September 2009 Newsletter

2010 Tour Dates Announced

We are planning four tours in 2010: Two Challenge tours and two Lite Tours. 

As before, we’ll be honoring 2009 prices until January 1st. Thereafter, the prices will be going up 10 to 15%. That’s quite a leap, but we increased our tour prices by only 1.5% last year in hopes that the dollar would rebound and it has not.

So, if you’re even thinking about doing a ride next year, it does really pay to get us your deposit in as soon as possible. We’ve had a lot of interest in 2010 and so plan on it being a huge year for us. We’re really hoping that these four tours are actually filled by January 1st. Click here for more information on these dates.

2009 Tour Pictures in the Gallery

Click here to go to 2009 gallery

I did my best to find a flattering picture of everyone, but that wasn’t always easy.

Send us a picture if you think you have a good one and I’ll try to post it in the gallery.

Extra Jackets and Jerseys

We do have some extra jerseys and jackets in the following sizes:

Mens: Medium, Large, X-Large

Womens: Small, Large, X-Large

Jackets: Medium, Large, XXL

The prices are still $65 for the jerseys and $80 for the jackets. We’ll have to ship from Switzerland, so that makes $10 more per item. If you’d like to purchase, let me know and I’ll send you a credit card link or you can write a check to Iowa. As you prefer.

Bike Switzerland Jacket (left) and Jerseys. Click to enlarge

Canary Islands Tour

The site is almost up and I’ll send out an email when it goes live. In the meantime, mark your calendars:

February 20-28

Click to enlarge

Help us out…for chocolate.

Again, Bike Switzerland is all about word-of-mouth advertising. Please let your friends and other riders know about this trip of a lifetime. Also, we realize that ANY and ALL links to our site means that we get higher search engine results. So please, if you have an internet site or blog ( even if you’re a chimney sweep), create a link to our site and I’ll send you a 1/2 kilo of Swiss chocolate. Just give me a heads up !

Enjoy the rest of your season. I hope to talk to you personally very soon.

John

June update

Thanks to the Iphone, we’re going to post “live” photos of our tours beginning June 29th.

You can follow this link to see the most current photos and film:

Link to Photos

May/June Newsletter

Swiss quality and design at a fair price.

Swiss Style

Yes, I’m planning to deck myself out with the full kit ! I’ve spent the last few days circling items with my red pen, choosing colors and wondering if I’m still a size “large”. I was going to post a list of American stores selling the new clothing line, but BMC has told me that their American distributor hasn’t yet put in an order, which means that these items will only be available for the European market… and primarily the Swiss market, at that. Too bad because their line-up is class : simple patterns, dark colors and classic fit. Definately something that a “retro-grouch” like myself can wear. Take a look yourself, I’ve put the catalog on-line here.

I’d be happy to put in an order for any present or past riders.

We’re in our new diggs.

New store front

Our mechanic (Roger) has set up his own workshop and Bike Switzerland is sharing around 1/2 the space to display bicycles, store our accessories and to give ourselves some room to maneuver when riders come in for bike fittings. Indeed, things are much easier now. Gone are the days when we would schlep truckloads of bikes back and forth from Carouge. The store is just a 5-minute walk from the train station. Click here for a map.

Bike Switzerland Bed and Breakfast.

2010

In spite of the economy, our “Budget Tours”  (overnights in youth hostels) have not been doing very well. I understand…as much as we enjoyed our youth, there are certain things we prefer to leave behind. Recently, a client asked me to organize an independent trip using local Bed and Breakfasts, and after doing a bit of research, I was surprised by the large number of BnBs dotting the Lite Route and Challenge Route. So, for 2010 we’re going to axe the “Budget Tours” and create a lower cost “BnB option”. Stay tuned.

Registrations are up.

This is why I wasn’t able to get out a proper May Newsletter. This year we’ve already signed up more riders than any year previously. Last year was a record and we’re ahead of those numbers by 12% at the moment. That said, our guided tours are about the same as last year, but we’ve had a double in the number of independent tours.

We’re at the gates.

Our first guided tour is June 28th. We’ll post pictures as they’re taken.

My best,

JOHN

April Newsletter

New Bike Switzerland Rentals

Although Switzerland is one of Europe’s premier destinations for cyclists, it’s almost impossible to find a decent rental bicycle. We’ve noticed this openning for a few years, but with many other projects going we’ve only recently had time to launch our rental site: www.bikeswitzerlandrentals.com

This site allows riders to reserve their bicycle on-line, add options (panniers, GPS, etc) and to have their bicycle delivered and dropped off at any train station in Switzerland ! For the moment, we are renting out our new fleet of BMC Alpen Challenge 02, but have plans to have a smaller selection of road bikes for the summer of 2010. All rentals come with: handlebar bag, back seatpost bag, rear rack, computer, water bottle, everything you need for a flat and a telephone to keep in contact.

All National Bike Routes on New GPS

We’ve bought new GPS units for the season (Garmin’s Legend HCX) and have loaded them with all 9 Swiss national routes ! Now independent riders or those renting our bikes can use the GPS to do our “Challenge” and “Lite” itineraries, or do any of the 9 National Routes. But that’s not it: all the smaller regional routes are also on the GPS! AND all of the national hiking trails. Click on the map below to see all the possible bicycle routes !

First riders of 2009 leave tomorrow !

Marcos and Julianna arrived in Geneva last night from Rio de Janiero. In spite of the ten hour flight, they plan on doing a full day of sightseeing in Geneva today before heading off on the Lite Route tomorrow morning.

The weather seems to be on their side: low-60s and blue skies all day today !

Bon voyage

Our first riders of 2009 are from Brazil

A few spaces left !

There is still room on all of our trips, but things are changing fast now that everyone is reserving their air tickets. There are only two spaces left on our August 27-September 7th Lite Trip.

We do have a single woman looking for a roommate on our August 12th Challenge Tour and a single man looking for a roommate for that same tour. Hmmm, maybe they can work out a temporary solution for themselves ??

My best.

JOHN

March Newsletter

New Bike Switzerland Challenge Movie

We took a  bunch of pictures from the last five years, some new video shot last summer and some stock footage from Swiss Tourism and put together a new and improved “Challenge Film” which covers each day of cycling. We took extra care in making sure that each of the pictures actually corresponded to the days indicated in the movie, so watching the film is pretty close to reliving the trip.

We also got permission to post a few Burt Wolf documentaries about Switzerland on the website. They’re fascinating stuff, and I encourage everyone who is coming on a ride this summer to take a look. You can find all this on the “movie page” of the site. If you’re thinking about doing the Challenge Tour, then the film “Jungfrau” is a must-see. Otherwise, if you’re going on the Lite Tour, you’ll want to look at the film “The East”.

Follow this link to go to the “Movie Page” of the website.

New Rental Website

In the next two to three weeks we’ll be launching a new bicycle rental operation in Geneva. Riders will be able to book and pay for their bikes on-line and pick them up at our facility in Geneva.

Hard to believe, but there is no place in Geneva to rent quality bikes. There are places renting city bikes and bikes appropriate for a day’s ride in the country, but nothing that you would want to take on the road for anything more. We’ll start out renting from our fleet of new Alpen Challenge, with the intention of acquiring more high-end road bikes as things take off.

New Bike Tour Website

Our Gran Canaria tour will be the first of a selection of tours that we’re going to offer on the “Bike Switzerland World” website. The idea is to offer a series of tours that:

1. Must not currently exist (Sorry, no Burgundy wine regions or trips to Tuscany)

2. Must meet our criteria of value (Quality bikes, excellent organization, luxury without pretention).

3. have local guides that give you a local experience that would be difficult to replicate as a solo rider.

We have in fact already created the Gran Canaria itinerary and for those of you who want a sneak peek, you can find the daily stats (kilometers, climbing, etc) at this link.

First Bike Ride. Last Raclette.

Everyone is asking that question about now: Have you got a ride in yet ?

Yep…mine was the first week of March: a short 60 km loop into France.

I was all alone, so had to find a steady fence pole for this picture. No religious intent.

And of course, with the warmer weather has come the last raclette. Frog invited us over last thursday for a final big “do”. Here is a picture:

Me in France

At Frog's

Last Call for Jerseys and Jackets

I know…I’ve said that before. But I talked to Louis Garneau and have decided to have the Jerseys delivered to Iowa rather than Switzerland and this buys us some time…until March 27th. So, if anyone is thinking about a jacket or a jersey, please place your order now. We’ll only have a few limited sizes afterwards.

Again, all details related to sizing can be found Here for the jersey and Here for the jacket.

Thanks for reading until the END.

Best,

JOHN

February Update

Live Help at www.bikeswitzerland.com

Have a question about our tours while browsing online ? Now you can talk directly with one of us through the site. Just look for the box below and start a chat. We’ll be happy to talk…if we’re online. But if you just want to shoot the breeze, better to give me a ring at “bikeswitzerland” on Skype.

New on-line help.

Tiger the Lion’s New Album

Our own David Cotting and his band “Tiger the Lion” released their new album on Friday night. We managed to give the band a lot of financial support by drinking a good deal at their bar. You can listen to some of the new album tracks by going to this link: Tiger the Lion

You’ll be able to buy the album at www.cdbaby.com within the next ten days or so. OR, sign up for a bicycle trip with us before March 15th and we’ll give you the entire “Tiger the Lion Collection” autographed by all band members. And of course…you’ll get David’s super salads for the entire trip.

Bike Switzerland in the Canary Islands: Feb 20-28, 2010

The dates have been set and it’s going to be quite a tour. If you haven’t heard, Bike Switzerland will be hosting a road bike tour on the island of Las Palmas next winter. There will be lots of climbing and we’ll be averaging 80 to 100 km per day, so this will not a walk in the park. You’ve got a year to get in shape.

We’ll be spending our first three days in a 5-star hotel at the beach resort town of Mas Palomas in the south. The following three days will be spent at a mountain resort in the center of the island and our last two nights will be spent on the beachfront in the historic city of Las Palmas in the north. You’ll have seen more of the island than most of the locals ever do ! Weather in the Canary Islands is in the low to mid 70s at this time.

The actual day-to-day itinerary and prices will be announced when our sister-website is goes online in April or May. Stay tuned.

Jersey and Jacket orders

We’ll be taking jersey and jacket orders until the end of March. You’ll find pictures of these products on the “Documents Page” of the website.

Talk to you soon.

JOHN

February Newsletter

Flights to Geneva for $50.

Buying a direct flight ticket to Geneva may be expensive and unnecessary. Why not fly into London, Rome, Amsterdam or Barcelona and use the savings to extend your vacation. Geneva is home to Easyjet, the low-cost airline that makes you pay for the beer and peanuts, but otherwise saves you money.

So, if you live in Minneapolis consider flying into Amsterdam. If you live in Caracas, consider flying into Barcelona. Get the cheapest flight you can find to Europe, Easy Jet flies into Geneva from over 30 different European cities, so chances are you’ll find a cheap connecting flight if you act this month. As seats are sold, the price of remaining seats increases. But now is the perfect time: the summer itineraries have just came out and flights are dirt cheap: I just bought a round trip to Amsterdam for around $80. The catch ? No meal service on the plane and only one bag in the cargo hold. Travel light and bring a can of Pringles and you’ll be alright. www.easyjet.com

New Bike Switzerland “Alpine Morning” Jacket

Last year we had 100 jerseys printed off and sold all but a few odd sizes. It was such a success, that we’ve decided to create a matching jacket. We’re working with our same designer and Louis Garneau to create this light jacket to be delivered in late May. You can find details on the design and sizing at this link:Our jacket . Otherwise, if you’re interested in more technical specifications, take a look at this link which will take you to Louis Garneau.

We’ll also be ordering more jerseys and you can find sizing information at the following link: Our Bike Switzerland Jersey. As before, the jersey will sell for $65 and the jacket for $80. However, you can buy the pair for $135…feel free to mix sizes (you already have a jersey and want jacket, but want to buy your spouse the jersey). That price includes tax and postage…but no “retro-discounts” for past purchases. The jerseys do look great. Here they are in “real life”. Click the picture for a close-up.

Thanks Loren and Susan

If you’d like one of these items, you’ll need to pre-order. This is easy: just write me a short email before March 1st to let me know 1) What you would like 2) your name, email and address. Write me at John@bikeswitzerland.com

Or, if you have a GOOGLE account, go to this link and place your order on the spreadsheet yourself.

America: Look at the Bright Side

Obama biking in Switzerland

Enough talk about the economy. Jeez-louise. Granted, I have every reason to encourage your travelling, but really it could be worse. Last year was worse. In April of 2008, one US dollar was worth one Swiss Franc and I was panicked. Then there was the gas ! The price last April for a gallon of gas was $3.39 !

Today things are markedly better: the dollar is at 1.16 and has been gaining steadily since the recession hit Europe in December. Gas prices are back to a more reasonable $1.85 on average which means airline tickets are about 40% cheaper. And whether or not you voted for him, Barack Obama is immensely popular here in Switzerland…no more wincing as you take out your passport at the border. If your financial condition hasn’t changed much since last year, then you have every reason to celebrate with some biking here in Switzerland. Things are definately better for you.

Single Rider

We have a woman looking for a roommate for our July 16th-July 27th Lite Tour and a gentleman looking for a roommate for the August 27-September 7th Lite Tour. So, if you’re thinking about a tour and want to avoid the single supplement, then consider one of these dates.

Updated Reviews:

We have new faces on the “Reviews Page”. If you were on a ride last year, check it out: you might be there. We’re especially proud of the review that Peter Verbrugge gave us. Peter organizes the international tours for American’s largest bicycle club (Cascade out of Seattle) with over 6,500 members. Bike Switzerland hosted a group of their riders last year.

Bike Switzerland in Grand Canary

Our 2010 Grand Canary trip is being tentatively set for Saturday, February 20th to Sunday, February 28th. This will be confirmed along with prices in the next newsletter. We plan to have a seperate site dedicated to this trip at some time by April or May.

My best,

JOHN

January Update

Friday Friendly in Switzerland

Bike travel should be easier than it is. I’d love to do some cycling with Irina through Russia and Turkey, but man… what a headache ! I do have good bike case. I even mangaged to use it once: took my Fuji from Geneva to Iowa for RAGBRAI. It wasn’t fun. Packing my regular suitcase and clothing is a chore, but try packing a bike. Try.  Once you’ve done it, you’ll think twice next time you tighten your pedals. Yeah, and my piano-size bike case cost me $150 as surplus luggage…and that was back in the good old days.

My problems would be compounded in Russia. Imagine I put the bike together in record time, then what ? I ride it from the airport ?! Where do I store the case ? And I don’t dare leave the bike out of my sight, so will have to face the flabby, flailing arms of my babushka hostesses as I wheel the velo through the livingroom. Of course, I could rent a bike… if the world were perfect, but Russia isn’t near perfect…in fact it’s 167th place on the list (see story below).

My good friend,  North Dakota Tim,  told me about Bike Friday: the folding bike invented in Fargo that folds fast and can pack in a backpack. But Tim’s pride in ND is unwavering, and just months before he had been boasting about the Bobcat skid loader, so I never gave the Bike Friday a second thought.

North Dakota School of Design

The Bob Cat 863 and the Bike Friday Pocket Rocket

News Flash: Switzerland Best Place in Universe

Swiss cities beat out Fargo, Bismark and other world metropoles in two highly regarded quality of life rankings. The Mercer Rankings showed that three of the world’s top ten cities are here in Switzerland: #1 Zurich, #2 Geneva and #9 Berne. Not to be outdone, the “World Values Survey” (a group of elitist pollsters snobs) found Switzerland to be the 2nd happiest country in the world…right behind Denmark. Now, you’re welcome to bike across Denmark, but if their happy-boom causes Danish hotels to fill up early, I’ll work hard to find you a place on a Bike Switzerland tour.

Russia, by the way, ranked 167th.

Happy, fat and foggy-headed

Having grown up with small town newspapers, I feel that it’s entirely appropriate to inform you that David Cotting (Author of 1,001 Bike Switzerland Salads) and myself were the privileged guests in the home of Tim (North Dakota) Anderson on Friday night. The ever-exotic “Pineapple” was served for dessert, and John helped himself to several glasses of Tim’s cherished single malt.

January, 2009 Newsletter

Bike Switzerland goes to Grand Canary in 2010

As some of you may know, I spent the Christmas holidays on Grand Canary, a volcanic Spanish island 150 miles from the Northwest African coast. This vacation was also a fact finding mission: many old and crusty Swiss and German cyclists come to these islands from December to March for winter cycling, as do many of Europe’s professional racers.

I contacted Raymond Leddy, an Irish born expatriate and retired pro mountain bike rider to learn more about the island’s biking culture. Ray runs his own bicycle tour company focusing on one-day city tours of the island’s capital: Las Palmas. However, he’d like to work more with “real bikers”, and his knowledge of the island’s backroads and his connections with local bike shops and the tourism board puts him in the perfect position to do just that.

After a few trips out, I understood Ray’s committment to the island’s bike culture: perfect temperatures, diverse landscapes, challenging climbs, excellent food and beach sunsets make Grand Canary an excellent winter riding destination. I’ve therefore asked him to put together an itinerary and program for a Bike Switzerland sponsored tour for February of 2010. Details to be announced in the next 4/6 weeks.

You can see more pictures of Irina and me in the canary islands, as well as more biking pictures, at the gallery link below.

Grand Canary

Brazil meets Minnesota

Our August 27th Lite Tour is almost full (two spaces left) and on board is a small contingent of Brazilian cyclists as well as a group of Bike Switzerland Alumni from Minnesota.

Mauricio Volpe and a few of his cycling friends.

Mauricio Volpe from Curitiba Brazil found out about our tours on the internet last summer, signed up for the tour and has been recruiting friends to join him ever since. For the moment, four of them have signed up: our first South American riders ever (Florida transplants aside). In the meantime, five past “Challenge Tour” riders from the Twin Cities will be cycling across Switzerland with them. Welcome back Mary, Berway, Heather, John and Phil !

2009 Prices Announced

We feel that things are going to get better this year…at least for the dollar. Keep your eyes on the dollar following the inaugaration.  We’re betting on it hand have therefore decided to leave our prices relatively stable: all 2009 tours prices have gone up by only $50.

Economic Crises ?

Despite the worldwide economic slow-down, Bike Switzerland guided tour registrations are up 160% from this time last year ! Most of our trips are either half-full or nearing capacity and it’s only January !

So what gives ? Although there is no single reason, I believe that our early jump on advertising has helped. In past years, our tour dates were not realeased until late October, but we were able to get them out by early September this year. Also, we owe our past riders a lot: they have placed advertisements in shops, given presentations at bike clubs, spoken with their friends and are always ready to give referrals when asked. Thanks a lot.

Finally, everyone is spending their money more wisely. We’re all shopping around a bit more to make sure that our money goes as far as possible, and when bike tours and their ammenities are compared side by side, Bike Switzerland comes out ahead of the pack.

My best for the New Year,

JOHN

Our First Newsletter…

Bike Switzerland to acquire new fleet of Alpen Challenge 02

I visited BMC Headquarters in Grenchen last month and spoke with the Swiss Market Manager, Steven Jonckheer. We discussed promotional projects and the purchase of a new fleet of bicycles.

Although not yet finalized, we plan to acquire 35 new Alpen Challenge 02 bikes for our 2009 tours. These are the same 27-speed hybrids that we have always used, and although last year’s model was silver, BMC went back to black for the 2009 models.

Steven also informed me that BMC has plans to come out with their own complete clothing product line for Spring of 2009. I’m very excited about this because BMC’s current crop of jerseys, jackets and assessories are stunning and (almost) as sexy as anything Assos.   Check out their products here.

New Geneva Hotel for 2009 Tours

Starting in June of 2009, Bike Switzerland will be using the Hotel Cornavin as our Geneva base. No worries… the new hotel has 4-stars, gym/sauna and great panoramic views of Geneva. The hotel is a one-minute walk from the train station, so getting you and your gear from the airport to your room is still very easy.

The hotel is owned and operated by Marc Fassbind who is also a commuter-cyclist and tandem rider. We’re hoping that he and his wife are able to join our group for the first day of riding. You can check out the hotel at this link.

Facebook

Bike Switzerland now has a presence on FACEBOOK. You can “be a fan” by following this link . You’ll find me, David and other past guides and riders here as well, so become a member and don’t forget to “friend” me.

Stagecoach Tours

Bike Switzerland is a sponsor and advertiser for this years Stagecoach Tours. These are one-day century tours (with lower mileage options) in Southern California. These roadbike rides take place 3 or 4 times a year and their itineraries are off the beaten track (desert, nature, little traffic). The next event is Saturday, January 17th, so if you’re in the San Diego area, you might want to check out their site here.

January 1st prices

Remember that you can lock in our 2008 tour price for next year by paying a $500 deposit before January 1st. Our new tour prices will be announced on January 1st and will go into effect immediately at that time, so if you’re considering a tour, best to get in a deposit.

Our tours are looking very healthy for 2009. Our Lite Tour for August 27th is already half full ! Please consider signing up soon if this date works best for you.

Merry Christmas…more news when it happens.

John

Carouge, Switzerland