Have you ever bicycled 40 miles in one day? Probably not. People that do this on a regular basis require blood transfusions. However, we managed a once-off and pedaled that far from Siena to Montalcino. It was only supposed to be 38 miles, but we got lost once. Montalcino was just full of wine snobby tourists, so we limped out first thing in the morning.
We hired bikes from a dark, old bike shop in Siena from a man that spoke no English and required no payment or collateral. After 40-mile day one, Forrest reassessed our plans and curtailed the route.
Nonetheless, over 4 days, we pedaled more than 200 kilometers, including most of the "L'Eroica" bike race course. Our roads were paved and dirt, through olive groves and vineyards. Our beds were in rooms above wine shops in small medieval towns-- always on the tops of hills. These Tuscans have got hills down.
Slowing our roll to 20-30 miles days was a vast improvement. We survived without transfusions and will definitely travel this way again.
1 comment:
I cannot imagine cycling 40 miles through Tuscany with the many hills and uneven paths, especially through those medieval villages! Massimo and I were winded walking through the streets and down to Sienna's Piazza del Campo. We were just happy that one, we didn't get hit by a scooter and two, there was a cafe open so we could sit for an espresso to give us energy to walk back up!
Post a Comment