Bar du Soleil

This is the bar at the main intersection (and square with the fountain) in Ville-sur-Auzon. It is always packed with cyclists and locals in the late afternoon. I have been by many times and always been tempted to stop, except for the fact that I have another 25-30 km to ride from there to get home. Except for today (Thursday September 9^th).

Today Rosanna and I got organized relatively early. So early that it was a bit chilly and we had to kill some time. By about 10 or so we loaded the bikes in the Picasso and headed to Flassan, from which we intended to tackle the Col des Abeilles (996 metres) and the Gorge de la Nesque. Once there, however, we discovered a problem with the centring of her front brakes which we could not fix on the fly. We loaded the bikes back into the Picasso and headed to the Malaucene shop for a quick repair. I intended to buy new tires for my bike, but the ones I had my eye on had been sold. At this point, it made sense to come home for lunch and then head out later, after we had stuffed ourselves with leftover pasta and with caprese salad.

In our first foray to Flassan, we encountered huge numbers of cyclists, including a large group of riders in wheelchair-bikes. They were all quite low to the ground (lower than a recumbent), and most of them seemed to be pedal powered, but we did see one woman hand-operating hers. Each rider had a companion in a bright coloured vest on a conventional bicycle with them, for visibility I presume. We also saw scads of other cyclists, many more than usual, and many of them in teams. I picked up a brochure at the bike store while Rosanna’s brakes were being attended to, which I think explains why the big uptick in biking. There is a big cycle event this Sunday, which is both participatory and a race, and includes a category called “handicap”. There are two choices of distance, but both go up and over Mt. Ventoux (from the Malaucene side). One is 101 km and the other is 151 km. The latter involves some extra climbing – the departure and arrival for both is Ville-sur-Auzon.

I am quite happy to report that the climb from Flassan to the Col des Abeilles, while long, was not as taxing as I had recalled (of course I was fresh when I tackled it and had not already ridden around the mountain with Glenn nor was it blazing hot which I think it was when I went with Kate). The Gorge de la Nesque was as spectacular as usual, but the descent was rather breezy, particularly in the little tunnels hollowed through the rock. The wind seemed to collect in there and entering one was like hitting a wall. The first one we came to was particularly bad. Nevertheless, even into the wind, a 23 km plus downhill is still a downhill. At the end of it was Ville-sur-Auzon, (and the banner for the cyclists arriving Sunday) and the Bar de Soleil, with a prominent road sign in front of it – Flassan 5. We had two pastis each and watched a lot of cyclists roll in (and by). The road to Flassan was not enjoyable. It has no scenery to commend it, and it is uphill but appears flat (I believe I have already complained of this), and there was a strong wind. On the plus side, it was only about 22 degrees and we only had 5 km to cover. In Bedoin I was sent into the bakery with some very poor instructions as to what I should order, but nevertheless managed to emerge with the correct bread (and a wee cake) and locate the Picasso half a block away. I have already enjoyed the bread (as bruschetta topped with the last of the tomato confit) and am awaiting an artichoke risotto. I am more curious than hopeful about the wine accompaniment – a viognier from Mazan! It was purchased at the grocery store and my cross-examination about the price elicited no concrete information.