Anyone know anything about Geneva?

I'm going to Geneva for at least a month and I'm planning on taking my road bike. I've never been and have no idea what the weather and road surfaces will be like in mid November. Anyone got any thoughts? I should definitely take my bike, right?

Hey bud! Geneva should be relatively cold this time of year with likelihood of snow coming towards the end of the month. However, they're having really good weather over there at the moment with lots of sun and blue skies. Roads are great, if anyone knows how to build a road it's the Swiss.

I'd definitely take the bike, but be aware that the roads could be a bit frosty.

Riding in Switzerland is great (drivers are considerate generally) and there is a loop around the lake to ride if you want relatively flat but if you want hills they are close by. Just remember to take bags of money because geneva is cripplingly expensive.

The only people I've spoken to in person about Geneva have sort of raised their eyebrows and said it'll be suicidal on the icy roads. That said, they're also surprised I'm happy to ride in London.

Thanks though, I'm looking forward to it

Rental prices are pretty horrific, is it the same for beers?!

Hopefully the weather conditions won't be too bad up the hills and passes by mid November.

Geneva was fucking awesome 10-20 years ago. Amazing club and young persons art culture. Lots of really cool squat venues with their own bars, weed and hash available etc etc.
http://www.weetamix.com/fr/index.php was always cool and am glad to see its still running.

The person I would hold most responsible for the electronic/dance music culture in Geneva is Oli who runs http://mentalgroove.ch/ He was flying to the UK in 88 to go raving and started bringing records back and putting on raves in Geneva. This then led to his shop and record label, and the record label is still going, effectively Geneva's answer to Warp records.

Most of my friends from that time were musicians and DJ's and the majority relocated to Berlin.

I cycled a bit (not seriously) around and even took a cable car up a mountain into France just to be able to freewheel nearly the whole way back to Geneva.

Roads tended to be well de-iced, but I'd look to have mudguards and wider tyres. Drive train would need pretty regular attention due to salty sludge from the roads.

tl;dr Geneva makes me feel nostalgic for my youth.

As it happens I was searching around last night, trying to work out what club culture in Geneva is like. Getting my techno and funk fix tonight just in case!

I'm hoping 25mm tires will be ok

Geneva is pretty cool cycle in - lots of big, wide roads and little traffic. Safe, too - bike theft very low.

Just the trams to look out for, lovely place though.

Frickin expensive, Saint Geneve just over the border has some roads leading into the French countryside

avoid the pasta at the airport 25£ i recall !

oh dear. I'm a bit of tight wad at heart too!

It's a city in Sweden.

Mont Salève looks pretty good. Gonna get cooooold on the descents though!

Down by the lake it doesn't get too cold. I rode all year round in Lausanne and never had much of a problems with the roads, unless this happens:

It's been really warm recently, so you will be able to get up into the Jura, or even the alps for some decent climbs. I was riding up around St Bernard valley last week and it was perfect. Been back in the UK for a week now though, so could have cooled down a bit!

Weather has been amazing for the last two days so I've been out for a couple of rides. Climbed the Col de la Faucille and the Col de Menthieres yesterday and did Col de la Croisette today. Particularly enjoyed Croisette, it's steep and you get some amazing views along the top.

Riding round the city has been a joy as well, quite a relaxed feeling on the roads and pavements.

And it's not thaaaat expensive. Anyway, thanks for the tips y'all

Wouldn't mind doing some group riding in Geneva. Anyone know anything about that?

I live in Lausanne but I don't really think that there might be Group rides per se.
But there's open nights at the velodrome Veld'hiv' (which stands for vélodrome d'hiver).
Are you staying longer or will you leave soon?
All the best
PC

Yeah, I'm aware of some groups who organise hiking and skiing amongst the international community in Geneva and wondered if there was an equivalent for riding.

My girlfriend has a rolling work contract in Geneva and makes the decisions, but we'll be here for at least another month.

try on pignonfixe.com
http://www.pignonfixe.com/showthread.php?tid=86346&page=3
That's the GVA Velodrome thread
That's the thread from a framebuilder in GVA
http://www.pignonfixe.com/showthread.php?tid=103282

They do some neat stuff
https://www.flickr.com/photos/35864776@N08/

If you have a wednesday night free, definitely check out the velodrome initiation. 166.66 meters, steep, slippery, and good fun. The initiation is pretty simple and just goes over the basics, but if you take to it they will turn you loose. Afterwards you can rent a bike and ride in some of the open public sessions, or buy a membership for the winter. If you speak don't speak much french, odds are that there will be at least one english speaker in any given initiation group to help translate. They may ask you for insurance info for accident/third party liability, so be sure you have that covered before you sign up. If you run KEOs, bring your shoes.

velodrome-geneve.ch

Hey, thanks for the tip, I can't say the track really appeals to me though. I'm looking for people who want to go out on some long road rides

Good luck finding a group. Despite the relatively mild weather, not too many here ride road through the winter.

If you are determined to stick to the road, following the plateau along the foot of the Jura is always nice. Hard enough, but not so high that you freeze.
http://www.veloland.ch/fr/itineraires/route-050.html

Once it is warmer, my favorite loop is:
leave town via Grand Sacconex -> Collex-Bossy -> Versonnex -> Gex, over Col de la Faucille and on to Mijoux and the Val Valserine.
You follow the valley down through Confort in the direction of Bellgarde. You can either drop down into Bellgarde to get something to eat, or cut the corner at Lancrans and head past Fort L'Ecluse and take lovely back roads into town, or follow the base of the Jura before heading back in. The only hard bit is out of the way once you are over Faucille, and the valley road has a few big rings climbs to break up the descending and keep you warm as you gradually drop down towards Bellgarde. There is a really nice cafe in an old rail car in Confort with excellent food, good coffee, and Belgian beers. I dunno if they are open in the winter, but it is a perfect place for a mid ride break, and much cheaper than a decent meal in Geneva.

I will not be out on the road bike any time soon, but I hope the weather clears up a bit for the rest of your visit.

regards,
James

If the snow continues, this guy rents fat bikes:
https://www.facebook.com/bikeandbuddies/

Cheers man, looking out the window the track is starting to make a bit of sense. But it has been pretty mild and I managed almost 400k around work last week. 'Cos of the side of Geneva I'm living in I've only been out to the Jura once and did the ride you suggested but backwards and up the Col de Menthieres too. Really nice around there! Mostly riding around Saleve and the Cols near Boege.

I'm about for another month if you do get out on the road at some

Angus