more over the bars on those epic little sections that you would have cleared without the 30lbs on your back. Kills the fun. Or you talking about cross country stuff?
em-j look for trips by Margus Riga, PJ Hunton, Bryce Borlick myself and others self-supported with packs mainly in the South Chilcotins. Some on PB, some on other websites.
ibeaver - I can get away with a 25l pack for 3 nights 4 days on the bike. Some other guys are lighter, some are heavier (but not by much. 60l is pretty crazy
Also I wasn't going to say anything, but my 44L Osprey Talon is more than enough, and that isn't traveling especially light. I can't even imagine being able to sit on a bike with a 60L, let alone be able to move with it. I have a 21L Camelback (3L reservoir) which I use for shorter trips and hiking.
I would be really interested to see what gear you are using!
emj, i was asking what you meant..... cross country styel? not criticising. If you wanted to ride the same tour as Matt in that vid, you'd not be having fun even with 40l, for a lot of that ride, including the days going up 6000' worth of riding. I personally don't like much of any pack on my back... a 20l dueter is sometimes way to much.
Leelau, I like to change my shorts after 2 days :-p
I'm not sure what you mean by 'style'? If you are differentiating between xc touring and riding dh with a 60L pack then I can understand why you weren't having any fun, but other than touring, I'm not sure what else you would use that size pack for? However xc touring doesn't mean you're not going to encounter big climbs or fast, tech dh sections. So again, really not sure what you're asking?
Also try wool, if you are worried about hygiene on the trails. I strongly recommend ibex personally. Days of comfort and no stink
If any wants to actually do this ride same style as Matt H just did, I am doing it twice this summer. There is room to join or make a new trip withyour own dates, see www.ridethealps.com cheers and hope to get better weather on teh ace drop into itlay !!
Yeah J,i would be no chance of those climbs hahaha.....magic little vid this.As i have gotten older ive gone from the 4min hell raiser DH rides to these huge adventure rides.I have not done one yet but i think this coming winter has us penciled in for a 3 day ride and camp stint through magic rain forrests.....i just have to keep the bro's keen for it.I will send them all a link to this vid and if that dont fire them up nothing will.....Hunter is a legend in these parts and is often regarded as everyones fave rider...mine included.He is what got me on a Enduro hahaha
this is one reason why I'm here :-) If Matt would put together a winter adventure around mt blanc, then you would see the second reason. Oh, and all the mtn girls are called Heidi... unbelievable! The third reason!!
noodle after a ride...hmmmm my favorite. i mean spaghetti. Thanks for the video, makes me wanna cry coz i cant ride this weekend due to rain till monday.
I went from an sx trail to it.. and I was pretty scared it wasnt going to handle what the sx could, but it can and it is sooo much more versatile when it comes to all around riding, I stuck some bigger bars on it so i could be a trend whore and now Im happy with it and couldnt really think of anything else id wanna change which is a first for a stock bike!
Well my sx wasn't a new model, it was an 06 so there wasnt a massive difference in travel, still, it handles well, its the 2013 comp evo, try taking one out for a test ride, thats what I did.. but it was easy for me because I work at a spesh dealer lol
Well, screw you man! Haha, I don't think my LBS demos any bikes. I would have test it around slushy parking lot surrounded by a foot of sloppy snow. Thanks my man! I really appreciate this. I'll wait until I have my tax return so I can at least put a down payment for layaway before testing them out. I would probably get the 2012 Comp EVO. '12 and '13 are both super sexy.
the '12 has elixir.. (or however its spelt) 7's instead of 5's... but im pretty sure the '13 has a slightly better rear hub.. other than that I don't think there are any major changes apart from colour ofc!
Thanks for showing us that great ride you had in the alps...I would not last in those huge hill climbs but those downhills sure looked like alot of fun
Looks like an epic adventure. But why haul around that beast bike with infinite travel when all you need for those smooth trails is a standard XC or at most a mid-range trail rig?
It's just like that silly debate over short/long travel bikes last month...
they're both fun, but emphasize different parts of a trail. the big travel lets you ride the trail in a way you couldn't on a hardtail, and vice versa.
but it's not just the weight.
It isn't much fun pedaling up with that super slack geometry and bobbing all over the place. A full carbon trail ride with XTR is closer to 24 pounds.
Anyways, this pro is paid to ride this bike and promote a certain image this bike is suppose to carry with it. Just saying this kind of fun doesn't need that much bike.
@ampa - I've seen interviews where he talks about this. He CHOSE the Enduro. He was supported by Speciailized when he decided to do more adventures like this than freeriding downhill. They got him on a carbon Stumpy EVO for a product video, but he chooses the Enduro himself for these adventures.
jeez, tough crowd, down voted with vengeance... Just sayin' the average joe can have all the fun on their average bike. Pedaling your 170mm travel all-mountain/enduro rig for 180km might not be that optimal as Specialized is trying to sell.
I agree with you though. If it were me, I'd rather be on a Stumpy EVO, but this would still kick my ass. Depends on the engine a lot, not completely bike.
