I’ve been so busy that I only just got a chance to upload these pics from a month ago. It was a foggy morning, but it cleared up as I climbed, and then I had a nice sunny descent and return trip.

This was already part of the way down, but it was the first decent view as the trees opened up.

Looking down into the valley of the river Nure from the Bagnolo pass

I then criss-crossed that river, including via this old railway bridge. The railway line was closed decades ago, but some of it has been turned into cycle paths, which is something.

Crossing the old railway bridge at Ponte dell'Olio

Riding in the flat plain isn’t that scenic, but some of the villages are quite pretty.

Village church and castle

I like these out-and-back rides. This one was just shy of 70km, over two and a half hours, which is not shabby given the amount of climbing involved. My fitness has also increased to the point that time is the limiting factor, not my legs — which is its own frustration, but I will try to work on that.

🚵️ 10:1 climb at 8 km/h, then cracked 60 km/h on half the gradient on the way back down. Maybe I should ride this loop in reverse next time! Also it would be far less stressful to hit that mid-corner patch of gravel while climbing up; it’s a bit spicy when both wheels lose traction downhill at that sort of speed. All you can do is ride it out and hope you can keep your balance… and of course that you don’t run out of road or meet a car coming the other way. #cycling

Me on Mastodon

This is the advantage of being a big dude: I can boss the bike around a bit beyond the point that skill and proper placement would get me to alone. Of course if I do get it wrong when operating in that zone, the results are spectacularly catastrophic!

Me on Mastodon

I did get a spectacularly muddy MTB ride in last weekend, resulting in splatters right to the top of my helmet — and also the first time my Apple Watch suggested a rating of “All Out” for a workout! But this might be it for the year, as we are hosting Christmas Eve this year, so I doubt I’ll be able to sneak out before that, and then after that I am focused on skiing and snowboarding. But that’s where all that leg work pays off: let’s see if I can carve harder than last year!