Monte Velo
[ posted by iain Monday, May 23, 2005 ]
Back to my own little 'Giro del Trentino' today after a weekend of limited riding. Today was a loop round from Rovereto down to near Arco at Lake Garda and back over via
Monte Velo. This has been a Giro climb and is one of the tougest and most consistent in the area. It's a 12 kilometre climb with over 1000 metres of height gain. There were a few other roadies on the hill and lot of mountain bikers. Who knows why they chose this route, there are some fanastic off-road trails in this area including one up this climb. My climbing is definitely improving and the break at the weekend seems to have done the trick, I felt much better than the last time I did this climb and got over in under the hour.
I've published some more photos from the
Stelvio and Ortisei.
Stelvio - Giro stage 14 - Gutted!
[ posted by iain Sunday, May 22, 2005 ]
Today was supposed to be the big one for us at the Giro, a ride up the mighty Stelvio to watch the race come through. All the signs had been good this week that the pass would be open to ride and the race would go over the top. We came over from the Ortisei last night and stayed in a guest house at the foot of the climb. There were rumours last night that the pass maybe closed for the tifosi but we heard nothing definite. This morning however, unfortunately the rumours came true. Having turned a handful of the forty-something hairpins on the climb we were met with a large crowd of irate cyclists and two policeman blocking the road. The pass had been closed to fans due to the risk of landslides and avalanches. Everyone was gutted, we were barely halfway up the climb and couldn't go any further. The race would still proceed but only race personnel and those fans who had been up at the station for days would be allowed onto the pass. We had to sit out the wait for race near the village of Trafoi. It was good to watch all the same and we managed to get some photos [
see here ] , but left feeling a little disappointed that we missed a really good opportunity to ride a climb which is as mythical as it is inaccessible.
Ortisei - Giro stage 13 finish
[ posted by iain Sunday, May 22, 2005 ]
According to the official Giro guide we were about to climb one of the most feared ascents of this year's race, one where all the action would take place. After about 10km of gently rising tarmac we came to the King of the Mountains marker with relative ease, surely my week in the mountains hadn't given me the conditioning of a Grand Tour cyclist. Alas no, the race route indicated in the guide was wrong, we had just skirted round the edge of the valley hundreds of metres above the real climb to Ortisei. It was only when we dropped down the real climb we realised why it was going to make a difference to the GC. I'll admit we didn't drop right to the foot, but I'm doing enough climbs this week so I wasn't going to feel guilty about missing this one. We found a suitable vantage point and settled in for the wait. I really enjoy waiting for the race to arrive, it's a great time to sit back and watch the all the weird and wonderful characters of the cycling world go by. Cyclists of every different discipline, shape and blood-alcohol level pass by on their way up or down the hill. As the predicted arrival time approaches the tifosi become more sedentary and before long everyone is unpacking his or her cameras and jostling for a good position on the tarmac.
The first indication of the race approaching is the two TV helicopters, one low to catch the action and one high to relay the signal. The tension really mounts once they are audible, if your lucky someone on the hill has a radio or sometimes even a TV to get the latest positions, but this time we knew very little. The car indicating the front of the race speeds round the bend and up past us, then the lead motorbike followed by the lone
Ivan Parra accompanied by a chorus of "Vai! Vai!" from the tifosi. From then on it's a mad rush to spot the next riders, recognise them if you can, take a picture and then spare a second to yell some encouragement. Savoldelli was looking very strong, but poor Basso had a torrid day with stomach problems and was a shadow of the rider from the Passo Duran a few days ago. Once the leaders pass there's the wait for the main group to arrive which is interrupted occasionally by the remains of an earlier breakaway group or a better than average climber. Once the race has past the 'armchair commentary' goes into overdrive as everyone packs up and prepares for the ride home. For us it was a quick descent back to the car and onwards to Prato dello Stelvio where we stayed the night.
Mezzocorona - Giro stage 13 start
[ posted by iain Sunday, May 22, 2005 ]
Just got back to base camp in Rovereto from a weekend following the Giro in the mountains. Yesterday's stage started just up the valley from Rovereto so before driving over to Val Gardena we decided to watch the off. Not as accessible as previous starts we have been to [
Arco ] but fun all the same, it began in a huge cantina (winery?) in Mezzocorona. The photo opportunities were pretty limited. Once again Francesco Moser and Maurizio Fondriest turned up for the publicity, apparently if there's anything cycling related going on in the valley they are sure to be seen somewhere. Once the riders had departed it was a back to car and off to Ortisei for the stage finish.
