[CR]L'Eroica 2006 (long)

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Date: Wed, 4 Oct 2006 09:22:19 +0200
From: "Rita Van Dingenen" <rvandingenen@gmail.com>
To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
Subject: [CR]L'Eroica 2006 (long)

Back home from my first l'Eroica experience, and it was a wonderful one! First surprise already on Friday afternoon when I found Bob Freitas' business card on our parked car (with bikes on the roof) in Gaiole. Although we have never met before, Bob apparently had recognized my bike from the pics on wooljersey and had left a nice message for me\u2026 Second surprise the same evening, when Jan and I had dinner with our Italian friends in the Gaiole pizzeria, where the CR gang appeared to have their pizza as well\u2026 Although I had never seen any of them before, it was not that difficult to identify them, in particular Bob with his Faema shirt and grey moustache ;-) It was really nice to see you guys live!

On Saturday morning we first went to the exposition and market (where I bought a set of handlebar bottle holders with water bottles for my Legnano), and made a short ride to Radda where we had lunch outside. We saw many other 'heroic' cyclists around who where taking pictures of our bikes, asking questions, or just showing thumbs up. Paolo's 30ies Bianchi with his home-made 'Cambio Fraguglia' drew a lot of attention. Weather was really beautiful and very promising for the 'big day'. On the way back to Gaiole we followed the Eroica signs and I experienced my first 'sterrato' (dirt road), without too many difficulties, but according to Paolo this was an easy one compared to what he had explored the days before.

Back in Gaiole we got our race numbers, control card with roadbook for the 135 km, and got back home early. When checking the indications for the 'percorso', it appeared that it deviated quite a lot from the circuit that was sent out by e-mail after the registration. At least a very steep uphill part after Pianella had been cut out\u2026 the better for us! But much of Paolo's explorations in the previous days appeared to be useless now.

On Sunday we got up at 5:00 am, had breakfast and drove down to Gaiole by car to the start. We were 3 cyclists (my husband Jan, our Italian team mate Paolo and myself), dressed in original old wool jerseys and shorts from our club GS EUR Malgesso. Paolo's wife Iris followed with their 4 wheel drive car, with on board a set of tools, a good pump, and plenty of spare sewups. Got our start stamp at 6:45, and off we went. The first half hour we were driving in the dark, but we were in a group with many riders who had lights on their bike, so this was no problem.

Everything went very smooth, until the first steep descent on a white road with loose gravel where I couldn't control the bike anymore in a curve and I slipped. Fortunately without any significant damage for me and (luckily!) my Legnano. It's amazing how fast one learns how to ride on the gravel. After the second gravel stretch I had learnt just to look far enough ahead, while imagining I was riding on asphalt. I still had the bike slipping every now and then, but was able to keep it under control, and I didn't have to put feet on the ground anymore, at least not for that reason. Until the second ristoro in Asciano we had been able to make all climbs on the bike. But there started the most memorable part of the 135km circuit: the climb to Monte delle Sante Marie\u2026 right after lunch, stomach filled, temperature rising to 30°C, starting uphill on a gravel road. Within the 1st km, the road turns to the left, and there you're looking up at an impressive 'wall'. Almost everyone I saw there had to walk, except mountain bike riders, and my amazing husband who managed to pull his 42-25 gear on this 23% steep part. I had to walk 3 times in total before reaching the 'Monte delle S. Marie' sign, but also managed to stay on the bike on other steep stretches where others were walking. Heartbeat went well over 180 BPM a couple of times, and I was suffering from sweat dripping into my eyes. It took us about 45 minutes to get from Asciano to the Monte Marie top, wich is 6.5 km distance. Jan made it without having to walk at all, very impressive. I was really exhausted after that climb, I don't think I have ever made such a physical effort before. Luckily, the worst part was over now, and the remainder of the course was actually a pleasant ride to the finish (well, compared to what we had left behind us). We arrived in Gaiole at 15:50, after we had realized that the section from Radda to Gaiole which we had explored the day before, was not part of our circuit, it was only in the 200 km! So we had been on the way for 9 hours, of which we had been riding 7 hours, which makes a cycling average speed of about 19 km/h. We made 3 rather long stops at the food supply & control posts (also because we were helping other riders with their technical problems), and some extra ones to get food and drinks from our own car. Apart from Paolo's two punctures near Radi (the second one immediately after the first one due to a bad quality sewup) we had experienced no technical problems at all. Our assistance car mainly served other participants in difficulties. Mainly people looking for a good pump after replacing a tire, one bottom bracket that had to be fixed, and one passenger taken on board who had ruined his rear derailleur and a couple of spokes, and could not continue at all. The poor guy would otherwise have had to wait for the 'sweep truck' to pass at the end to get back to Gaiole. More people in difficulty tried to get a lift but the car couldn't transport more bikes and people\u2026

I have never been so tired after a 135 km ride, but it was an unforgettable experience. L'Eroica can't be compared to anything else. I have ridden a number of 'Granfondo's' with a modern lightweight racing bike which I enjoyed very much, but l'Eroica has so many extra dimensions. The combination of intensive sport with passion for historical races and material, including the work and preparations to prepare the 'heroic' bikes, the solidarity during the race in case of technical problems, and mutual cheering on the steep stretches, the wonderful scenery (although you can't really fully appreciate the environment when you have to keep your eyes on the gravel road in a descent) makes it a most wonderful experience. I will come back, who knows, for the 200 km next time?

(I saved a Gmap-Pedometer route of the Monte delle Sante Marie climb on http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=474307. You can see the high resolution sat images, and the vertical cross section of the climb). I will post some pictures on wooljersey in teh coming days.

Rita Van Dingenen, Besozzo (VA)
Italy