BICLOU, EPISODE 40 - Racing at more than 50 km / h on the ski slopes this winter, it is still possible despite the closure of the ski lifts, thanks to the electric-assisted fatbike.
With its under-inflated tires more than 10 cm wide, it is possible to circulate, without slipping or sinking, on the groomed slopes of ski resorts.
And thanks to its electric assistance, there is no need for ski lifts: the slopes can be climbed almost easily, before being hurtled down at full speed.
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Skiers console themselves with the electric fatbike
This device would have been invented in Alaska in the 1990s by an illustrious unknown who would have welded three bicycle rims together in order to be able to circulate in the snow.
Since then, this bike has become popular until it reaches the French Alps.
“For 3 years, we have reached more and more people,” says Fred, one of the fatbike instructors in Val d'Isère.
"And with the stopping of the ski lifts, we have never seen so many people as this year: all our outing slots have been full for more than a month," he continues.
A very accessible activity
Usually a ski instructor, Fred takes his clients daily on the groomed slopes of the Val d'Isère area.
"It's an activity really accessible to all: you just need to know how to pedal and brake on a bicycle".
What confirms Karine, who tested this machine for the first time during her annual vacation in Val d'Isère: “I have an electrically-assisted city bike at home but no mountain bike, it's not at all. the same: it's easy to take in hand we have a lot more sensations.
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With a smile on his face after his one and a half hour ride, Stanislas shares his feeling: “If I had been told two years ago that I would cycle rather than ski, I would never have believed it.
He adds: "Next year, even with the ski lifts, I will have a little session".
In Val d'Isère, supervised outings are compulsory
Still completely unknown in France 10 years ago, there are now a few dozen stations that offer rental or accompanied fatbike outings.
“In Val d'Isère, we preferred to offer only supervised outings,” explains Fred, the instructor.
"It's not like the summer when the area is completely open: in winter, there is the risk of avalanches and you really have to know where you can go".
"The mountain is already sufficiently damaged"
For several years, French ski resorts have sought to diversify their offer to attract more and more people, winter and summer.
Offering a winter cycling activity is a way of telling winter vacationers and skiers that sliding is not the only activity possible in the mountains.
"Promoting softer tourism spread over the four seasons is a good thing," according to Bernard Marclay of Mountain Wilderness France, an association for the protection of the mountain environment.
"But we must really avoid creating new dedicated infrastructures, the mountain is already sufficiently damaged like that, in places, not to need it" adds the activist.
If a fatbike ride tempts you, you will have to pay around 70 € for two hours, depending on the station you are going to.
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