Aftermath of the cancelled race....

Thanks to the calf muscle tear in my right leg, I had to cancel my much-looked-forward-to Grand Prix de Berne 16-km race in the capital city on Saturday last. I'd really needed to get away from death and the business, and couldn't wait for the race, when this unfortunate muscle injury occurred. On Saturday, I tried not to think about what was going on in Berne, but it wasn't easy.

However, I did decide to do the sensible thing, and take a break from running for a while, so that the injury could heal itself. I have no more race dates set until the Berlin Marathon on 28th September, but need to go through the list of upcoming races, and see where I could take part. Whilst the MdS is my ultimate middle-future goal, I need a few other near-future goals, because I really enjoy racing.

On Monday last - a holiday here in Switzerland - I went for a bike ride with Kurt. We did around 40 km, taking it easy, and stopping off for a beer in Felsberg. I'd hope to go further and a tad faster, but held in the reins, and enjoyed it. Cycling has no effect on my injured calf muscle.

On Tuesday, due to various factors, I was in a deep low, and decided, I needed to get away for a day, be on my own, and go for a long bike ride. On Wednesday, I would take a break from undertaking (my first in seven weeks, which is far too long), and head off for the day on my mountain bike (see photo above). The weather had been perfect for over a week, and Wednesday was to be no different.

Consequently, on Wednesday morning, I rose at the usual time, readied myself for a day's riding, and set off around 9 o'0clock. My plan, was to ride to Liechtenstein, through this little principality, and across the border to Austria, possibly even heading further north to southern Germany. On Tuesday evening, I had used GoogleEarth to map it all out, and it seemed possible.

I set off from Chur, heading down towards the Rhein at Haldenstein, and followed the usual cycle/hiking track through Zizers, Landquart, Bad Ragaz and then north of Sargans to where the Rhein turns from its northwestwards flow to head basically due north, creating the natural boundary between Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It was quite cool when I set off, but I had on my Nike running jacket, which kept me quite warm. By Zizers, though, I was already hot, and removed the jacket.

From my running, I have been learning how to nourish myself on longer runs, and decided, this applies to cycling as well. I had along with me two Gatorades, and a PowerBar, plus water, all of which I started ingesting at regular intervals, in addition to which I also bought myself a large tuna roll and a huge banana on the way. For a change, I found, that the home route, when I returned to Chur, was not nearly as physically stressful as it usual is after a long ride (and my ride on Wednesday was very long - for me), and I put it down to proper nourishment.

Back to the outbound journey - following the Rhein on its northward track, I crossed the hiking and cycling bridge over the mighty river to Balzers in Liechtenstein, and then rode on the sealed route along the levee, which canalises the Rhein all the way to the Bodensee (Lake Constance). There were quite a few cyclists around, and it was interesting to see the various kinds of people enjoying the Rhein - entire families out for a ride, elderly folk getting in some exercise, top-fit guys and girls thundering along on their racing bikes, people like me just out for the day and cross-training for the MdS!!!!, and so on. Quite a few ladies' groups also seemed to have chosen yesterday for a cycle - that's all very nice, but I wish they would realise, that they can't ride ten abreast and block the entire cycle route.

The weather forecast for the Rhein valley had been for northerly winds, which meant, I would have had a headwind in the morning, and a tailwind for the return journey when I was tired. Chance is a fine thing, and I ended up with the exact reverse!!!!! Anyway, on I rode, the Rhein to my left, and beautiful Liechtenstein to my right, passing by the towns of Balzers, then Triesen, followed by the principality's capital of Vaduz. Prominent on the mountain side above the town, is the castle of the royal family of this mini-country (photos can be seen on my flickr.com site). Once I had reached Vaduz, I decided to follow what is known as the Leichtensteiner Rheintalroute for cyclists (the cycling route for the Valley of the Rhine on the Liechtenstein side). It steers clear of the towns (mostly) and meanders through beautiful agricultural and forested areas. Vaduz is 40 km from Chur, so off I set on the meander, heading northwards. It really was very tranquil and enjoyable, and I stopped often to take photos, and enjoy the scenery.

Before I knew it, I was in the north of Liechtenstein, and had arrived at the Austrian border - nothing, other than a post which proclaimed entrance to the Republik Österreich. For motorists, there are still customs and passport control posts wherever roads cross the border from Switzerland into the European Union. The foreign affairs and defence of Liechtenstein are controlled by Switzerland, so between Liechtenstein and Austria, there are border controls as well. However, for cycling and hiking, there are no controls at all, which is very sporting of the EU. Switzerland has joined the Schengen Agreement, and all borders between us and the EU are due to come down some time soon. The original date was 1st November this year, but there seems to be a political delay, and who knows when this will happen.

Anyway, across into the EU I rode, my heart still set on Germany, until I saw large thunderstorm clouds over the north, and decided against it. There were also storms evident over the Swiss canton of St. Gallen to my left, and I was pretty nervous, that they would flow over the mountain barrier of Alpstein, and hit the Rhein valley - fortunately, this did not happen. Having decided not to ride to Germany (which would have been another hour or so to the north), I concentrated on the western Austria area in which I found myself, and decided to head west to the point where Switzerland, Austria and Liechtenstein share a common border. In front of me, though, was a mini-mountain ridge, which could either be crossed, or circumnavigated. I chose the former route, which, on the map of the area I found at a bus stop, described itself as a hiking track. It looked more like a mountain road which headed up through the forests, so, engaging a lower gear, I set off upwards and upwards and upwards. It was absolutely beautiful, albeit tiring, but I liked the solitude and peace of this dense forest through which I was riding. I finally came to a fork, the upper way changing to a small footpath, quite unsuitable for a bicycle, and the lower route heading back down the ridge past a castle and church (which suddenly appeared in the middle of the forest). I had no choice, and took the right fork, only to find, that I was heading rapidly downhill to near the point at which I had started the ascent - the circumnavgiation would have been right after all. Back down in the valley, I came to the main road around the ridge, and was in some heavy motorised traffic for a while until I finally came to another wide agricultural area, the road across which lead to the little village of Bangs - there are some very strange names of towns and villages in Austria!!!

It was getting quite hot by then, and I had to apply suntan lotion to my exposed arms for fear of them burning to a crisp - the joys of a European "tan"!!!!! From Bangs, I found the narrow cycle track which heads back south, and this marked the northernmost point of my journey. From then on, it was back towards Chur. As I crossed the unmanned border into Liechtenstein, I came across what must be an historic border sign, describing Austria as the Empire of Austria!!!! It was quite ornate, and brought back tales of the empire from history lessons in school!!!!!

Back in the mini-principality, I turned back towards the Rhein to the point where the three countries meet, and had a break while I took some photos, and checked all my instruments. As the crow flies, the north-south extent of Liechtenstein is about 25 km. I was then in the extreme north, about to head to the extreme south, although it was a lot further than the flight of the crow!!!! I decided to follow the Rhein this time, and cycle the whole way along the sealed levee. It did become a little boring after a while, although the mountain scenery all around is spectacular without a doubt. The headwind - fortunately not strong - was a trfile annoying, but did not dampen my spirits.

On and on I cycled, until finally I reached the cycle/hiking bridge across the Rhein near Balzers, back over to the Swiss side. The route back to Chur was pretty much the same as my outward route, the only difference being, the thunderstorm clouds which were building up over the peaks, and threatening to release their precipitational and electrical loads upon poor old me. However, I was lucky, in that I got back to Chur without any problem, and headed straight for Café Arcas on the square of that name in the Altstadt, on which our house is located. I ordered the largest, coldest beer they had, and enjoyed every mouthful.

I'd had a really great day of cycling, and had seen so much of the countryside. I know Liechtenstein well, but it's different by bike than by car, and I will do his trip again. I'd covered 130 km, and felt in excellent condition as I drank my beer. My calorific expenditure that day had been 4280 kcals, so I could afford to quaff a brew or two.

A hot spa bath a short while later, did the world of good, and I felt well-exercised and happy once I emerged. Even today, I have no sore muscles, aches or pains, and even my rear is not at all sore after a long time in the saddle. It had been an extraodrinarily beautiful day. Did I sleep well last night? Hmm, not too badly, but not right through - I had a few hours of wakefulness in the wee hours, again.

In retrospect, it was just as well, that I did not go to Germany, because it would have meant me arriving back in Chur about two or three hours later, exactly when a storm hit our town!!!!

I enjoy biking very much indeed, and would like to do more; however, running is my priority, and I'll do biking (in terms of long rides like this one) when I feel like a break from running, or have an injury which makes running impossible. Actually, part of the route on which I cycled back comprises the 50-km solo run, with rucksack, I have planned for summer. I must say, though, it's a lot quicker by bike!!!!!

Today is another beautiful day, weatherwise, but I'm back with the bodies. From tomorrow, however, there is awful weather expected, with a return to lower temperatures and lots of rain.