Lausanne tips down a steep hillside to Lake Geneva, and you feel it in your legs, your brakes and your bike's low gears. The city sprawls over three hills and a lake front, with the old town at the top and the harbour district of Ouchy at the bottom, joined by one of the world's smallest metro systems. The Gothic cathedral looks out over the roofs and the water toward the French Alps across the lake.
Lausanne has been the home of the International Olympic Committee since 1915, and the Olympic Museum, near the lakeside, shows the story of the Games in a handsome setting. The city is also a centre of learning, with a major university and a technical institute, which gives it a youthful side. Food and wine are the regular pleasures, with cheese fondue, filets of perch from the lake and the pale white wine of the region on every menu.
The ride that starts here is the Lavaux, a hillside of terraced vineyards that tumbles down to the lake east of the city. Monks from the Cistercian order began building the terraces in the twelfth century, and they are now a World Heritage Site. The road threads between stone walls, through villages such as Cully, Epesses and Chexbres, with narrow lanes and tight bends. The grape is mainly chasselas, and the hillside faces south, so it soaks up the sun and reflects the light from the lake, which helps ripen the grapes. The best time is autumn, during the harvest, when the leaves turn gold and the air smells of fermenting juice, though spring and summer are lovely too.
The city has all you need: fuel stations around the edges, plenty of parking for bikes, and lakeside cafes. Traffic can be heavy at rush hour, and some of the old-town streets are steep cobbles, so be careful when wet. Plan a break at one of the wine cellars in the Lavaux, but keep the helmet on until the end of the day.