Peña Montañesa : à chaque fois c’est pire | VTT extrême

For years, I’ve been battling with this legendary mountain: the Peña Montañesa. It’s not the highest peak in the Pyrenees, but when you ride enduro in Aínsa and Zona Zero, you can’t miss it. A massive fortress of rock, like a medieval castle guarded by walls. From the first moment, I knew I had to take my mountain bike up there… 🚵‍♂️ 👉 Back in 2017, local riders warned me: “not rideable on a MTB”. Everyone who tried had to give up. 👉 In 2019, together with Fred Masaroti, I attempted the normal route. 1250 m of brutal vertical gain, insanely technical, no rest. Endless rock steps, constant exposure, abrasive rock, and mandatory hike-a-bike sections. In the end, I managed it, but had to walk about 35% of the descent. Epic, but far from clean. 👉 In 2022, with Pierre Colpin, I returned with a much higher technical level. This time we went for an even harder line: descending the east ridge, then reconnecting with the normal route. It was a massive step up, but we pulled it off — 95% rideable on the bike. Exhausting, but one of my proudest rides ever. That became one of the most iconic films on my channel: ANX. And then came spring 2024… I was supposed to spend a few chill days of enduro in Zona Zero, Aínsa. Just casual rides, nothing extreme. But the north face of the Peña Montañesa kept calling me. On topo maps? Nothing. No trail. But on Strava heatmaps, faint lines traced by a few trail runners showed a possible route. Steeper, more brutal, almost untouched. This time, only Thomas Claire agreed to join the mission…