The hills are alive with bikers... and a milkmaid

You might be wondering why I am in Switzerland since it has nothing to do with our upcoming Tour de France tour.

There is a mega mountain bike event called PASS'PORTES du Soleil that attracts bikers from around the world, especially those with a penchant for gratuitous Swiss French mountain food.

Patrick is here to 1. test ride a BMC bike,
2. gather material for a magazine article (he writes for several publications in Australia and Asia), 3. test ride a new BMC bike, 4. 'rekky' the trails (AKA do a reconnaissance) and 5. test ride a brand new BMC bike.

Did I mention Pat gets to test ride a brand new BMC bike for an entire week? He is one happy chappy.

So while it sounds like all play, and feels like play, it actually is work - truly.

I didn't plan on riding whilst up here and was without appropriate gear. Fortune smiled upon me in the guise of a loaned mountain bike and free lift pass, though the gift Gods were short on Lycra.

Knicks aside, I simply could not resist. Most of my clothes however, were in one of the various laundering stages (who washes in Paris?) and all I was left with was a pair of stretchy Capri jeans, a tank top and ruffled cotton shirt.

I looked more like a milkmaid in search of an udder than a mountain biker in search of a trail. Hilarious. Needless to say I copped a fair share of odd looks on the trails. But who cares what you look like when you're surrounded by the magnanimous beauty of the Swiss French alps?

So this little milkmaid had the time of her life, not caring how inappropriately dressed I was for the occasion. It made me wonder how often we stop ourselves from doing things because we're not prepared. Sometimes opportunity presents itself and you just have to go for it.

Until tomorrow, grab the opportunities that knock - with or without knicks.

Grace xx

PS. A big thank you to Kate who gifted me a fabulous song called "I wish I could go travelling again" by Stacey Kent. So thoughtful and perfectly quirky, I love it. Merci beaucoup xx

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