Pre-LMC trip to the Swiss Alps

Looks like a great trip.

You are living the dream.

Rocky (a.k.a. Chuck)

Today was Saturday, and appalling weather, rain and fog, not weather to drive in with any kind of pleasure. Bummer, but good that I got it done yesterday, and that was why I had given myself two days here. So I was couped up in my rented apartment with a 50” TV. I saw some material in the apartment that offered me to buy it, at a price og €700k. I watched Wimbledon, F1 Qualifying, Tour and later EM, where my Italian favorites lost on the n’th penalty. I had thought about just walking to the town to have dinner, but the fog was such I didn’t I cooked my own pizza that I with perfect foresight had bought yesterday.

So last day of the Pre-LMC Tour. Today I would pick up my wife in Lyon and drive to Dorgogne to meet all the rest of the partticpants. An almost 1000 km drive, and the initial part in the Swiss Alps at maybe 30 km/h. I could have saved maybe 50 km, but a Dane I briefly know that lives in Switzerland recommended to go via Sion for the scenery, so I did. Helen’s flight schedule meant that I got up at 5 am, packed and drove off. The weather was a bit better than yesterday, but there was drizzle and low clouds. And I had to drive through my least favorite pass on the way: Furka, the one with the massive drop and inadequate guardrails.

So on slippery roads I took it easy. And when I got up the mountain I drove into the low clouds

Nearing the peak I saw sun through the fog/clouds, and at the peak I was above the clouds.

Then a 100 km of winding roads, and then it was highway rest of the day more or less. In France I got blitzed once by a stationary camera when I was doing an apparently highly criminal 116 km/h on a long steep downhill where 110 was the limit. When I got blitzed twice in one day 4 years ago in France, fines never arrived, let’s hope not. The roads were great, shame about the limits. Normal limit is 130, then I saw a sign saying 110 km/h the next 40(!) km, for your safety. Thanks a lot!

I dived into Lyon Airport to see if I could pick up some company, and indeed I was lucky, my wife arrived. So no more quiet in the car, no more opera either. Only after-26-years-of-marriage conversation. Which is not too bad…We lunched on sandwiches in the car, and drove on, looking forward to seeing everybody again and some new faces, people I had communicated with on the forums with but never met before.

The scenery got a little less interesting the last part, roads were fine, so a constant 130 km/h was the norm. We arrived just after 4 pm, soapprox. 9 hours for me, so I was a bit tired. It was a hotel apparently known for their tame goose, I thought it was dinner.

So that was the Pre-trip. And my diary ends here unless something dramatic happens, because from now on there’ll be no time. Too many people to talk to, too many chateaus to visit, too many cars to look at, too many courses to eat and beers and glasses of wine to drink. Tough. A bit stressful, but we’ll manage.

So enjoy your summers, hope that your summer plans includes driving a long trip in a DeTomaso? You have a limited number of summers in your life

Happy 4th of July to my American friends

Nice story Mikaël !
Did the Swiss trip years ago in my '72S Porsche... See you at LMC
Philippe

Mikael,

Just sat still long enough and read all your postings.

GREAT adventure. Thanks for sharing.

Larry

quote:

.... It was a hotel apparently known for their tame goose, I thought it was dinner.

I love that picture of three Panteras, a Longchamp and a Goose.


Rocky

i love the windy alpine shots, reminiscent of the "Gold Finger" Radar equipped DB5.

How did I miss this thread when you were posting it?! Great diary! Thanks for sharing your adventure with us Mikael. Wish I were there with you.

OK, so I'm late posting but I really enjoyed reading about your trip. No, it wasn't the longest distance travelled, but it was a great road trip :-))))

Great to see you and Helen - wouldn't be the same without you!

quote:

- wouldn't be the same without you!

Hhmm, I hear that often. When I was younger I sometimes worried about what people meant by that. Now I'm old and wise enough to not care...