Report by Mike G
Having done Chase The Sun UK south in 2021 with my brother-in-law, Tim, we thought we’d give Italy a go, along with his cousin Jim. So the three of us set off a couple of days before, flying to Bologna and then an hour and a half train journey to Cesenatico on the Adriatic coast. Reassemble the bikes then find a bar for the England v Denmark game.
Friday was a bike shake down to make sure everything worked followed by registration and depositing bike boxes/luggage for the transfer to the finish. As we walked around Cesenatico we marveled at the new and smooth road surfaces, which was put into context when we noticed all the Tour de France signage. Stage Two was due to depart from the same spot three days later.
After an early evening briefing we made the short walk to the Maritime Museum for the complimentary dinner (risotto and pasta) and beer.
At 5.25am on Saturday morning, 260 of us departed for the 280km ride to Tirrenia. Nestling in a bunch of around 25 cyclists, we zipped along the early flat section at 35kph, at which point Tim said, “at this rate we could be in by 6.30pm”. That was until we hit the first hill, a short sharp climb to 380m followed by Valico Tre Faggi (the oddly named Three Beech Trees Pass), a long 40km drag up to 930m. It was also at this point that the headwind picked up and which only got stronger as the day progressed. Expected arrival time was reassessed!
On the climb, we picked up a couple of cyclists from Guernsey who were bemoaning the lack of hills to train on at home and who were clearly suffering. We found out the following morning that one cramped up before the top and didn’t finish, and the other finally got in at 11.10pm.
The descent featured a series of tight hairpins over just 10km, and we were very glad we didn’t have to climb that side – which is exactly what the Tour de France riders did on the first stage from Florence to Rimini. I’m always in awe of the speed they achieve on that level of gradient.
We reached Florence after a further 50km, riding along the river Arno then having to fight our way through the crowds spilling out on to the road next to the Ponte Vecchio. Coupled with some typical Italian motorists, it made for a tricky passage, but we were soon through and on a flat 20km stretch to the final 420m climb.
Thereafter, we were in rolling Tuscan countryside until we neared Pisa, where we collected a local cyclist who guided us around the busiest streets, just catching a fleeting glimpse of the tower. The final 20km into Tirrenia was uneventful, and we arrived at 9.10pm with half an hour to spare before sunset to be met by our wives who had flown out earlier in the day.
Despite being 50km shorter, I found this quite a bit harder than Chase the Sun UK South, perhaps because my ageing legs are three years older, but also due to the headwind (which I gather also affected the CTS UK riders this year) and earlier tough climbs. But the countryside was spectacular and the organisation was spot on. It’s a bit of a faff getting bike boxes there and back, but absolutely worth it for the exhilaration of making that final turn to the finish line. And we raised over £10,000 for the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity.
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