Ridin' With The 'Big Dogs'

Hello from Briancon, France!  It's a ski town in the southeast that's been used for Le Tour many times.

The campsite:

We climbed the COL D'IZOARD today, which is 2,360m high (7,743ft).  We started from around 1,200 meters from our campsite and climbed 20km at varying gradients (from 2% to 9%) to gain the other 1,200 meters (~4,000ft).

It was an ALL DAY AFFAIR.

The summit was beautiful even though it was about 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

When we reached the top, Ged said to me "You're with the big boys now."  That made me smile.  I feel like it's really hard to know if I'm progressing, so for him to say something like that means I must be doing something right.

We rode down into some small towns and villages.  That's my favorite part of big rides.

There's always awesome bakeries with fresh baguettes and pain au chocolate, cold mountain water springs and friendly people who yell "allez"  as you climb by.

The final 30km was awful.  The wind picked up quite a lot and the sky opened up for an afternoon downpour.  It's a good thing Ged leant me his Pearl Izumi jacket.  Talk about Lifesaver.

I knew this ride really was progress by the end of it because there was an unexpected climb and I didn't freak out or yell when I saw it.  I just asked Ged how much further and then kept on pedaling.  That's a step up for me.

Headed to l'Alpe d'Huez tomorrow.  Pray for me.

~Amanda

A Handful of Hiking

Yesterday, Ged and I hiked the 9km path across Cinque Terre, or "The Five Lands."

The footpaths connect five sea villages.  The paths were once used by the natives to carry goods from town to town.

The hike was amazing.  So many incredible vistas, fresh air and vibrant colors.

Here's a collection of shots I took along the way.  The hike itself was constantly changing from uphill to downhill.  It reminded me of doing "stadiums," you know, when people run up and down the bleachers in a football stadium.  :)

Finally done!

There were a lot of Americans and French on the trails, as well as lots of newlyweds.  My brother and his wife even came here for their honeymoon two and a half years ago.

We're leaving Italy today and driving into France for some killer rides.  Expect to hear about the famous climbs of Mont Ventoux and Col du Tourmalet.

~Amanda

Ridin' for the Weekend.

This past weekend was spent riding the bicycle all over Cortona and the surrounding areas.

Saturday

We camped on Lago Trasimeno at this place.  Lots of Dutch people!

Saturday ending up being 32km (20mi) in 1.5 hours.  We stopped and walked around a lot once we reached the summit.

There was even a wedding taking place in the City Hall when we arrived.

And some really amazing shadows.  These are for you, professor Freeman...

One really interesting thing Ged pointed out while we were sitting in the square was how many happy-looking old people there were.

He continued on to say how people who live in tight-knit communities tend to live longer, healthier lives. 

While I agree with what he was saying, I couldn't help but think “Yea, you may be right, but how often do these people leave and explore the world?”  I mean, I do think it’s important to have a strong sense of community, but on the other hand, I think it’s just as important to spread your wings and break away from it all in order to find out about yourself and grow without your family and childhood friends forever determining who you’ve been and who you are.

But he is right though, there’s something about having a stable network of people around you as a support base and a social outlet that benefits the health.

Any thoughts out there?



Moving on to Sunday...


We did a BIG ride on Sunday from our campsite to Montepulciano then to Pienza.  MY FIRST METRIC CENTURY EVER.  That's 100 km (~62mi).


Even though we got a little lost on our way back from Montepulciano, I still enjoyed the ride.  I admit I was dog tired by the end of it and maybe a little cranky but I survived.

We saw a lot of different stuff on our ride:

A bike race going on

Awesome wine cellar that was featured in the movie Twilight

Cute dogs...

Sunflower fields

And incredible views, of course

Ok, so I lied.  We actually ended up riding 116km (72mi).  But that's only because we got a little lost...

Not sure when I'll have Internet next, so I'll post whenever I get the chance in the next few days.

Tomorrow is a long hike through CINQUE TERRE.  Beautiful pictures to follow...

Ciao,
~Amanda