Panoramica

Miles from Home - 5370.1 miles
Firsts / Highlights - Last day riding Lake Garda. First topless sunbathers.
Miles Ridden - 57.33 miles
Vertical Feet - 2,806 ft
Route - View Today's Route Here.
People - Yesterday’s theme was Colorado cyclists, today’s theme was ski industry connections.
Roger & Helen – Basalt, CO
Gary & Brenda – Whistler, BC – property managers
John – Whistler, BC – Intrawest employee. Former partner in Whistler Heli-ski, now guide
Mike – Whistler, BC
Maurizo & Alberto – Guides



This post is from May 20, 2009.

I just finished my final ride at the Garda Bike Hotel. It has been fun riding with the Aussies, Fins, Coloradans, Canadians and the Italian guides, but it is time to move on and sample something new. Next stop is Siena as a base camp for exploring Tuscany. There are no bike hotels in the area, so I am going to be on my own to explore solo. I plan to get a hotel in Siena for a week, but not stay there every night. I think this will be my chance to do some light touring where I strap a change of clothes and a credit card onto The Machine and head into the countryside. I don’t have a route set yet, but I do have some towns I would like to see.

I think I am going to stay at this hotel an extra day tomorrow to get some planning done while I still have an Internet connection. I need to plan my touring route and the following week when Brad Frazier arrives for a whirlwind visit.



Today was a much easier ride than yesterday. Less distance, less climbing and less pace. There was still a bit of fatigue in my legs, but after the first climb, I felt all right. The ride was called Panoramica due to the well-earned views of the lake.

Maurizio is amazing. Sixty-five years old and does this every day without a break. He said today that he rode 1,000 kms last week. Not only is he doing those distances week after week, he is nearly always on the front doing the most difficult riding into the wind. He speaks about as much English as I do Italian, so there isn’t a lot of conversation. He just speaks Italian as if I understand, even though he knows I don’t. Occasionally I get the drift. The English phrase that he uses over and over is, “come on, come on, come on”. It isn’t so much encouragement as a command. It means, “be decisive – get through the intersection”, or, “close the gap”. He has recently added, “come on, baby” when there is no safety element to his command.

I probably will not be making any posts for the next couple of days, but my itinerary (in the right hand column of the blog) will be updated as my plans solidify.

4 Lakes – Big Daddy Ride

Miles from Home - 5370.1 miles
Firsts / Highlights - First century ride of the year. 7 km tunnel at –7% grade. 7 hours of saddle time.
Miles Ridden - 110.96 miles
Vertical Feet - 6,485 ft
Route - View Today's Route Here.
People - 5 of 7 guests riding today were from Colorado (?!)
Bruce & Tracy – Boulder, CO (last day)
Roger & Helen – Basalt, CO
Mika & Ira – Helsinki, Finland. (last day) Found out today that Mika is a harbor worker in Helsinki. This is their first trip away from their 4 children (3, 5, 7 & 9).
Nicola & Maurizo – Guides
Anrea – drove van



This post is from May 19, 2009.

Today nearly ended for me before it got started. We had a big ride scheduled with over 100 miles of riding and two substantial climbs. Departure time was set for 9:00, but at 8:57, I was in the lobby and everyone was just milling around. I assumed it would be another late start, so I casually went back to the bike locker to get my bike. I figured I had a little time, so I wiped down my chain, lubricated it and filled my tires. Apparently, as soon as I left the lobby, Maurizio realized that it was 9:00 and they needed to leave immediately to catch the ferry crossing Lake Garda at 9:50. He rallied the group and they were off. Five minutes later, I showed up to an empty lobby. The front desk clerk said that the van driver could take me to the ferry, but he was nowhere around, so I decided to start riding. I later found out that the route I selected wasn’t the most direct, so not only was I behind, I was taking the long way to get there (we won’t talk about the wrong turn and construction stops in addition to bad route selection). Fortunately, the van found me and drove me the last 3-4 miles and pulled right on board just in time to pull away from the dock. Other than a little ribbing the rest of the day, I was back on track.

The hotel rotates their rides so that a guest staying for a week will never ride the same route twice. Today’s ride is the pinnacle of their weekly schedule, and as far as I am concerned, their crowned jewel. It is the longest and among the most challenging that they do. It requires more logistical planning than others because of the distance covered and the time it takes to complete. Since we departed the lobby at 9:00 am and did not return until 6:30 pm, we had a van to follow us all day with extra clothes, lunch, snacks, water, and hot tea (very refined).

We crossed the lake by ferry like we did a couple of days ago, but this time had the van with us in addition to our bikes. Rather than ride back along the lakeshore, we headed into the mountains surrounding the lake. There is a narrow flat ribbon all around the lake, but as soon as you go 50 feet inland, the climbing begins. Let’s just say that we went more than 50 feet inland.



The name of today’s trip was “4 Lakes”. Not too much explanation required. The name doesn’t tell you, however, that we also traveled through 3 Italian regions. We started in Veneto, passed through Lombardy, into Trentino and back to Veneto. That is the equivalent of riding in 3 states in one day. Mountain ridges separate the lakes; so moving from one to the next took us over a pass into another world. The first climb of the day was the most spectacular. Leaving Lake Garda, the road passed through a national park-like area on a very lightly traveled road. It was a bit worrying when I saw a sign for the town at the top of the first pass that said it was 27 km ahead. After suffering on the 25 km Alpe di Siusi, I thought this might be a very long day. The climb was challenging, but nothing like Siusi. The grade was considerably less and there were opportunities to recover along the way. Several people commented that the road was a “cyclist’s paradise”. I couldn’t argue with them.

The lunch and snack breaks were something to look forward to. For snacks, they brought an industrial size pan of apricot pastries. Lunch was penne pasta and pizza.

Maurizio revealed the secret of his energy and power. He pulled out a kilo bag of Parmesan cheese chunks and started dipping them in honey. Not little nibbler size pieces, but chunks the size you would buy in a cheese shop (the photo is one of the small pieces). Not 1, but 2 or 3. I tried it, but couldn’t believe I was eating it. Yes, it was good, but it’s not a taste I think I should develop unless I plan to do a lot of 111-mile rides.

Tunnels were an interesting part of today’s ride. The first was close to a km long and was not lit. Fortunately, it was straight and you could see the far end, even though it was a small point of light. There were no cars, so navigating was just a matter of pointing your bike toward the light and hoping there were no big road divots. This is one case where "going toward the light" is the only good choice.

After the second climb of the day, we did something I have never done on a bike. We entered a 7 km tunnel that declined at a 7% grade! That is like descending a pass inside a tunnel. There is absolutely nothing to give you a horizontal reference, so it looks as if you are riding on a flat road, but coasting at 35 miles per hour. Fortunately, this one was lit and the van was following behind us to protect us from any cars. I wouldn’t choose to do it every day, but it was a pretty exciting experience.

For the techies, you may wonder how I knew that the tunnel descended at 7% since GPS should not work inside a tunnel. I was a little surprised at first too that I was getting readings, but then I realized that elevation is a function of barometric pressure which doesn’t need a satellite link, and speed/distance can be measured by the wheel sensor when the satellite link is lost. With elevation and distance, the GPS can measure grade. If you look at the GPS track of the ride, you will see a very straight segment running north near the northern-most point of Lake Garda. That was the tunnel.



Last comment is that the “The Machine” passed its first century test with ease. I have never done an “easy” century, but this was the most comfortable I have ever been. 110 miles without and significant neck or shoulder pain is something to celebrate. Thank you to Brock for getting the fit right.

Day Off in Verona

Miles from Home - 5370.1 miles
Firsts / Highlights - Visited Verona (by foot)
Miles Ridden - 0 miles
Vertical Feet - 0 ft
Route - No ride today.
People - Triumphant return of Bruce Hodgkins

This post is from May 18, 2009.

Between yesterday’s fast 70-mile ride and tomorrow’s 100-mile+ hilly tour of 4 lakes, I decided it was time for a day off the bike to go to Verona.

My hotel is about 20-25 miles from Verona, so Nicola, the hotel owner, gave me a ride to the bus stop down by Lake Garda. It’s funny how little things can trip you up. When he dropped me off, he said that I must flag down the bus rather than assume it will stop for me. I agreed and he went on his way. I didn’t think to ask, “what does a city bus look like?”. I could have tried to flag down every one of the 50 busses that passed in the next 45 minutes, but instead, I decided to stand out by the road and look like someone who wanted to be picked up. The bus was ½ hour late, but it eventually arrived and stopped without flagging. Buying a ticket was the next trick. For most transactions, you have a cash register display or restaurant check to tell you how much to pay. There are a few situations, however, where your only communication is verbal, such as getting on a bus. I can understand numbers very slowly, but this bus driver did not accomodate. Nothing says dumb American like holding out a fist full of change and letting the bus driver take what he wants. Studid tourist.



Exploring Verona was interesting. As you can tell by my photos, I am a bit fixated on food. It’s hard not to let that happen in Italy, particularly when you need to eat so frequently to ride. I had a pizza and 2 ½ liters of water. The gelato, pasta and basalmic vinegar were just window-shopping this time.



I mentioned in a previous post that I met and rode with Bruce Hodgkins from Boulder at the hotel. He is the owner of Excel Sports, and is visiting Italy to celebrade his 50th birthday. His racing resume includes wins in Colorado on the Mount Evans Climb and Ironhorse races. Both impressive efforts.

His goal for his 50th was to come to Italy and compete in one of the famous Gran Fondos. A Gran Fondo is a very large citizen’s race that taps into the fanaticism about cycling in Italy. Yesterday was the Gran Fondo Felice Gimondi with 4,000 racers (3800 men, 200 women). Bruce and Tracy drove over for it on Saturday, both planning to compete, but Tracy was less concerned with her results. Even with his success racing in the U.S., Bruce did not know what to expect. He didn’t know the course, didn’t have anyone as a team to support him and had never participated in a European race. He returned to the hotel at Lake Garda on Sunday night with incredible news. On his first Gran Fondo, he had won! He finished 37th out of 4,000 overall and 1st in his age classification. It was the effort of his lifetime. 3 hours and 44 minutes of all-out effort with an average heart rate of 159. Happy 50th birthday!

Nicola opened a big bottle of bubbly, and the chef made a victory cake. You couldn't hope for a more modest winner.

On the personal front, I found a solution for my grey hair. I cut it all off. My shampoo budget just went down and my sunscreen budget went up. I’m not ready to post a picture yet because I am still trying to get over being startled every time I walk past a mirror.

Sunday Club Ride

Miles from Home - 5370.1 miles
Firsts / Highlights - Fastest ride I have done in Europe.
Miles Ridden - 70.01 miles
Vertical Feet - 2,276 ft
Route - View Today's Route Here.
People - Met Eros Poli

Met Roger & Helen from Basalt, CO. Roger operates a wine store in Aspen and Helen teaches Cross Country skiing.

Luciano from Melborne was the last remaining Aussie on his final ride. He bought a Pinarello Prince bike on this trip and wanted to get every last possible ride before flying home this afternoon. Katie – you will be glad to know that when I mentioned that I was from Steamboat, he said, “Ah… Champagne Powder”. We have an ally down under.



This post is from May 17, 2009.

Today, the hotel guests joined forces with a bike club from Verona to do a 70-mile club-style ride. Our guide-of-honor was Eros Poli and the club was called Le Amis d’ Eros (friends of Eros). Eros is a former professional bike racer from Verona. He has won Olympic Gold medals, finished second in the time trial world championships and, most famously, won a very unlikely stage in the Tour de France. He is not built like the typical wiry cyclist and definitely not like a climber. He stands out in a crowd at 6’4” and, I’m sure, over 200 pounds. That is a body built for speed and power, not floating over mountaintops. His typical role was to lead out Mario Chipollini for sprint finishes. The lead-out rider has to be a very powerful sprinter himself in order to build the speed the finisher needs to make the final dash for the finish line. Chipollini is considered one of the best sprinters in the history of cycling, so leading him out for his finishes was an important role.

No one would suspect that Eros’ career highlight would come in a famous climbing stage on the Tour de France. If anything, you would expect him to win a sprint, but that is not what happened. On a 200 km (124 mile) stage in 1994 over Mt. Ventoux, he went on a solo break-away with 106 miles remaining. A solo break-away that far from the finish almost never succeeds, but since he was not a threat in the general classification, the peloton allowed him to go. He rode alone all day and built up a 22-minute lead by the based of Mont Ventoux. The peloton would normally not allow such a large lead to develop, but since he was all alone and due to his size, he was not considered a climbing threat. By the top of the climb, however, he was able to preserve an almost 4-minute lead and was able to fly down the descent and get the stage victory. A stage is only 1 of 21 days in the Tour de France, but a single win is enough to turn a career into a legend. It is rare wins like this that keep riders attacking during these races with overwhelming odds against success.

So, that’s Eros’ story. We rode in a pace line all day with Eros like a locomotive on the front. Usually a pace line alternates the lead so that everyone shares some time breaking through the headwind. On this ride, Eros just sat on the front and more than 30 riders followed like baby ducks behind him. My little chain ring almost could have been left behind at the hotel this morning. We moved along at a pretty good pace all day. Even through there was a stiff headwind on the way back, Eros just sat on the front and powered through.

There was one real hill on the ride when the course broke away from the lake and into the hills. It was substantial with an 11-15% grade after a long flat ride along the lake. About half way up the climb, I saw that I was coming up on Eros. His bike was creaking under his weight and power. I was a bit surprised that I appeared to be making up ground on him. I reasoned, well 1) he has just lead a pace line for 25 miles on the flats, maybe he doesn’t want to use too much energy on the climb, or 2) he is not built for the hills, maybe he is going to go over the top slowly and catch up to us later, or 3) maybe I’m just that good. As I went past him, I looked over and saw that none of my theories were correct. He was talking on his cell phone. If my heart were not beating at about 160, it would have sunken in my chest. I kept going, accepting the consolation prize of passing him, even though it didn’t mean much when he was riding at a conversational pace with one hand on his handlebars. Just before getting to the top, he had finished his call and stood up out of the saddle. He accelerated past me and crested the top of the hill (bastard). I’m pretty sure he stole my lunch money too.

South Lake Garda

Miles from Home - 5370.1 miles
Firsts / Highlights - Ferry crossing of Lake Garda during ride, vineyards, olive groves, Simione – a castle fortress town, band playing on lake-front piazza, lemoni gelato, local truffle tortolini.
Miles Ridden - 54.95 miles
Vertical Feet - 1,994 ft
Route - View Today's Route Here.
People - Ride was with 5 Australians, 2 Italian guides and a Yank. The Aussies were on their international version of the “Men’s Club” that we started this year in Steamboat. They went to Hotel Dory 2 years ago and here this year. Fun group of +/- 50 year olds. They plan to come back next year in May to Lake Garda, then possibly fly down to Sicily.

Met Paola Pezza. She is the Italian 1996 mountain bike Olympic gold medalist. Now she and her husband own a bike shop in Bardolino along the lake.

Our guides today were Nicola and Marozzio. Nicola is one of the brothers who owns and manages the hotel. He rides with the groups a few days a week. Marozzio is 65 years old and rides 20-25,000 kilometers every year. When he decides to bridge from the back of the group to the front, he can out-motor anyone else in the group.



This post is from May 16, 2009.

My cold is currently at bay. I don’t dare be smug and say I have it licked, but I hope it is waning.

The ride today was not the hilliest or quietest roads we have done, but it was very enjoyable. The Aussies were on their last day and feeling a bit melancholy about leaving and celebratory for the great week they have had. We rode along the lake from town to town stopping for coffee in one, gelato in another. A ferry ride in the middle made for an interesting navigational element.

After the ride, we went down to Liaze for a drink between the after-ride snack and dinner. I didn’t realize from riding past it for the past two days that the town is not just the lakeside tourist community you see from the road. When you step through the thousand-year-old fortress gate, you find that there is an entire pedestrian medieval town. Ancient European ambience full of restaurants, bars, bakeries and such. Although I have not visited very many of the famous cities yet during my travels, I think I am finding that I like these little towns that no one has ever heard of and will never show up in a guidebook.

Had a great dinner with the Aussies. They have befriended the chef and head-waiter during their stay, and rather than order from the menu, they just have the chef send whatever he wants to serve. The highlights tonight were tiny locally made tortellini served in butter with locally found truffles. They were spectacular with the Valpolicella wine grown in the vineyards surrounding the hotel.



Tomorrow is Sunday, which means lots of bikers on the road. Although the Aussies will be leaving, a couple from Aspen just arrived and the couple from Finland will be rejoining the group. In addition, a cycling club from Verona is going to join us, so we should have about 50 people on a 118 km ride.

Something Completely Different

Miles from Home - 5370.1 miles
Firsts / Highlights - Riding the cobblestones of Verona
Miles Ridden - 52.10 miles
Vertical Feet - 4,136 ft
Route - View Today's Route Here.
People - Ride was with 7 Australians, 2 Finlanders, 3 Italian guides and a few Yanks.



This post is from May 15, 2009.

Since I am usually the one pressing the shutter, I thought I should post a picture of me to prove that I am really here.

Today marks the transition from "vacation" to Something Completely Different. I have been in Italy for 2 weeks now. If this were a vacation, I would be going back to work on Monday. Now begins a new perspective.

I re-joined the Bike Hotel culture today. We headed out on a ride with about 20 riders from Melborne, Australia, Finland and Colorado.

There was some light rain in the morning. I don't mind getting stuck in a little rain once I am out there, but I rarely set out on a ride with the sky leaking. It didn't look like anyone else was bailing out, so perhaps peer pressure got me to do the right thing. I went on the ride.

The course promised 4 passes before lunch and a spin through the walled city of Verona. I only see 3 on the GPS profile, so I guess we got shorted. It was a little unusual and interesting to have a city as part of ride. We usually stay out in the countryside. Having a significant city at the far point of the ride made this one memorable. If you switch to the satellite view on the link for "Today's Ride", then zoom in on Verona, you can see the coliseum we rode past as well as the fortress bridge that we crossed to get over the river.




Unfortunately, the rain returned as we left Verona. What was a pretty series of hill climbs on the way out turned into a 20-24 mph pace line on the way back. I have not done much pace riding in a while, so it was a good challenge. Perhaps a bit more challenge than necessary since I found my rear brake dragging when I got back to the hotel. I'm not sure how long it was doing that, but I may have handicapped myself a bit.

This bike hotel (Hotel Veronello) is a little different than the one in Riccione (Hotel Dory). Dory has been established longer and has more cyclists for any given week. Where Dory had about 100 riders divided into 4 groups by pace and distance, Veronello takes a single group with multiple guides (3 today). We rode as a full group for parts of the day, and split up for other parts. The "Type-A" group (which I went with today) rode over all of the hills. The "Happy" group sometimes went around them or took shortcuts. We regrouped in Verona and all worked on the paceline to get us back to the dry refuge of the hotel as fast as possible. It was a fun group with the unusual attribute of being 100% English-speaking, except for 2 of the guides.

Shifting Gears

Miles from Home - 5370.1 miles
Firsts / Highlights - Arrived at Lake Garda Bike Hotel, pistachio gelato.
Miles Ridden - 15.02 miles
Vertical Feet - 570 ft
Route - View Today's Route Here.
People - Had dinner with Nicola Verdolin, owner/manager of Hotel Veronella (where I am staying). He is a friend of Stefano from Hotel Dory and a member of the Italy Bike Hotel group that was started by Stefano.

Also had dinner with Bruce and Tracy from Boulder, CO. Bruce owns Excel Sports and imports Italian bikes and clothing to the U.S.. Bruce and Tracy are going to be on tomorrow's group ride and doing a Gran Fondo (4,000 person citizen bike race) on Sunday. Bruce is here celebrating his upcoming 50th birthday. Looking at him, I wouldn’t be surprised if he comes back from the Gran Fondo on Sunday night with a win.


Visualizza Lazise in una mappa di dimensioni maggiori



This post is from May 14, 2009.

No stage viewing today. I may catch one of two more live stages, but the intensity is going to drop off considerably starting today.

Today was the first day since I have arrived in Italy that has shown any sign of a slower pace. I still transferred to a new city, moved into a new room and went for a short ride, but compared to the past 2 weeks, it was pretty casual. I planned to take a day off the bike, but after arriving, it just didn’t seem right to be sedentary. I had time for an afternoon nap, though, so all in all, it was a pretty easy day.

Experience Plus was kind enough to drop me at the hotel, so I didn’t need to break down my bike or do any train travel. I now have a full week with no logistical challenges.

My immediate impression of this hotel is that it is more than just a “bike” hotel. It is a “sports” hotel. They have a complex of perfectly manicured soccer fields where they can host team camps. Everyone in the lobby is either in cycling spandex or soccer sweats. The other difference I notice is that the food is a step above Hotel Dory. Although Dory was good, this restaurant has a very good chef and you are able to order off a menu rather than a buffet. My room rate includes lodging, breakfast, pocket lunch for the ride, after-ride snack, 5-course dinner, guide services and laundry. I can’t imagine why I will need to leave.

The other initial impression of the hotel is that they will have a good variety of riding. They have flats around the lake, hills, mountains, ancient towns, cities, vineyards and olive groves. I suspect every day is going to be very different than the last.

Why is it that with every organized ride in Colorado people think they are getting a late start if they are not on the road by 7:00 am? Italians are on my schedule. Giro stages start around noon or 1:00. Tomorrow's 100k ride with 4 passes starts at 10:00. That's the right idea.

The pictures on today’s post are from my short spin around the south eastern corner of Lake Garda.