Ciao amici.
A low pressure area has stalled over Europe giving the Scandanavians 30° temperatures and cooling things of in the south. Saturday was 21° and Sunday 15° (that's cold) and overcast. It's expected to move on mid week and improve the situation for our big ride. I managed some wind-up training. On Saturday after my son's play and before the wine tasting I squeezed in 70k on my circuit. Two laps @ 29.1 avg and one lap @ 26. About 1000m climbing. I still have some issues with my new gears. I took up some slack and oiled the stiff link which improved shifting and climbing, but its still not perfect like my old ultegra. Sunday was looking rough but in the end I manged to go for a 115k ride with lots of climbing. Avg speed 24.4. About 1700m of vertical. After 90k my back was starting to get sore, frequent standing up helped a little. I was pretty bagged at the end but it felt good. The single water bottle is a problem. 4:30 on a half liter of water is harsh. I stopped at my favorite fountain, but it was dry.
I can't wait to start, it is going to be a blast.
Sud