Bike against Boat
Saturday August 21, 2010 - Email this article to a friend

One man was rowing the length of Lake Geneva and another was cycling round it. One runs Chalet Kernow in Verbier and the other Sir Richard Branson's, Lodge. So who won?

Gareth Chandler on the bike finished well ahead of Neil Aherne in the boat.

So, in theory The Lodge beat Chalet Kernow but quite frankly they both deserve a loud cheer. Neil rowed the 75km from Villeneuve to Geneva in a shade under12 hours. What an achievement.

Gareth posted this on Facebook moments after he finished:

"172.6 km. 5 hrs 47 mins. Villeneuve via Geneva to Villeneuve. Time including breaks - 7 hrs 40 mins. 2 punctures, 1 coffee stop, sandwich in Geneva. And over £4,000 raised for 2 charities!! Now a beer in Villeneuve!!"

Gareth was cycling with 3 friends and well known Verbier characters - Pedro, who works in the resort, Ian who is a long time resident and Jonas who is a bit of a Swedish icon. Well done to all of them.

We reported on the challenge here on PlanetSKI that emerged after a drunken night in the Pub Mont Fort in Verbier, when they argued about whether it was quicker to cycle round the lake or row across it.

Well, now they know.

For more details Guy Ordway from The Performance Ski Schoool in Verbier, has been blogging about it.

Looks like it was an epic day.

At the start