I rode around the Suisse Normande back in March and had all kinds of plans to write up the whole ride, but work and family considerations have left me berating myself for not getting something up. With that in mind, I am putting up some info from the Battle of Mont Pincon. The battle for the area lasted a few days, but the interesting bit to me happened in the evening of 6 August 1944 and overnight.
A quick intro to the battle can be found here.
In short, British tanks from the 13/18 Hussars barrelled up the hill along an uncovered track and occupied the key communications node of a hill before the Germans knew what happened.

The map below shows many of the tracks on the hill and the track running from the southwest side to the west side of the hill was the one taken by the Hussars.

I'm including 2 short videos on Youtube.

The first is riding up the main road to see the 2 modern radio towers / antennae, which give a good idea of why Mont Pincon was so important to the German defense of this area. One could surmise that the loss of these posts led to some of the confusion that caused the Germans to get trapped in Falaise pocket not long after this.

The second video is to show the road (that is not shown on Google Maps), from the north, to the Hussars overnight leaguer area. They actually came up from the southwest, but, alas, I cannot find my video for that part of the ride. There is a battle interpretation board at the end and the monument to the 13/18 Hussars is nearby.

I'm planning on writing a lot more on Mont Pincon, Operations Bluecoat and Cobra and the great riding around the Suisse Normande, but this should hold you for a while. ;o)

Book and Map Recommendations

Sorry for the lack of posts in the last few days. I've had a lot of work going, but also I've been preparing for a 2 day trip to the Normandy coast to visit the D-Day beaches again. My first trip to Normandy was what inspired me to start Battlefield Biker.

I've been re-reading Overlord by Max Hastings to get the units and sectors fresh in my head. I am going to try to spend more time in the British and Canadian sector this time, specifically around Caen and Villers Bocage. It will be hard for me to avoid a quick run to Omaha, Pont du Hoc and St Lo, but I'll try to stay focussed on the Juno, Sword and Gold area.

I'm also going to look into the "Suisse Normande" and Orne River valley area for some great bike rides. The area is plastered with scenic routes on the map, so I want to see what they look like on the ground.

I'm taking the overnight ferry from Portsmouth to Caen tonight. I'll spend Wednesday and Thursday in the area, then take the ferry back overnight Thursday and Friday. I used H-C Travel for the ferry booking and booked my hotel through Accor hotels, which I often recommend on this site.

People sometimes ask me how I book my travel and why I recommend certain things. I used H-C Travel for this trip, because they have been able to get me cheaper ferry prices than I can get on my own, but also because they are excellent for motorcycle travel. David Grist and his team at H-C Travel know what bikers need and the documentation and instructions are always clear. I use and have used for years Accor hotels for business and leisure. What I like about Accor is that their website seems to work for me every time. Nothing drives me up the wall more than going through a long booking process and then finding that I cannot complete the reservation for one reason or another. Additionally, Accor has a great stable of hotels from the super cheap to the higher class. I can pick and choose depending on my riding style planned. i.e. If I am riding long and hard and will arrive late, I choose Formule 1 or Motel 6 just for a clean bed. If I am looking for a place to be comfortable and read with a couple of beers in the evening (like this time), I may book a Mercure or Ibis to get a bar and a restaurant. If I've got the wife and/or kids in tow, I may go for the Sofitel or Novotel for a pool and nicer room. You get the picture.

I'm really looking forward to this trip and look forward to sharing some rides, pictures and stories from the trip.