2019 Tour of Italy – Days 9 – 11
Our final destination on Tour is the beautiful town of Valdobbiadene. It’s in the province of Treviso, Veneto, Italy and is one of the best wine regions on the planet. Especially if you like Prosecco. In fact the region between Valdobbiadene and Conegliano is protected under Italian Wine Law (yes it’s a thing) and only grapes from this region may carry the symbol that represents the best Prosecco in the world. Okay enough about wine.
Our travel day for Bormio was hampered by poor weather, but we made it across the country safe and sound. Bikes rebuilt and it was time to ride. Nope. Hold that thought the weather had set in for a couple of hours. Our tourists decided to explore this beautiful and picturesque town. From art galleries to beautiful gardens, framed by fields of vineyards. Sorry back on the wine again. Today we would not get a ride in, so it was out for dinner & perhaps a change from pizza.
What a beautiful spot for a few days riding 
On the road to Prosecco
We awoke the following day to grey and damp skies. From early morning, thunderstorms had come into the region. We had planned to complete the monster Monte Grappa ride. 100km taking in the 20km Monte Grappa climb, using the route up that the 2014 Giro used for their penultimate stage, won by Nairo Quintana. However the weather would be against us and it would not be on the programme today. Again some more exploring, catching up on the outside world or just doing a little washing were the morning activities, while we waited for clear skies. During a quick chat with our liaison at reception, she revealed this was the worst April/May weather in living history in the region. Hmmm, well there are something even we can’t control. So we had a breakfast Prosecco to start the day.
Lunch time arrived and the skies had cleared. Time for a bit of a run along our world championship circuit. Good chance to stretch the legs a little and for those looking for a little more Monte Cesen beckoned behind our accommodation. There were still thunderstorms scheduled in the afternoon, so unless some of the threatening clouds disappeared that may be on hold until the next day. The group had worked hard to now and the bodies were growing a little weary. We headed toward Follina before rain ahead of us in the valley, suggested we had reached a good point to turn around and head back to Valdobbiadene.
By the time we reached the first turn off to Monte Cesen, we decided to have a look when we returned to the accomm. The next 7km run into town is some of the best world championship road racing profile for punters. It’s a series of rolling hills, a couple of longer climbs with a 3.5km descent through towns back into Valdobbiadene. It’s a real buzz. Back in town we eventually regrouped (someone punctured outside the 3km) and the four that were feeling good were taken up Monte Cesen by Guide Dale. It’s a tough climb and they toughed it out. Others decided to look for somewhere to find a drink.
Our dinner spot this night is a real highlight for the Tour. Situated on the top of a climb, looking back over the valley and across toward Monte Grappa, is one of the most picturesque spots we have seen. One of our tourists even commented they will be bringing their wife back here. Another fantastic meal, enjoyed by all and time to head home for an exciting day’s riding tomorrow.
Our final full day on tour was a great day. Firstly, the sun was shining and the temperature was mid-20’s by the time we rolled out at 9:30am. The group were definitely a little weary today. The pace was gentle as we made our way toward our lunch destination at Passo San Boldo. Our tourists were riding the route that would be used later in the Giro this year. We stopped for a quick coffee stop on the way, as the route up San Boldo was closed in the morning for an event that was being used to test it for readiness of the race in 5 days-time.
Back on the road we had a 3km ride to our turn off town and the commencement of the climb. Passo San Boldo is only short at under 6km, but it is a spectacular bit of road. The road was built in 1918 at the end of the first World War. This pass was considered a strategically important connection of the two valleys on either side of the pass. The army used prisoners of war, recruited the local elderly, woman and children and they worked in three shifts to complete this amazing project 100 days. It’s a serious of 18 turns, the last 5 of which as situated in tunnels dug out of the mountain side. Our tourists were blown away.
We stopped for lunch at a lovely little restaurant at the top of the pass. A hearty lunch, with some having Beef cheek, some hearty barley soup and of course a glass of local vino. An easy roll back as we tried to keep the group together. There is a long climb back up to the town of Combai, which naturally splits the group, but once we regrouped we headed for home. We paused at the commencement of the Monte Cesen, allowing those that wanted to do the climb in reverse, to tackle it. It’s a tough long grind and there were only three takers. The others were happy to return, pack bikes and have a pre-dinner prosecco.
Speaking of dinner, while not as strong as the previous night’s dinner, we still had a lovely final dinner with our very appreciative tour groups. They explained how much of a ball they had on tour and started considering some of the other options for tours in the future. It’s always satisfying to get such great feedback on our tours. So that’s a wrap from Italy. We had an absolute ball with this group, and it will be tough to top them to be honest. We hope you have enjoyed our blog and would love to join us in Itally in 2020.
