in order of appearance: climbing, racing, climbing, eating e ho parlato italiano!

-so phil what did you do this weekend?

- wow, i dont know where to start! it was the best weekend of my life!

-what did you do that made it so amazing? tell me the best part first, the hardest part second and the biggest personal victory last.

- oh ok, what a good idea. thanks for the prompt b-c i wouldnt know where to start!
I RACED IN ITALY! ON MY BIKE! WITH OTHER ITALIAN RACERS!
so, on sunday Brian and i went to CAstel di Lama to see our friends, Fabio and Francesco, teams race. their team is called Eco-Service, after the garden services center that sponsors them. Brian and i were late to Cesco and Fabio's race, which started at 8:30am. but when we rolled up, the second race was starting, the faster race.
Cesco and Fabio told us that we could jump in and do a couple of laps, in THEIR race but we werent sure if it would be ok if we jumped into the faster race. but there was only one way to find out, so we jump matched pace with the peleton and jumped on to the back of the pack.
we did one lap with them. i stayed on brian's wheel for our one lap. i looked in the windows of a store we zipped passed, and saw my full UNH kit flash passed. IT WAS SO COOL! i looked down and we were doing about 30 mph.
at the begining of the second lap, i saw a guy come from left side, advance on Brian, grab his jersey pocket and pull himself up past brian and say something to him. then did something to another unregistered race-poacher.
not a minute later, a race official rolled up through the peleton pointing and yelling at those of us without numbers, "IN DIETRO!", which means "in the back!". at this point, brian and i didnt want to piss anybody off, so we just drifted out of the pack.
we werent advancing inthe pack, but i suppose we were too far up in the field for his taste. but it was the cooooolest thing!
as brian and i rode around the course alone, he said it was funny how racers in the back of the pack are always the ones the bitch the most about poachers or not working together; apparently its the same the world over b-c the racer that gave brian shit was all the way at the back and not even actually racing, just sucking wheels at the back.

-wow! thats really neat phil. so what was the hardest part of your weekend?

- yeah that would have to be the climbing Brian took me on. saturday, i had 15 minutes to get ready. Brian had an hour or so to ride before doing family things. anyways, we did a 45 minute climb; 185bpm average heart rate at 10 mph for ... like i said 45 minutes, straight!
that wasnt even the hardest part.
oh and a side note: Brian knows about townline sprints! thank god!
but on sunday, after the race, Brian and Tisiana invited my to an argotorismo (a home run little restaurant that makes all their food from their products) but the catch was that we had to ride their.
brian had pointed to the town while we were on the race course, which was deadflat. but the town was way up their. as a gauge, there was a promotional balloon high above the city for the grand opening of a walmart-like store.
so we started climbing on the same road i rode on with Vince and Bros, toward Teramo. we took a right toward Folignano. then climbed passed San Benedetto (which is different from S.B del Tronto) then on to Colle. as near as i can figure, with the help of MapMyRide .com, we climbed 1854 ft in 6.8 miles! my heartrate was between 185 and 195 bpm at about 5 mph!
we came around a hairpin toward the middle of the climb and there was retaining wall covered with really good graffiti for its entire length (at this point my perception of space, distance and time was completely warped), i said to Brian, "after this meal, brian, you and i are through, we're not friends anymore." this was between gasps.
as we reached Colle, the last maybe 50 meters was the steepest pitch i have ever and will ever ride my bike up; i have no idea how steep it was. the only i do know was that my back tire was losing traction and it felt like i was doing million pound squats. at the end, when we pulled into the ristorante/house's driveway/parkinglot, i saw that my heartrate was at 195 bpm, which was after i took a few moments to take off my helmet and glasses.
when we got to the top, and during our meal, we went out on the peoples balcony to see the view. we could see the sea and the mountains, Sibilini and Monte della Laga national parks. and wouldnt you believe it, we were higher than the 'walmart' balloon!
oh, earlier in the climb, brian asked i wanted a cookie which he had in a bag in his jersey i took a couple and handed them back. as he was digging for another cookie, he saw the town line to Folignano (maybe?) and went for it; with his mouth full of cookies and the bag in his hand! i think that one would have had to go the cameras, b-c neither of us won it out right.

-Wow, phil! youre an animal. and i think you need nicer friends that wont torture you like that. but i guess you wouldnt be a cyclist if you didnt know and hang around people like that. anyway, was there any personal victories this weekend?

- why yes there was, im glad you asked.
so in between the second course and the dessert, we went for a walk, brian, tisiana, the two girls and i. the two girls are 3 and 4 years old. Tisiana and the girls went back and brian and i started talking with a fellow named Andrea, who lived in the little town of Colle (little town means like 5 house, remember?). we got back to place and i sat down at my chair and didnt look at the seat before i sat, b-c who really needs to do that. but as near as i can figure the girls must have been playing around and dropped the dessert, Crema Cotta, Cooked Cream, on my chair.
when i went to change back into my cycling clothes, i saw that i had dessert all over the seat of my pants. "oh well. ill just have to take them to the hotel to have them washed," i said to myself.
so atfter a screaming descent down from Colle, i got home, showered, changed my sheets and gathered up my cycling clothes, sheets and pants and walked over to the hotel.
the receptionist was busy booking a room with a german couple, i think, so i told her i was not in a hurry (Non sono fretta). so a little later, before i handed her my bag of clothes and such, i told her that there was a funny story attached to the pants that were in the bag.
i told her that i went to and agriturismo with my friends brian and tisiana, who are married and their two little girls and tisiana's mother. the girls are 3 and 4 years old and must have been playing with thier desserts. and when i sat down in my chair, i didnt look and i sat in Crema Cotta.
but i told it to her ALL IN ITALIAN! then, she chuckled and said that my italian was very good. i said thank you. and was very excited ! so that was really cool b-c i am getting better at talking with people. Adam, the film professor here, speaks italian fairly well, and he and i were talking, and he said his theory, and what his father told him, was just blurt stuff out, b-c if you dont talk or are concerned with the correct conjugation, youll never get anywhere.
but for my little exchange with the receptionist, i have to admit that i practiced in my head. but still i had a conversation with an italian person and they understood me!

so all in all it was a pretty rocking weekend.

and another thing, every ride around here is better than the last. everytime i am taken to another town, by Brian or Vince or Roberto, its just mind boggling how lovely this place is. and if you go to once hill top town, you inevitably say, "Wow, this place is so beautiful! i cant believe these places exist!" but then the next town you go to gets the same reaction! its endless!

i just cant express how spectular this place is b-c you just have to see it and ride it and smell it and walk it. i cant even take pictures b-c the views are just too grand and defy you to capture them in pixel form. but just the same, since i forgot my camera yesterday, i will have to go back and do that hellish climb again inorder to take pictures.

so, what did you do this weekend?