Gavi Short Loop - May 3, 2014

Margie Kirk And Jackie Arnett Nearing The Top Of The Climb

This was the the last riding day of our BAC Piedmonte tour. We had a good buffet breakfast with killer croissants and the best, strongest coffee of the tour. Fortunately the caffeine did not overstimulate me and I chose to ride the shortest loop. I say fortunately because my legs needed a rest. The longer route would have almost doubled the amount of climbing.

I started out riding with Janet Monks and Julie and Tom Leever. The weather was sunny and warm enough to shed my jacket after the first, short downhill from our Agriturismo. When we started climbing we entered a deciduous forest that looked very much like western Washington without the evergreens. We rode along a creek and between steep hills. The steepness of some bumps on our road reached double digits.

Taking a rest at a major intersection to regroup, we were joined by several other riders. Tom had fallen back, so Julie, Janet, Margie and I took off again to complete the rest of the climb. The views at the top were wonderful. We stopped so that Juile could compose a photo op. 

The decent back down the hill was fun. I rode on at the bottom and went into Gavi. I was looking for the bicycle shop that had sold bicycle jerseys with local decals to others in our group. I found the shop but the jerseys were sold out. 

Back at the Agriturismo, I stripped my rental bike of my equipment and put back the rental equipment as I watched others struggle with dismantling their bikes and loading them into carrying cases.

After cleaning up, a few of us walked up the road to have lunch at a trattoria that Vickie ate in yesterday. She reported that it was wonderful. Unfortunately it was closed today. So we walked back and convinced Julie that she should load us into the van and take us into town - it was about 2 miles away. Four people were in the front seat while nine of us were crammed in the back. It was very hot and sticky. But it was worth it.

We found a restaurant and ate outside on the patio. I had ravioli with herbs and butter and grilled cheese. The cheese was a small round with rind - hard on the outside, soft and warm on the inside. I ate it with bread. Our table split beer and water and had espresso to top off the meal. Walking back to the van, we stopped for gelato.

I helped at Happy Hour tonight by slicing apples and melon. For dinner, Julie arranged a meal at our Agriturismo. This was going to be a meal on our own but because the trek to town was so long, we ate here. We all had prosciutto and melon, a green salad with yummy fresh tomatoes, pasta (mine was spaghetti with olive oil and garlic) and terimisu. Of course we also had pitchers of wine. 

It is getting late. We have an 8:00 bus to catch in the morning. So I am going to bed. Buona Notte.

Bubbio To Gavi - June 2, 2014

Today's Cycling Partners - Janet Monks, John Beland and Julie Leever

We had our earliest start, yet. At 8:20, Julie, Janet, John and I rode out of town. The weather was mild, but there was a threat of rain later in the day. That is why everyone was antsy and wanted to get to the finish as soon as possible. We were the last to leave.

The weather stayed nice. The route instructions and GPS downloads, however, were a bit confusing. We had to stop  several times to make sure we were going onto the correct roads. At one point we had to walk around a road closure where about 100 meters of the road were washed out because of a flood a while ago. Our GPS saved the day for us.

The ride was very hilly on terms of elevation gain, but most of the climbs were short and gradual. Nevertheless, my legs are pretty tired. We were in and out of vineyards all day. Some of the views from the ridges were beautiful although the air was not very clear.

We stopped once for coffee and snacks and a second time in Gavi for lunch. Our Agriturismo della Guardia is a couple of kilometers out of town and serves no lunch. So we had to fuel up in town. I had a good panino with salami and cheese along with fizzy water and a Magnum Bar. I had ridden ahead of the group because they were trying to contact one of the riders who they thought was lost. It turned out that she connected with another couple who led her in.

The last 2kms from town to the hotel were up hill. My GPS ran out of juice on the way. It had worked hard all day to keep me on route and took a rest when the end of the ride was near.

I am in a small room whose door and floor-to-ceiling windows open onto a terrace. No vineyards are in sight but I have a view of a forest, a small hilltop village and some mountains in the distance.

Happy Hour was on the terrace outside of all of our single rooms. It was convenient for me because I could sit in my lounge chair, drink wine and eat special HR goodies.

Dinner was at our Agriturismo. I had some little hand rolled pasta similar to spaetzle with a yummy pesto sauce. My main course was rabbit with a small salad with fresh cherry tomatoes. Dessert was fresh strawberries. We had pitchers of both white and red wine. White wine is the common wine in this area.

It is getting late by my standards so I am going to bed. Buona Notte.

Bubbio Loop - June 1, 2014

Everything dried out overnight. We woke to almost clear skies and mild temperatures. My roommate for two nights, Bo Newsome, likes to sleep in so our early morning bathroom routines were well coordinated.

Our breakfast buffet was OK. We had the standard coffee choices, boxed cereals, strange juices, yoghurt and canned fruit. In addition, we had peaches that were just picked from the tree.

I left the hotel around 8:40 wearing a light jacket and baring my legs. Tom had jumbled our routes today to minimize traffic. He did not, however, minimize the climbing. The roads that he chose were narrow country  roads rambling along vineyards, farms and forests. Our climb started out gradually, but it soon became a slug at 10% for several kilometers. Along the way, I joined Margie Kirk, Janet Monks and Laticia McIntyre. The weather became very warm and humid. We were passed by several Italian cyclists who were out for a Sunday ride.

After we reached the final summit, we had a wonderful downhill. Then we turned on a road that was not on the map that Tom supplied to us. He had to use magic markers to draw this part of our route. I can understand why the road was not marked. It had some stretches were the pavement was broken and the road surface was nearly gravel. There was one short segment where the pavement was gone and the grade jumped up to 17%. We got off of our bicycles and walked.

We stopped for snacks in Momtechiaro Piana. On our way to the hotel, we were joined by Bo.

After cleaning up, I walked a ways up the street and found a restaurant where I had water, beer and strawberry risotto. It had a little pepper in the sauce which spiced it up. It was very good.

Our Happy Hour was at the Torelli winery where we had a tour with Giancarlo and his young son. Wine tasting was the highlight from this very old and very respected winery. Giancarlo was very outgoing and very knowledgable about his family history with the winery and with the history of the wine in the region. We were bused to the winery and afterwards to dinner in the school bus.

Dinner was at the same B&B as last night. This time I had gnocchi, veal, salad and dessert. I wish that the Italians could do a better job cooking meat. Sauces are great, but the meat is always overcooked. As we left after dessert, our waitress chased us down while we were in the bus with a tray of coffee. This was fun especially after all of the house wine and Muscato.

It is getting late. Buona Notte.