Conquer the mountains

Whether you want to power up your local hills or tame the snaking bends of Alpe d’Huez, improving your climbing is one of the most rewarding parts of cycling. Of course, cycling uphill can also be dem

In professional mountain biking, it’s downhilling that is the most dynamic… and dangerous. Dominic Bliss met the crazy riders at the 2025 downhilling World Championships, in the Swiss Valais region, and discovered why they launch themselves down steep mountain trails at full tilt

David Myers tests his sanity (and calf muscles) on the Alpenpässe-Weg – a journey of 40 cols and nearly 700km – to discover how the Swiss Alps were lived in and connected long before the combustion engine

It’s a tough ask, climbing (and just as importantly, descending) a hill. But it doesn’t need to be a horror.

I’d heard of UTMB, but for a long time – like many of us – I assumed it wasn’t for me. (Apart from watching the runners cross the finish line in Chamonix from the comfort of my Instagram feed, of cour

Remote, secluded and surrounded by nature, these high-altitude escapes provide a breath of fresh air – and more often than not, a dose of luxury womanandhome.com 159