France: Côte d'Azur
There's not much going on yet in the "de la Mairie" bar on Collobrières' market square. It's early in the morning, not even half past seven. A few construction workers are drinking coffee and the landlord is yawning so heartbreakingly that you can't help but join in. Two old women are standing opposite by the fountain, exchanging news and kisses. A light breeze pushes a few fallen leaves from the mighty plane trees across the almost deserted square, where a three-cheese high is doing laps on a bonanza bike. The little one will soon have company. The bar in the centre of Collobrières lies in the heart of the Massif des Maures, a forested, 60-kilometre-long mountain range, and is something of a living room for local racing cyclists. Here, just a few kilometres from the Côte d'Azur, all those who have just raced down from the Col de Babaou or still have the climb from the north ahead of them meet up.
The 414-metre-high Babaou is more of a creek than a real pass - and yet it magically attracts cyclists. From Collobrières, the road winds its way up under cork and holm oaks and sprawling chestnut trees to its summit: six kilometres with an average gradient of 4.3 per cent. "Génial," Maurice snorts as he reaches the top, having really pulled on the handlebars on the moderate incline. There are still a good five minutes between him and the record time of 13 minutes listed on the "Quäldich.de" internet portal. "Phhh," says the amateur cyclist, who is travelling by road bike for the first time in the Var department, "I don't care, am I a pro?" A sip from the bottle, then he adds a "fantastique" for the fantastic view and plunges into the winding descent towards the Mediterranean. To the south-west, the view from the Col de Babaou sweeps over gentle crests and sharply cut valleys to Mont Faron, Toulon's local mountain. The islands of Port Cros and Porquerolles can be seen to the south.
You can find these tours as GPS downloads below:
- Tour 1: Visiting the President
(98 kilometres, 1,750 metres in altitude, maximum gradient of ten percent)
- Tour 2: In the Massif des Maures
(101 kilometres, 1,400 metres in altitude, maximum gradient of seven percent)
- Tour 3: On the Corniche Sublime
(131 kilometres, 2,300 metres in altitude, maximum gradient twelve percent)
- Tour 4: Village beauties
(105 kilometres, 1,350 metres in altitude, maximum gradient of nine per cent)
Book tip - the tour presented here can be found in this book: The most beautiful road bike tours in Europe
To the reading sample | Buy book at Delius Klasing
