Giro trip - Day 3
The mountains have arrived. After breakfast we took a van ride to the town of Fiera di Primiera. During that drive, the architecture changed from the more typical Italian villa style of stucco and clay tile roofs to the alpine look with more wood and metal roofs. I'm sure the different climates necessitate different building styles.
We unloaded the bikes and headed out of town. Fiera is at the base of Passo Rolle. We rode only a few km's before starting the climb. Passo Rolle is not terribly tough in terms of grade. The 22km is difficult. This is the longest climb I have ever done, including the three trips to France. There are not many hairpins on this climb and that probably points to the less severe grade.
Halfway up the climb a light rain bgan to fall and chilled the body a little. I had worked up a good sweat already so the rain actually felt okay. As Joe and I cleared the treeline, the rain stopped and we cruised up to the summit to wait for the others. Keith and Kathy followed a few minutes later, as did the rain again, and Mike and later Harlan. We decided to have lunch at the ever present mountaintop restaurant. Brian and Diana rolled by while in their steady style and continued on to Passo Valles while we finished eating. The descent was chilly and damp but not altogether unpleasant.
Passo Valles began very shortly after reaching the bottom of Passo Rolle. This pass is only 6k but it is 9-10% for the last half. There was no hurry to reach the steeper section so I set a steady tempo and paced Kathy up the climb. This was a very green climb. Evergreens and pine lined the road with glimpses of a mountain stream much of the way.
There were not much in the way of dramatic views but it was still a pretty climb. A nice climb.
Parts of the descent seemed quite steep but supposedly it wasn't any worse than the side we climbed. Must have been an optical illusion.
The town of Falcade was at the base of the climb and was decorated for the passage of the Giro the next day. Pink ribbons, balloons and signs already adorned many of the homes and businesses.
The major obstacles on todays ride were now out of the way with only a short "bump" up to the hotel. The valley road, however, gradually gained altitude up the the towns of Alleghe and Caprile. The came the "bump" as Keith described it. In part, that was a true statement. Maybe it was the miles we had already ridden but the bump hurt the legs and seemed endless as it snaked its way up the hill, switchback after switchback. That sucker hurt.
The hotel is in a beautiful setting on a hillside with mountains from one end of the horizon to the other with the tiny village of Pieve a couple hundred meters down the road, dominated by the town's church steeple.
The mountains have arrived. After breakfast we took a van ride to the town of Fiera di Primiera. During that drive, the architecture changed from the more typical Italian villa style of stucco and clay tile roofs to the alpine look with more wood and metal roofs. I'm sure the different climates necessitate different building styles.
We unloaded the bikes and headed out of town. Fiera is at the base of Passo Rolle. We rode only a few km's before starting the climb. Passo Rolle is not terribly tough in terms of grade. The 22km is difficult. This is the longest climb I have ever done, including the three trips to France. There are not many hairpins on this climb and that probably points to the less severe grade.
Halfway up the climb a light rain bgan to fall and chilled the body a little. I had worked up a good sweat already so the rain actually felt okay. As Joe and I cleared the treeline, the rain stopped and we cruised up to the summit to wait for the others. Keith and Kathy followed a few minutes later, as did the rain again, and Mike and later Harlan. We decided to have lunch at the ever present mountaintop restaurant. Brian and Diana rolled by while in their steady style and continued on to Passo Valles while we finished eating. The descent was chilly and damp but not altogether unpleasant.
Passo Valles began very shortly after reaching the bottom of Passo Rolle. This pass is only 6k but it is 9-10% for the last half. There was no hurry to reach the steeper section so I set a steady tempo and paced Kathy up the climb. This was a very green climb. Evergreens and pine lined the road with glimpses of a mountain stream much of the way.
There were not much in the way of dramatic views but it was still a pretty climb. A nice climb.
Parts of the descent seemed quite steep but supposedly it wasn't any worse than the side we climbed. Must have been an optical illusion.
The town of Falcade was at the base of the climb and was decorated for the passage of the Giro the next day. Pink ribbons, balloons and signs already adorned many of the homes and businesses.
The major obstacles on todays ride were now out of the way with only a short "bump" up to the hotel. The valley road, however, gradually gained altitude up the the towns of Alleghe and Caprile. The came the "bump" as Keith described it. In part, that was a true statement. Maybe it was the miles we had already ridden but the bump hurt the legs and seemed endless as it snaked its way up the hill, switchback after switchback. That sucker hurt.
The hotel is in a beautiful setting on a hillside with mountains from one end of the horizon to the other with the tiny village of Pieve a couple hundred meters down the road, dominated by the town's church steeple.
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