We love to ride our bikes.
However, we are not deck out in Lycra and knock out a hundred miles kind of cyclists. We are more in the stop and smell the roses (or restaurants), snap a few photos, and enjoy the view camp.
Perhaps some of this attitude stems from David’s deep-seated determination to avoid becoming a MAMIL (a term we learned in Australia that stands for Middle Aged Men In Lycra).
Through the years we have pedaled across countless countries on three continents. For us, this is the best way to see the sights up close, at ground level, and at a speed where we can cover more ground than walking yet still take everything in.
Our recent ride with Backroads Travel along the Seine River through the Normandy region of France certainly checked everything on that list.
And to make the whole thing even more enjoyable, we were aided by riding bikes that included pedal assist from BionX e-bike systems.
These don’t turn the bike into a motorcycle, we still had to provide the pedal power, but it definitely helped out up the hills. That made a big difference over the course of the 162 miles we covered during the week.
The assistance comes in several levels, ranging from 1 through 4, with 1 being hardly noticeable and 4 powering us up almost any incline as if we were cruising on flat ground.
We must admit, at first we felt a little guilty passing our cycling cohorts as they huffed and puffed up a grade, but after a day or two we realized that our legs were still reasonably fresh, so we got over it.
Of course we could have turned it off, or way down, which we did sometimes, but by the end of the tour we were pretty much maxed out on 4 anytime there was a slight slope.
As we set out through the outskirts of Paris to Versailles we cautiously tested the system to get a feel for the power. Then, over the next few days our confidence grew while we made our way across the countryside checking out castles, abbeys, historic sites and the homes of legendary artists.
History came alive as we climbed up to Richard the Lionheart’s Château Gaillard built in 1196, stood where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake, and rode right through the center of the D-day invasion at Omaha Beach.
We even had the energy left to climb 396 steps up to the top of the tower at Château de La Roche Guyon, where Field Marshal Rommel commanded the Axis forces as they fought to hold off the allied invasion.
By the time we made it to the garden that inspired many of Monet’s most notable paintings, and Vincent van Gogh’s last home just outside of Paris, we were firm believers in assisted living, or should we say pedaling.
Got to say, it made riding a whole lot easier, which freed us up to take photos, look around, get lost a couple of times, and just generally lollygag and still be able to catch up to the rest of the group in time for lunch.
Which brings us to a word about lunch.
We have always felt that one of the big upsides of these biking adventures is the guilt free chowing down (even more so in France) due to the energy exerted to make it to the meals. The pedal assist didn’t change that.
As we mentioned at the outset, it doesn’t do all of the work, just makes it a bit easier. So we felt warranted to partake of all of the excellent luscious local delicacies made available by our amazing Backroads crew.
We even felt that an ice cream break was perfectly acceptable… and justified.
Another cool feature of the system that we grew to seriously appreciate was the ability to use the charging mode as a braking device on downhill stretches.
Kick it up to full blast and not only was the battery filling back up, but the brakes almost never needed pumping.
Of course regular unassisted bikes were available for the serious cyclists, who made up the majority of our group, and our helmets are off to them, but for weekend warriors such as us, a little push made our journey just that much more enjoyable.
David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com
A big thank you to Backroads Travel for providing this adventure, as always, all opinions are our own.
For those of you inspired by our experience and curious about how the latest technology can turn you into a fitter, faster cyclist, check our Dave Henly’s Reviews.
Here’s a look back at all of our entire adventure.
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The next day found us crossing the bay to the town of 
As Padstow disappeared behind us, we came to a Celtic Cross overlooking the city. This was erected as a monument to the soldiers lost in The Great War, or what became known later as World War I. The poignant tribute stands in a beautiful setting, and we learned as we traveled across Cornwall that nearly every town has one.
The crew of NCI Stepper Point Lookout Station was glad to explain their mission of watching over the entrance to the Camel estuary and the port of Padstow and, perhaps most importantly, keeping an eye on the notorious Doom Bar. This sandbar that blocks the entrance at low tide has caused over six hundred vessels to wreck or run aground so a close watch is of primary importance.
No matter the folklore, navigation has been tricky in these parts for quite a while, as evidenced by the stone tower near the coast guard station. Known simply as the Daymark, this navigation tower was built centuries ago to help guide ships around this treacherous point. It was originally lime-washed white to make it visible out to sea, but most of that has long since faded away.
This characteristic is why this coastline is so craggy and, in the case at Gunver, the crashing surf has created sharp peaks that stand like sentries along the shore.
In Cornwall the classic British afternoon ritual is called cream tea, because clotted cream is a star of the show. This butter-like whipped cream is liberally laid out on scones that are lighter than most, in fact they reminded us of good ole southern biscuits.
The steep coastline gave way to a sandy beach at Harlyn Bay while the sky once again took on an ominous tone. The threatening skies didn’t discourage the handful of surfers and small crowd of beachcombers though, still we made the call to proceed on to our final destination by bus.
Entering on the high road, for a better view, we came to the first of many encounters we would have with the works of Barbara Hepworth. Her bronze sculpture, Epidauros II, adorns the Malakoff overlooking the harbor, so we stopped for a look at both the art and the panorama.
Heading down to the waterfront, we made the church dedicated to St. Ia our first stop. The church was built during the reign of King Henry V from 1410 and 1434 as a 
Leaving Saint Ia’s we made a loop around the town, beginning and ending at the waterfront. Among the myriad of shops, inns, and restaurants along the water, The Sloop Inn stood out. Dating back to 1312, this classic fisherman’s pub lays claim to being one of the oldest inns in Cornwall.
From there we walked along the coast of what the locals refer to as The Island, but it is really a peninsula. The point is crowned by the St Nicholas Chapel, which is thought to predate St. Ia’s, but no records survive giving the history of the old stone church. What is known is that it was often used to keep watch for smugglers and for storage by the War Office over the.
Our circular route took us onward to Porthmeor Beach along the way to the Tate Gallery. As a hub for artists form more than a century, St Ives seemed the perfect location for second of the Tate’s regional galleries. Opening in 1993, now nearly half a million people visit each year.
A few blocks through the narrow streets we stopped off for one more encounter with Barbara Hepworth’s work at her Museum and Sculpture Garden.
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