Ciclismo Classico - Assaggio Toscana Tour - July 1-6, 2007

[Thorn]

Thanks for the report...sounds like you had fun. I can relate your feelings of being lost....DH got sick on our trip and I was riding alone quite a bit. But, I had a cell phone with me and always knew that all I had to do was get to the next town call the van and get directions back to where I needed to be.

It sounds like your group was the complete opposite of our group. DH and I were the slow pokes. There were 5 of us--two people who raced, a guy who had done several trips in Italy and us, flatlanders. We would start out 15-20 minutes earlier than the group, take only short stops and get passed by the group around 25K. But I happily climbed those hills. I was amazed at the end how I no longer looked at a 9% grade as steep--just, "oh, another incline". I could keep pace with the group as long as we were going uphill, but on the downhills, like you, I rode the brakes and they all just flew down the hills. At the end, I was riding faster on the downhills, but still very slow.

But...were your cue sheets really in miles!?!?!?!??! Sounds like your weather was much better than ours, too. What? Only one day of rain? Sigh....we had one day of sunshine!

Hope that jet lag eases up (home is always so much more difficult). Looking forward to the pictures.

[maillotpois]

Yea, poor Kim "only" went to France (what-ever!).

Great report!

[mimitabby]

thanks for the trip report! sounds wonderful. Glad you experienced real italian food, roads and guides. sorry about your bike. It could have been a bummer bike or the gears maybe were not set up. But truly, i've never ridding a bike with Mirage components.

your headaches in the airport though... man. To think i used to think flying was fun!

[michelem]

Sorry about that! I did mean Amy (Ace). I am still foggy this morning.

DH ate plenty of gelato for both of us (I'm allergic to dairy, so was unable to partake).

Our route sheets had a column for miles and a column for kilometers. I just got 'em mixed up when comparing to the odometer. I could get lost going around the block!

[mimitabby]

it's a good thing you weren't allergic to wheat too! you would not have been able to eat!

don't forget to post your pictures as soon as your brain clears

btw, i had to crack up when you said you only allowed yourself 3 hours of sleep on the airplane. OH TO BE ABLE TO SLEEP 3 hours on an airplane!!!!

[ace]

Glad you (mostly) had a good time! I rode the Dama, too, when I did my cc trip, but didn't have any shifting problems (I have Campy Centaur and Chorus components on my bike at home so I was used to Campy). I'm really surprised the guides were so inattentive to your bike needs, that's too bad. The guide on my tour spent a lot of time tweaking my bike to get it just right, and thought the head tube extender I brought from home was really cool (because it actually made my bike fit).

Also sort of a bummer that you had such inexperienced folks on your trip. On ours, there were 14 people, 6 rode hybrids, 8 rode road bikes, and all 8 of them were experienced cyclists who brought their own shoes and pedals! Guess it's just the luck of the draw.

[alpinerabbit]

Awesome report... looks like the tennis shoe/flat pedal fraction needs to train some to keep up with you. Glad you got to eat real pizza. And yes, 2-3 hour dinners. Idiots in Germany - everyone is supposed to know what a saddle is, it's not like bikes are a rarity there (although we do joke about how germans consider their automobile a body part).

Have any links? I want to cycle in tuscany (it's not too far from where I live....)

Higher end Campy shifts blissfully. I can shift front and back at the same time (have Chorus).

[Crankin]

I have found the people you get on a tour tend to be the luck of the draw. Our first one (just a weekend in Vt.), most of the people were not as strong as we were. There was only one person besides my husband who climbed Mt. Mansfield (I had crashed the day before and could barely move!). In fact one guy, started saying that his bike must be "broken" when we were going up a steep climb and he had to stop. Plus, there was a group of triathletes from the South, who ah, let's just say were making comments about political things like abortion. My husband had to kick me under the table at dinner, so I would keep my mouth shut. Our tour in the Czech Republic and Austria had mostly really strong riders. They were fast. Well, I made it up all of the climbs in my own way and my husband stuck with me. They were really nasty climbs, too. But, 10 out of the 20 people were friends and very cliquey. And they drank like crazy. Even at the lunch stops. I love wine and beer, but I can't have more than one glass the night before riding. And, I have to go to bed early when I'm doing that much riding. The tour we did last summer was more even keeled. We went with another couple and we purposely chose a flat (easy) tour in Quebec. Yet, even though this tour was listed as easy, most of the people were pretty good riders. Since mostly everyone had driven there, a lot of us had our own bikes. The drinking still was an issue, but they mellowed out and it was fine.