Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Fun, short ride close to home with lots of climbing.

Another busy day, as Emily and I met some folks who have been here 9 years on a visa the same as ours.  We collected information about what we need to do to stay legal, and a number of other things of importance to us as expats.  So, I started with only a couple of hours available, as we planned on attending a lecture at Stanford here in Florence on Leonardo, Brunelleschi, and the development of machines.  It was cold and cloudy, and the forecast called for 50% chance of showers, so I decided to stay close to home.  I climbed up Via Bolognese to the tiny road to Cercina.  I turned toward Cercina and as always enjoyed the contouring / climbing road through Cercina to the church above the town, which is the high point of the roads in this area.  I took the far right option there for a wonderful descent.  I have been getting to know this descent quite well, and it has become a favorite.

At the base, I turned left, then left again, and climbed back up to the church above Cercina.  I checked it and it climbs 330 vertical meters in right around 3.4 kilometers, averaging around 10% grade.  It certainly felt that way today.  From the top, I descended again, this time on the second from the farthest right option.  A fun descent, quite steep in places, but now as nice as the first road.  At the bottom of this descent, I take a road that brings you in right above the Carriege complex, then ride the main roads home.  Another fun ride.  The summary is:  20.3 miles in 1:42 rolling time for an average speed of 11.8 mph with 2400 vertical feet climbed at an average temperature of 46.  Ciao!



A couple of views of the road and area on the way to Cercina from Via Bolognese.


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