Orbea Gain Vs Pyrenees

#cycling #orbea #cyclingvlog #bikepacking

Finally, I made it into the Pyrenees, thanks to an unexpected lift from kind neighbours. All I had to do now was cycle 250km home from Andorra.
I’ve gone International!

Thanks as always to Altura; today for the excellent Vortex 2 Bar and frame bags, Progel Plus bib shorts, Icon socks and mitts https://www.altura.co.uk/ The less I say about the seat post pack the better though…why was it constructed so differently from the other bags?

And to Fat Lad at the Back for the Continental short-sleeved jersey, 10% discount with the code yakoridesagain at
https://fatladattheback.com/

This stuff fits big people. Ask away if you have any questions about kit.

Thanks too to Coospo, for keeping me safe with their heart rate monitor: https://www.coospo.com/products/h9z-chest-heart-rate-monitor

If you want to do more to support the channel, you can Buy Me A Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/fnx8xq6fjh9

For business enquiries, please email me at yakorides.gmail.com

good afternoon well this is a bit different I’m uh I’m really excited I’m really nervous I’m actually shaking either with nervousness or excitement I’m in the Pyrenees specifically I’m in Andor deelia the capital of Andora and I’m riding [Music] [Music] home it’s been in incredibly busy getting through Andor dea it’s just been absolutely frantic traffic and uh and speed bumps and what they called traffic lights that’s them and uh I want to get out of town before I even started this one now this is a tricky thing according to Garmin we’ve got uh 114 km to go for the first leg and we’ve got 2753 M of climbing now I’m really hoping that’s wrong because that’s a that’s a lot that is a lot more than I’ve ever done and it’s a lot more than I’ll be able to do on my OB again even with the range extender however Frugal I am well look where I am there’s dirty great big mountains all around me I don’t know how much you’ll get to here because there is a huge headwind it’s supposed to be 4 40 km an hour with gusts of up to 70 and that’s all the way home the reason why I’m here is thanks to my neighbors David and Jane who uh who were holidaying in Andor for a couple of days it’s their wedding anniversary so a huge thanks to you David and Jane and a congratulations too it’s the house of cheese [Music] [Music] he aha [Music] Customs that was Andor that’s leaving Andor customs and This Is Us entering Spain no [Music] [Music] confused way through by a man with a gun that’s what we like you like men with guns to wave us through this is a stunning bit of the world I have once come through here at least 20 years ago but the mountains are big oh I should have lights on forgot fcker [Music] [Music] now most of these tunnels are not allowed in wow that is so much cooler but I have this huge Lane all to myself hello here it’s all very very slightly downhill so it’s kind of okay to get a decent speed going what we’re doing 36 37 K hour is it me or is this perfect it’s perfect isn’t it this is absolutely what I dream about about cycling in the Pyrenees except for the [Music] headwind absolutely beautiful the road is like a baby’s bottom think we might have need of a few counters for today’s ride how many times I say stunning how many times I say headwind now there’s a lot of poo on the road smells like goats could be sheep let’s keep our eyes peeled for either [Music] it’s just going to say we just had our first climb it was absolutely horrible I’m still getting used to this green grass it just smells smells beautiful really does looks like we coming into a little town that’s pretty as well [Music] fantastic road again you did actually say it’s for Neighbors locals only otherwise it’s prohibited what we do we’re cyclists [Music] this is a rare treat for me this might be the third or fourth video we in postcard please what type of they [Music] quite a significant Gorge we’re having to go through now and the wind which was already as you know quite strong it’s picked up even more [Music] a [Music] [Music] noise in that tunnel is awful you he think see the size of these things these mountains oh actually out of the headwind so at some point I don’t know when my camera decided to stop doing video and taking Stills and look where I am was it a good time for that to happen no no no alternative route around a tunnel which I was allow most spectacular roads I think I’ve ever been on and all I was doing was taking photos yes video so I suppose if I I loved you a little more I’d go back and do it again this is what we got I’ll remember it [Music] always we got some significant wind [Music] actually smell Orna before seeing it because it’s lunchtime and they’re frying up don’t know what they’re frying or who’s frying wow we’re back off off the main road like fancied there’s a track or a road oh I’ve seen the road goes up we just going to check the M I’m glad I checked it’s 572 M of climbing going that way so it’s my little side trips that I’ve added onto the route that means that it’s 2,700 M so if I knock that one off I might bring it down to 2,000 look here andise I just wanted to show you this rock because on it is one of I believe one of Europe’s uh biggest beer feras which is basically lumps of metal banged into the rocks it will climb up it I can see some of it up the middle there and there’s a like a suspension bridge lower down [Music] [Music] oh yeah yeah yeah [Music] yeah beautiful [Music] [Music] had a bit of a disaster um it’s at the top of a 10% descent down through this fantastic Gorge I didn’t know it was here I was just really looking forward to it and just as I start going over the top my bag splits open and dumps my Range Extender on the floor only over there in the middle of the road doing about 30 km an hour I’m really disappointed I’m going to name them as well it’s actually an Alura bike packing bag it’s a Vortex 2 I’ve got two of them the bigger one all the seams are sewn up this one it’s glued it’s just glued I was talking to Mrs yako about it and I was saying it doesn’t look in such good Nick it’s the first time I’ve ever used it and what I don’t know is just how knackered my range extender is going to be from dropping on the floor um well I’ve cobbled it together with some duct tape and some uh velcro straps which aren’t really fit for purpose if it falls apart again I don’t know what we’ll do but uh I’m going to have to take this beautiful fast descent slowly for fear of rattling my bag apart but never mind much rather be on a quiet road than a than a horrible one it just looks beautiful doesn’t it apart from what looks to be an enormous sewage Works got to be somewhere I must confess I don’t remember putting in this particular diversion and as you know this is where all the meters rack up it’s probably very foolish that’s bling lovely it’s a baby Clifton suspension bridge oh I lovely is that and it’s downhill super lovely H waiting for me lovely now where are we next big question oh it’s got rain in it and it’s gusting like you wouldn’t believe wow at least they are the tiny roads that I was after only until we get to this big town whatever it is about halfway on the day if you’re wondering so about 60k in 65 my garbage turned off oh come on so we’re on the flat and we’re doing rather well it’s uh we’re doing just under 30 km an hour it’s not downhill the wind has disappeared it seems to be on the other side of the valley so I’m in the the Lee of the wind at the moment which is nice right alongside the river again there it is which is also nice back to enjoying it now but the legs are doing really well today so I’m flying up this hill I turned the battery back off again because I just felt good but it is now on minimum again that’s with uh 40 wats of assistance just starting to rain and we just got this nasty Hill to climb and that’s the first part I think we’re on the the really really big drag of the day which is massive I can’t remember how long but it’s really long and it just goes on and on and on and on here we go it’s change down we going to need a baby gear for this one probably more power too oh there’s a petrol station is open just give you a quick update my cam has stopped working so I’ve been chatting away to you up this interminable climb one of the longest ones I’ve done it it just took a long long long long long time oh dear it’s been a funny old day the rain’s come and gone but it’s been okay it’s been quite refreshing the temperature has knocked off I think just cuz the clouds are there but um we’ve got about 40 km to go I’m going to do the whole thing on the main road now um not going to even think about going off pie the last one I did was a ruddy nightmare it just I should have known it went as soon as we’re climbing up a coal and there was a bit I had to go around because there was a tunnel that I wasn’t supposed to go through so I thought i’ must go around it so off I went and the first thing he did was drop and just been climbing for I don’t know 20 minutes and it just dropped down to a reservoir and I thought I’ve had enough I’ve had enough so I climbed back up there got back onto this climb which this is the top of and uh and I’ve just been slogging away ever since having a mini break feet of killing me that is s s Soo once fortified Little Village so it’s got a castle and a church right at the very top smattering of buildings below just i’ stop and have a look just beginning to lose the light a bit but look at that you know I got excited last week about one field of wheat that’s a whole sea of it nearly there it’s been a very hard day and there’s a very long climb to go I need to get to that middle Mountain that one back there that’s where I’m staying tonight KU kuas pretty little thing didn’t know it was pretty when I booked it very very happy to have made it very hard work that one more tomorrow two good things about the room one is that though it’s one floor up and actually two floors up um one and a half floors up uh they let me bring the bike to the room and the other thing even better it’s got airon and I was expecting a hostle I knew I wasn’t going to be sharing a room but I didn’t expect something as nice as this don’t be proud I don’t know whether it’s because it’s shut so we had to phone up the guy to um let us in I can turn the helmet off look out such a hot day and tomorrow is further but hopefully 1100 meters of climbing I’ve got no idea what today was the Garmin had just been absolutely stupid well that’s it that’s it for today so more tomorrow if I can get my camera working if not I’ll do what I can with this okay that’s it for today I’ll see you uh I’ll see you in the morning