90 kilometers, 3000 meters vertical
While checking out we are greeted by a big mountain dog in the hotel lobby. He was quite disinterested in us until his owner came out; he also barked at a couple of other leaving guests.
The first climb of three of the day is up Tre Cime, a famous hilltop finish used often in the Tour of Italy. John warned us it would be nasty, off the charts (hors Categorie or HC in bike geek speak). We have a group that gets a 12 minutes head start. We are immediately going up a 16% grade. Finally it stops and we level off and actually descend for a bit. We pass through a parking barrier where fees are collected from visitors of the top. There is no road to the other side, the only people going to the top are hikers, motorcyclists, and bicyclists like ourselves. The climb was brutal, the scenery spectacular. I was zig zagging across the road to make the climb less steep, I will shamelessly admit - it actually helped me because the easier effort gave me a rest. Here is the cloud shrouded top - Google 'Tre Clime' for non cloud version.
We descend then our next climb up Passo di Giao, where we'll have lunch. Nice sculpture at the top
After a Tostone sandwich (grilled ham and cheese), we descend to our last climb of the day, Passo Fedaia. One stretch of the climb I learn later is called the Graveyard of Champions, or Valley of Death. It was a straight shot up this road at an unforgiving pitch. Finally near the top then a 15% grade sign. Ugh. We regroup then descend to see goats!
We buzz by them then it starts to dump rain on us. The rain combined with tunnels, limited braking power, hairpin turns, oncoming traffic, cold fingers, and dim lighting make for an interesting descent. We pull into the hotel where of course it is not raining.
Felt much better today, my average heart rate was again lower than yesterday. We stay here for two nights, we have a short 60 kilometers with 1800 meter climbing ride on the Sella Ronda circuit tomorrow.
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