Every cassette is a climbing cassette!

i should be reading something about criminal justice but before i forget....

8 oclock roll out from Mozzano, which is 3 miles ffrom ascoli. i woke up at 7:30. shit!
didnt eat breakfast, pumped my tires, made a nutella sandwich, stuffed it into a bag, put it in my back pocket for later, and time-trial-ed over to Mozzano inorder to be on time, b-c Vince told me to.

i get there with plenty of time b-c the ride leader Bros (still not sure of his name) was late.
eeeee-asy roll out of 6-8 mph, through ascoli and toward Teramo on SS81 (find it on Google).
we past/went under Civitella del Tronto, which was beautiful. its a little village perched way high up on a cliff with shear faces on the side i rode past (i still have no idea which way N,S,E,W are).

[anachronistic insertion; bros, guido and the rest of the guys, except Vince, me and Vince's friend were older, maybe 45-50; vince me and friend were all 24]

so at this point i figured out who was who on the ride. there was the obligatory fat guy on a sicke bike (time ulteam, full record, fulcrum zeroes) with 50 pounds too much in the belly. there was an older fellow in the Mozzano kit (which i need to buy) (Bros was wearing the same kit) and he, lets call him Guido [b-c that was the model name of his bike, which means 'guide'] was very strong but holding back.

so Bros is on the front setting the pace on the climb up SS81, about 9-10mph, which was very comfortable. but then i got up next to him... and i hear the peanut gallery fire up behind me. (i should say that they called me Armstrong b.c i told them that i was an american student here for 3 months)
so i hear "cambioritmo" which means change of pace. so i just looked at Bros and smiled.

and attacked.
Bros, Vince and Guido stayed with me. Bros was tough but i blew him up, but the other two really had engines and we worked up the ... i guess mountain b-c everything is a mountain around here. then we let up when we got to a flatter section and shortly after Bros caught us.

i looked at him and said "BROS" very loudly and every one started laughing. so i am not sure if i butchered his name or was just busting his balls. however unitentioanl it was, i got a laugh.

we stopped at a bar and filled up out bottles, waited for the group and Guido got a coffee.

rolled back out, and headed up, always up, and to the west (i have a map open inanother window) toward Ripe. we rode the switch backs up Via Caserma in to the Monti della Laga.

we came to a flat section and when you looked to your right, east, you could see the Adriatc and Civitella way down below you! we topped out at about 1000-1100 meters! it was wild to see Civitella far below you. an hour before, you had to crane your neck just to see it on top of the cliff!

so we rode into the national park, and stopped again to wait for the group (Vince me and Guido). and they told me to yell "BROS" again when he showed up, but i couldnt... im a chicken.

cultural note: public water sources are everywhere! Roberto rides with one water bottle cage all through the summer b-c you can just ride from town to town and get water from running or spigot-ed fountains. its incredible. Brian and mines ride the day before, we rode up to this little group of maybe 5 houses, past a grandfather and his grandson playing cards, and filled up our bottles at thier "town" (remember 5 houses) well. and in the national park, there was a running fountain with ice cold, potable water (if you can physically reach it, you know like put you mouth to it, and its running, its potable).

so back to the ride; the group gets back to gether and they asked me what i studied. i told them inglese and giornilismo. then they said that i should interview Bros b-c he has a beautiful mind; which i think was a reference to the movie with russell crowe. so i went up to him and pantomimed interviewing hiom with my waterbottle as a microphone.

then we started descending. more swithbacks, always switchbacks. and it was cold on the other side of the mountain! we had been in the sun and sweating alot up the climbs and now, wow! it was cold and cloudy. but parcourse around here, you dont descend much before you start climbing agian. so my temperature moderated. and we kept climbing....

vince and i stayed shoulder to shoulder most of the rest of the day. he is really strong; at least as strong as i am b-c we were settingabout the same pace up the climbs but im not sure if he could have attacked and dropped me. but for most of the climbing i was at about 177 -190 bpm (maybe 1.5 hours out of the 3 hour ride).

No! we head in to the park more. from Guazzano to Macchia Del Sole, kindof past Leofara, then in to Valle Castellana! thats right, thats the route.

then it started to drizzle jsut after Valle Castellana. then Vince flatted. then the rain was alittle mroe steady for the 20km descent back to Ascoli! everyone was taking it REEEALLY slowly and i was wayout front. the roads arent as treacherous as i was led to believe, this section of road is wider, maintained better, and less fully blind switcbacks, curves really. and you just have to descend with your head; go where the water isnt and dont roast your brakes.

so a couple of times i waited and Vince and his bartender friend caught me. then they would go slow, and id ride away..... lather, rinse repeat.

so all in all, we did 52.09 miles at 15mph!!!!!!!! wow!
after i made a pile of tortellini in a ricotta and sauteèd red pepper and tomato sauce and slept for about 2 hours b-c i was WIPED out!

then sundays ride got rained out. theonly pictures i have are of the food i ate afterwards b-c the ziploc bag i keep my camera in was holding my nutella sandwich which i never ate. oops.
i'll try to do the same ride again and take pictures b-c it was just a killer ride.