Stage 3 -- September 5, 2012: Real Dolomiti!

124 miles, 15,912 feet -- Fiera Di Primero to Chiaulis
Strava link: http://app.strava.com/rides/20951379#z18450|18814

We started early and knew we were getting into the real Dolomites now ... not just the classic geology, but the steep passes as well. I could not believe my luck after having a giant room to myself and getting a great night sleep after a quality meal ... real Dolomiti in all respects!

First up was the Passo Cereda, 8km at 9%, where the first few km are relatively flat .... I had a decent rhythm and climbed with Ole, who would often be near when he was "slumming" it on a climb ....

 

Ole, Ole, Ole!

 

 

Next up ... descent, bump, descent, and then the Passo Duran, a stiff climb of 12.5km -- I ran out of water (a recurring theme) and found out Nuun tablets do not agree with me towards the top. I had a good climb in all, though. Geneva Rob caught and dropped me on the descent, allowed me to yo-yo and then took off as usual ...

 

 

The weather held over the Cibiana and the Mauria as I rode more or less solo ...

 



After that, it got interesting ... another 10km climb at about 9%, then we were tasked with descending a series of tunnels with wet cobblestones (nice cobbles) through dramatic scenery. Not very good for torn thumb ligaments, though.

 

 

Here is Phil & Co. riding up the tunnel section in a Rapha clip, fwiw:

http://www.rapha.cc/everything-and-nothing/?cm_mmc=email-_-190912-_-img-_-feature



Finally, we entered a wooded section reminiscent of Sonoma with its narrow wooded switchbacks, broken pavement bordering on unpaved, and little traffic -- then we hit a 20% sign and got a taste of the steepness to come (1-2km of steep with some 18% sections, like the first steep section on King Ridge). I felt good but, in an ominous turn, my back was quite sore since I could not pull on the bars with my injured left hand.

To put things in perspective, I was thrilled to have made it three days, the hand was actually getting better if still painful, and the Zonclan and an epic stage were on tap for tomorrow ... lodging for the day was much more basic than the night before, but we were here for the climb from hell, not vacation paradise!