Some of the best ideas are born over a pint of cold beer. As this weekend there was a bikers party near the Vidova Gora hill at Brač island, and my eyes were sore by looking at the powerful bikes ridden by real bikers, I decided to get on my sorry excuse of a bike and find out why do bikers love Brač roads so much.
There were a few pints in order, so my biker friends were laughing at me, as biking on a 0,25 Liters engine is a joke for them, but as the poem says, battles are won with a big heart, not by shiny arms, I got on my bike the next morning and started my journey.
If you are to get to Brač by bike, there are two options; one can take the Split – Supetar ferry, or get to Makarska and take the ferry to Sumartin. While the ferries to Supetar are modern ones, and can take more than 130 cars in one voyage, the ferry to Sumartin is over 45 years old and can take just 30 cars. It is actually a military assault ship refitted to a ferry. So I prefer it, as it is really the Mediterranean as it once was, but it is also the faster way.
On Brač island, there are more than 150 km of state and local roads, and for those more adventurous, there is a countless number of non-asphalt roads, perfect for off road biking. As I am not equipped for that kind of travel, I stayed on the road and was out of breath shortly after the start.
It was not because the ride was hard, but it was hard not to stop and take pictures of the landscape and breathtaking views. All the photos you can see in this article, apart from the one below the headline were taken while sitting on the bike.
The roads on Brač are in a stable state, and although most of them were built in the sixties and seventies, they are wide enough, and the asphalt is renewed at the critical points. There is a bump or two, especially in the higher parts of the island, but where is the adventure in riding on a professional track?
There is one more great thing about Brač roads; if one avoids July and August, they are pretty much empty, so more danger comes from stray sheep or goats than the other vehicles on the road.
If I would to recommend the road to try for riding the bike, it would be the downhill to Bol. Most of the pictures attached are taken on that section. It is filled with bends and consists of more than seven kilometers of downhill road, so one can even turn off the engine and hear only the wind and the sea below.
And coming back on the same path is even more fun, as the real bikers know that while riding uphill, one has to drive faster not to overheat the engine. And the bends allow great fun for those of more adventurous mind.
Pictures should provide more of the great feeling I had while riding around than the words, but to feel it, one has to try it. And, in the end, take a look at the resting place on a Brač road. Famous Brač marble was used to make this table and bench, so the tired biker can restwhile enjoying the view.
