random notes from Borso del Grappa

Perhaps my greatest achievment this trip was the 2 hour conversation in Italian that I had this afternoon while sitting in the shade after lunch. The couple were staying at our hotel and sat down near me and we got to chatting. They were retired, she being 79 and he 81, and great grand parents. We taled about Bush, soccer, Formula 1, the italian premier, oir lives and familes. They had both worked for Agip, the gas company here.
It's a great accomplishment because truth be told my fluency in Italian is lousy, and clumsy, despite all my years of living here as a kid and all my trips here since.

How to spot an Italian cyclist: they always wear a full "kit", meaning that the top and the bottom match, and are from some team. They rarely wear helmets and all ride fast.

The streets are narrow here and the traffic can be heavy on the main roads, but the drivers here respect us and while they get close they will not hit us and will politely honk if they realise we don't know they are there.

Everyone says don't the water in Italy. I drink it. I drank it as a kid and I can drink it now. I go through through far to much in a day to buy the stuff.

I didn't use to drink it when I first started coming her to bike, but it seems the best thing to do.

Heaven on Earth

35 miles so far this morning. Stopping for a cappucino and brioche. Sitting on a terrace at a small cafe watching the passing parade. Some monied lady just walked in with a little black short dress on and expensive sunglasses and even the older mothers watched her walk. For the most part this is a mountain working class village where women wear sensible shoes not FKME heels at 10 am.

It looked like rain this morning and indeed it had rained on parts of my ride up the Brenta river valley. I met an older man on the road, basically the only people my speed and we drafted each other until my turnoff point, a first for me in Italy, -- drafting off an unknown rider. He had never seen a camelback before and asked about it.

No italian uses one. And for the most part they use one water bottle and cut the top off the other one and stick their rain jacket in there. They fill up their one bottle at local foutains.

Borso del Grappa

My bike arrived at the luggage counter called Fuori measura, outside measurements. I found the Hertz counter and my car and was on my way. Managed to make the drive to Borso in 3 hours and did not make one wrong turn. Did the same last year from Rome. Will still not make up for ouir first time here 4 years ago when Nancy and I were hopelessly lost numerous times. All my mistakes. I even had the name of the town we were staying in wrong. Nancy ultimately found the hotel, that god! I thought we were staying in Bassano del Grappa, but it was Borso del grappa, about 15 minutes away. Ok, enough said about that night! Not my best work!

So I was very proud that I made the drive again this year without issue.

As I pulled up to the hotel I saw a man I had met here 2 years ago. He and his wife are retired marine core band members. A tuba player and a clarinetist. I met two other people here biking for the week too.

I went to put my bike together and discovered that for the second time in 3 years that my rear deraillur was bent out of alignment. I wasn't pleased. I took the bike to the local bike shop but it was closed, so I decided to go to the supermarket. Also closed for afternoon siesta. So I went and had my favorite treat, a gelato. When the the going gets tough the tough get gelato!
It was delicios, as always.
After Siesta I tended to the bike and watched as Leopoldo did his magic. The man is a wizard with a bike. He is married to Patrizia, a woman from the usa who came here 25 years ago with George, to start the Italian Bicycling center, which is where I met her and George and Leopoldo. Patrizia and G split up years ago and she married Leopoldo. He speaks not a word of English and she is fluent in Italian.
Having my bike fixed I am a happy camper, especially after searching several towns and all of Bassano for the one restaurant that is open. Yes, there is only one. Oddly I must have passed at least 15 german bars with much beer drinking and merriment, but no real food. So I have my penne and my pizza and am carbo loading for domani.
At least this restaurant has no americans or brits. It's all italians and not a tourist trap.
But I searched the whole center of the city and not one restaurant or even pizzeria. Nancy would have had a fit about looking for this, although she would have eaten today whereas I ate nothing all day save for a roll in the morning on the plane and my ice cream.

Bon appetito!

On The Road Again

Sitting here in the Dfw Airport, having just checked my bike with the usual American Airlines snafu. The poor gate agents are never knowledable about the fact that bikes to and from Int'l destinations are always free, per IATA rules. Why I don't know, but it's been that way for years. The problem is that AA doesn't post this on their web site and even their call centers are sometimes not familiar with this. A call last night found an agent who knew this but the one I called this morning did not. Luckily my gate agent finally found a smart person who confirmed this. But she spent a long time doing so. Apparently she's been charging unsuspecting bikers to Europe $90 for years. I will write a letter to AA when I get back.

But I came early to the airport anticipating the situation as it happens every year.

Oh well, now I pray for an ontime flight to jfk and that my bike makes it to Milan.

A Presto

Sunday Slog

47 miles today. Started off strong but was tired at mile 35 and came home the short way t0 finish at 47 miles instead of 55. Just ran out of gas. The scale said I wasn't dehydrated but it may have been the heat, although I started at 7 am. It will hit around 103 today. Vitals: 156, 6% body fat and 60% hydrated.
Tomorrow, off to Italy. Need to take my bike apart and pack tonight.

Saturday

John and I rode a nice paced 30 miles today in 2 hours. I admit that I had nothing in my legs today and wimped out about going 45 today as John only had 2 hours and I didn't feel like doing more. Tomorrow I will go 55. It will be 103 today, again, and was pretty hot and humid for our ride today. I finished the ride at 156, having lost 2 pounds to dehydration. It amazing that the RAGBRAI effect continues even after the ride stops.

Rain - Again

It looked like rain again this morning, so I did not ride. May ride tonight, although it will be 100. Will definitely ride tomorrow with John.