The Col d'Aspin

I'm a big fan of France. The weather's better, the food's better, the roads are clearer, the mountains are bigger, the wine's cheaper, the trails are better marked... and so on.

Even the French are helpful and friendly, despite the common British xenophobic myths.

But one of the best things about France is that there is just so much biking, and a lot of it's so much better that you can find in the UK. Not everyone will agree with that, but the bottom line is that if you spend a week in the Alps or Pyrénées and don't find some awesome trails, then it's because you're just crap at finding trails.