After class yesterday, I picked up the bike. An hour or so of miscellaneous, registration, manuals, etc., and I was on my way home with a sexy new machine. I am so excited. I had some things to transfer from the old bike, getting suited up, etc., then I was finally off on the Willier. Well, the old bike was around 14 years old, with updates around 6 years ago, but they have certainly made some improvements in the meantime. I was expecting the old titanium frame to perhaps be more comfortable, but no, the new frame and set up - it is made for long rides and some comfort - was just super. The Shimano Di2 Ultegra was basically flawless. It is easy to use, just a tap on the lever / switch, and the gear is changed. The front derailleur automatically trims based on the rear cassette position. Really, flawless. I have been on Campy for the last 14 years, both bikes, and having the quiet of the Shimano gruppo is really nice. I liked the new bars, in particular the position it puts you in when you are in the drops, and the brake lever is right there, no reach needed with the finger. As you can tell, I am totally stoked.
I rode up Via Bolognese to Pratolino, which has a steep section at 10 to 15% for around 400 vertical, and I do miss my 29, as the highest they had was a 28, and there is a difference. It still climbed really well, and I will just have to be a little stronger. From Pratolino, I climbed to the junction for Monte Scenario / Bivigliano / L'Olmo, and turned off toward L'Olmo. I hooked up with the road to Fiesole, then rode down through Fiesole and took one of the back ways from San Domenico to Piazza della Cure. The bike handled really well on the descent, and I carried a fair amount of speed without even realizing it. Enough gushing - It is rainy today, and predicted to be the same for a couple of days, so this may be the only post for a while, we will see what the weather does. The summary is: 18.8 miles in 1:29 rolling time for an average speed of 12.6 mph, with 2150 vertical feet climbed at an average temperature of 53. Nice weather, sweet ride, super fun new bike. The garmin link is:
In the apartment pre-ride.
View toward L'Olmo from the junction.
The road toward San Jacopino.
Just had to take a shot of the bike by this wall.
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