Riding in Tuscany March 2013

Riding in Tuscany March 2013

The weather in Tuscany is variable. In August it gets freaking hot - almost unbearable - the last couple of years it has been consistently over 40C for the whole month, without any rain. And yet, the area is a beautiful and green landscape - how can that be? It's simple really - there is a lot of rain. Around this time of year we have had quite a bit of snow, and lots and lots of rain. Normally up until the end of April the clouds hit the Tuscan hills (two significant mountains over 1750m and plenty of smaller mountains) and the rain cascades down. Very fertile land.

Here's a little look at one of my rides - look at that beastly climb and the height you can pick up!

In between the times of rain, we have sun. It really is beautiful this time of year, and you can see beyond the usual hedges and tree-lined roads and discover what is behind. Despite being cold and frosty in the mornings it can be as warm as 15C during the days.

So, for the past few weeks I have done well to find some beautiful time to ride the bike. It really is one of the most beautiful, safe, clean-roaded place to ride in the world, and I intend to make every advantage of it that I can. Here are some pictures of riding in Castelnuovo Beradenga and Gaoile in Chianti.

In fact, on 10th March I managed to squeeze in a century ride (100 miles) in short sleeves and short legs (plus compression socks!) and in the same time look at the snow in Norfolk. Mwah hah hah :) This week I have managed over 16 hours of riding / and ok some of that has been through ice and lots and lots of rain, but overall the roads are great, the cars very forgiving, and the weather really good.

And that weather is nothing compared to what I encountered in Boston a couple of weeks ago - they had a huge snowstorm that dumped about 3 feet of snow in a day - mind you, they cleaned it very well and I was amazed to see how many "normal" people were cycling everywhere!

One thing I do regret is not investing in an Italian bike. I bought a very nice second Scott Addict SL which I do like very much, but part of me, and a very big part of me, regrets that I didn't dive in and get some pimp ass Italian bike - a Pinarello, a Bianchi, a Cipollini, a Daccordi etc. Italian design is great, and although I think that Italian bike design slumped in the late 90s and early 2000s I think they are back strong nowadays. Sadly little full manufacture is still done in Italy - Daccordi which I visited recently and had the opportunity to see the manufacturing floor - real beautiful old school manufacture for carbon designs, and Cipollini - which I think just look stunning.

Bianchi has to be the classic Italian bike manufacturer - in fact Edoardo Bianchi SpA is the oldest bike manufacture in the world, dating from 1885 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bianchi_Bicycles). The classic light blue bikes (the colour is actually called "celeste" - is instantly recognised world wide. So, I have the Scott and I love it. I cannot really justify the purchase of a new Italian bike - all that I own Italian is some kit - a helmet, Cuore Italiano bib tights, Castelli gloves, a couple of Italian tops, a retro wool top, and of course my classic Vittoria gold cycling shoes which look cool but are actually pretty darn uncomfortable.

I have been picking up a couple of items recently to redress this balance though. The first was my 1973 (great year!) Bianchi that has been converted into a single speed contropedale (back-pedal brake), with a Brooks saddle, a wooden handlebar (manubrio - I also picked up a second of these from Italian eBay for future conversions), a classic 1949 "B" chainring (guranitura) (I also picked up a spare one of these for future conversions!) and some beautiful new wooden wheels - made by www.cbita.it. It really is a work of art.

Wooden wheels were all that existed many years in the past - all racing was done with wood and they are now very highly prized. Of course, like carbon spokes they have a spectacular failure mode, so are still used sometime on track racing, but not for casual riding. In fact, I have not yet properly ridden the Bianchi as I only want to take it out in perfectly dry conditions!

I am fascinated by steel bikes, my carbon bike is amazing, and I still ride my alloy (plus carbon fork) Claud Butler Roubaix all the time for commuting, but steel is supposed to be the bomb. For that reason, I have picked up a couple of Bianchi frames so that I can in the future make my homage to Italian bikes.

Of course, I am still tempted by the other bikes. A friend recently bought a Daccordi Tuono and it is a really lovely bike and the owners (the whole family are involved including the daughter who is in marketing) were just wonderful people. The Pinarellos are just beautiful, and of course ridden by Team Sky and Bradley Wiggins, and the advertising for Cippolini is as crazy as is the man himself.

Daccordi Tuono 2013

Pinarello Graal

Cipollini Bond

And of course, I recently converted my old Eroica Peugeot into an Italian colour-schemed fixie - a labour of love, and a nod towards the Italians, but nothing Italian on that bike sadly. Still looks nice though!

But for now, I will keep with my Scott!

(Actually - this is a very poor photo and breaking several laws of cycling photography in the eyes of the velominati - rule 26 (http://www.velominati.com/the-rules/) taken from the wrong side so that the chainset cannot be seen, pedals at the wrong angle, etc etc, but it's ok)