It was Mike’s comment, as we hauled ourselves up the second big mountain of the day, that convinced me we’d done the right thing in abandoning the cold streets of Blighty for Girona’s happy hills.

Mike, since you don’t know him, is a man whose usual cycling routine involves sweating on an exercise bike in his darkened lounge while working his way through the DVD box set of The World at War. Now here he was, riding the same spectacular roads as Lance Armstrong, with the late-autumn sun filling out his freckles, a light Spanish breeze cooling his brow, and three large slices of breakfast tortilla stuffed into his cavernous maw.

“Blimey,” he panted. “My pulse hasn’t gone this fast since episode 23 – the battle for the Pacific.”

From November to February, when Britain lies slumped in the depths of its annual hibernation, Girona hits a marvellous pedalling peak. Not for nothing did Lance and his lean-faced lieutenants base themselves here to train for every Tour de France triumph.

The rain clouds clear off to worry other regions, undercapacity hoteliers fight among themselves for your custom, and daytime temperatures sit in that sacred spot where it’s warm enough to loosen the limbs, but crisp enough to ruddy the cheeks.

And then there are the roads. Forget the traffic-choked byways of Britain, with their squadrons of van drivers intent on ramming every bike they see into the nearest hedge. Around Girona, there are so many routes, you could ride all year without seeing a car – along the 770 miles of mountain-biking trails, the converted railway lines that form the Vies Verdes (Greenways) and the mile after mile of empty roads that spread out from Girona like a spilled serving of spaghetti.

For the sedate, there are routes as gentle as a feather massage, winding their way slowly through olive groves, vineyards and Dali’s back garden. For those seeking something a little tougher, there are Lance’s favourite mountain passes – such as the gut-tighteningly named Els Angels, which Mike and I had foolishly decided to take on.

EARLY IN THE DAY, we had discovered two things – I went up hills faster than Mike, and he came down them faster than me. To keep us close together on the big climbs, he came up with a simple solution: while he threw all his energy into cycling, I had to ride along while singing a popular tune of his choosing. Admittedly, I’ve never seen Lance train close up, but I’m almost certain he doesn’t ride up mountains belting out an a cappella version of Phil Collins and Philip Bailey’s 1980s smash hit Easy Lover.

It was only the start of our troubles. If going up had been bad enough, going down was even worse. The speed at which exhilaration turns into eyeball-popping fear, I now know, is 46mph. That’s when the realisation that there is nothing but a pair of skinny tyres between you and a very hard slice of Catalan road really, truly hits home.

Partly to blame was Dave Welch, a downhill mountain-biker who runs cycling tours for the Cicloturisme i Medi Ambient agency.

“You know what?” he shouted, as we careered along at the speed of a grand piano thrown off a tower block. “I had such a bad fall once that I knocked both my front teeth out on a tree stump. Turned out all right, though – I stuck ’em back into the holes straightaway, and my gums grew round them nicely.”

Should you survive such a ride with molars unmolested, the benefits are legion. For one thing, it’s hard to dwell on the big problems in life when you’re hurtling down a long, sweeping swooperoo of a descent, every inch of concentration glued to the slippery road ahead. There’s a very good chance you’ll manage to invent a new word or two for the English lexicon – in our case, mountation (the sense of desolation you feel when the mountain you’re cycling up seems to go on for ever) and accompLancement (the sense of pride after getting up the same towering hill as Armstrong).

Then there’s the fact that, since you’ve probably burnt enough energy to fire up a fairground, you can guzzle your way with impunity through the best that Catalan cuisine can throw at you. Being nothing if not dogged, for us that could mean just one thing – a nine-course tasting menu at Lance’s favourite restaurant, La Plaça de Madremanya.

Its owner, Jaume Vidal – a man who bore an uncanny likeness to both George Lucas and Uncle Monty – pointed out the exact table where the man himself likes to sit.

“Sometimes he bring the singer,” he whispered, making a microphone mime with his right hand. For the record, Lance’s preferred dish is the sea bass with fennel. Sheryl liked the scallops.

Should the whim take you, you can go on to visit the Girona apartment where the pair of them used to live: it’s on Carrer de la Força, a moment’s freewheel from the cathedral. You can even get a vigorous rub-down from the woman who used to be his masseuse, Cristina Moreno Cruz (00 34 636 863477). Mike, his legs so tender that Jaume could have served them up in slices, went for the latter.

“You know,” he groaned, emerging after an hour-long session. “I haven’t witnessed a pummelling like that since episode six – Banzai! Japan.”

— Tom Fordyce travelled as a guest of Ryanair, Sixt Car Hire, Hotel Moli del Mig and La Plaça de Madremanya

Travel brief

Getting there: Ryanair (0871 246 0000, www.ryanair.com) flies nonstop to Girona from 11 UK airports, as well as Dublin and Shannon. Cycles cost £15.50 each way to transport and must be packaged in a bike box, with pedals removed. Getting around: Sixt (0870 010 3040, www.sixt.co.uk) has an estate car big enough for two bikes in boxes from £262 a week, picking up at Girona airport. Or try Europcar (0845 758 5375, www.europcar.co.uk).

Where to stay: the Hotel Moli del Mig (00 34-972 755396, www.molidelmig.com; doubles from £89) is in Torroella de Montgri, between Girona and the coast, and has bike storage, maintenance facilities and a mechanic on site. In the medieval village of Madremanya, La Plaça de Madremanya (972 490487, www.laplacademadremanya.com) is the ideal base for cycling in the spectacular Els Angels area, with doubles from £78 and two-person apartments from £114. Hotel Historic (972 223583, www.hotelhistoric.com; doubles from £80), in the old quarter of Girona, is where Lance Armstrong stayed when he first came to the area.

Where to eat: La Plaça de Madremanya (see above) does great food at about £30 per head. To fill your saddlebags with fresh fruit, bread and local cheeses, go to the daily market in the centre of Girona. For a treat at the end of a long day’s cycling, try the two-Michelin-starred El Celler de Can Roca (972 222157, www.cellercanroca.com; about £55pp).

Cycle hire/packages: Cicloturisme i Medi Ambient (972 221047, www.cicloturisme.com), in Girona, offers maps and route advice for cyclists with their own bikes (£7-£21), or daily and weekly hire of road and mountain bikes. It also runs one- to seven-day packages, including hotels, bike hire, local guides, luggage transport and airport pickups. The Centre Logistic de Bicicletes (972 692023, www.garrotxa.net/atma), in Les Preses, has bike trips along the Vies Verdes (Greenways). For a package with a UK-based operator, try Headwater (01606 720099, www.headwater.com) or Inntravel (01653 617949, www.inntravel.co.uk ).

Best map for cycling: Mapa Topografico de Cataluña No 3 – Gerona-Costa Brava 1:100,000 (Institut Cartografic de Catalunya).

The best routes

When he's not competing in European Cup downhill mountain-biking races, Dave Welch is Girona’s premier cycling guide. Here’s his pick of the three best rides in the region.

EASY
Castello d’Empuries-Espolla-Cabanes-Figueres (28 miles). A pancake-flat cruise along easy off-road trails, through vineyards and olive groves. Finishes in the town that houses the Salvador Dali Theatre-Museum.

MEDIUM
Girona-Madremanya-Sant Sadurni-Cassa de la Selva-Girona (41 miles). A favourite leg-loosener for the professional riders who winter in Girona. Takes in the infamous Els Angels climb and one of the most enjoyable downhill sections in Europe.

HARD
Girona-Angles-Sant Hilari Sacalm-Santa Coloma-Girona (73 miles). One of Lance Armstrong’s favourite training rides, with spectacular views of the dam at Panta de Susqueda and a monstrous 16-mile climb into the mountains.

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