Today was another rolling day of cycling with lots of climbing thrown in, and of course there was an optional climb up a huge mountain for the hardy souls of the group. The day began much like the previous day – a big breakfast at 7:30, bags packed and downstairs at 8:30, and everyone at the bikes by 8:45. Libby was feeling a little tired after the previous day’s exertions, and was a little worried about how she’d fare on today’s ride. I, meanwhile, was a little worse for wear for other reasons – my stomach was acting up (perhaps due to the level of exertion the previous day), and I wasn’t sure how long I’d make it before being forced to make a rapid exit for the nearest restroom. We dutifully trooped down to pick up our bikes, however, and got ready to roll out. Our guides went over the course with us, handing out direction sheets that we all stuck in our pockets, and explained that today’s course, while hilly, should be much less difficult than the previous day. They also admitted that the previous optional climb, the Mottarone, was perhaps a bit harder than they had expected: “It didn’t seem as difficult from the van when we previewed it”. After everyone finished sighing with relief, they explained that there was another, even longer optional climb today, although it was not as steep. Directions done, we all suited up and rolled down the road, enjoying some beautiful lakeside scenery dotted with castles and ancient villas. Even better, the road was mostly flat, so we took it easy and chatted as we rode, getting to know each other a little better. Of course, nothing good can last forever, and after our morning cappuccino-break the road swung steeply upwards. This climb was a mere 6 kilometers with a thousand feet or so of climbing, so we only “got” to experience it’s pleasures for about a half hour this time. As usual, Jerry (the mountain goat of the group) leaped up the road with a huge grin on his face, while the rest of us settled in for a painful grind to the top. I was still feeling a little queasy, so I decided to take it easy and just spin slowly up without exerting myself too much. I was soon on my own as everyone got into their own rhythm, and just concentrated on making it to the top. Amazingly, as the ride went on I actually started feeling better, and before too long I made it up to the finish of the climb. Meanwhile Jerry was already rocketing back down the slope to meet his wife and climb up with her again, with that same huge grin on his face. I decided to play the gallant gentleman myself, and cruised back down looking for Libby. Before too long though, she came into view, far ahead of everyone else in the group. Excited by her great riding, I swung in behind her and began offering encouragement. Unfortunately, Lib isn’t much for gallantry, and soon told me to “shut up so she can concentrate on getting this done”. I wisely followed her instructions, and within a few minutes we reached the top for a much deserved water break.  After refilling our bottles and regrouping with everyone, it was decision time: from here we could either do the huge optional climb, or have lunch and then cruise on down to our new hotel. Since I was still feeling reasonably good after the climb, I decided (perhaps foolishly) to

Looking down at a hairpin turn from the climb

once again go for the harder loop, along with Jerry and the lone Brazilian on the trip, Eduardo. Everyone else, meanwhile, decided they’d rather skip lunch and just keep riding, so we said our goodbyes and headed off. The road once again shot upwards, and Jerry and I decided to pair up and climb to the top together. The climb itself was actually a great deal of fun: it was much bigger than the previous mountain, and longer at 13 km in length, but it wasn’t as aggressively steep, so Jerry and I had plenty of time to chat and exchange stories while taking advantage of the views to snap some photos.  Jerry kindly didn’t push the pace too hard, and after only about 45 minutes we reached the top and stopped to enjoy the view. With Eduardo and Hendrick another half hour behind us, we decided to descend off the mountain as fast as we could in the hopes of reaching the hotel before everyone left for lunch, and we ended up rocketing through what is so far my favorite part of the tour: beautiful small villages,

Filling up at a village fountain

spectacular mountain vistas, and an alpine creek littered with marble boulders the size of small cars. It was so much fun that we both agreed we didn’t want to tell our wives about how nice it was, because we knew they’d wish they had gone on the ride as well. Eventually we rolled into the hotel, arriving about 15 minutes after everyone from the short tour did, and we swapped stories about our respective rides. As predicted, Libby and Stacy (Jerry’s wife) were both irritated they’d missed out on such a spectacular ride, but it sounded like they had a good time as well. Impressively, Libby was feeling so good that she and another rider (Joe – do you like how I’m littering names throughout this?) had left everyone else in the dust and shot on ahead towards the hotel. Unfortunately, it turned out that Joe had a pretty poor sense of direction, so they got lost and got in an extra climb or two of their own before reaching the hotel at about the same time as the rest of the group. Once we all had exchanged our stories and gotten something to drink, we agreed to meet for some shopping and lunch in a half hour, and everyone headed up to get changed. We all ended up getting some pastries, pizza, and coffee together, and then finally Libby and I headed back up to the hotel for a much-deserved nap before dinner.

We were on our own for dinner, however, an older couple on the trip from New York asked to treat us.  It was extremely nice and we visited an excellent restaurant, La Lira. We shared some great stories, great wine, and truly excellent spicy rabbit taglietella. The night finished off of course with gelato.