Tony Morrongiello

By now we are getting tyred and today is going to be a tough one. Again looks easy in terms of distance at just 79km but we have 3080 mt to climb. On leaving La Marmora we are straight into the climb up to the Colle della Fauniera - 19 km and 1700 mt. We had been warned that there were some short but very steep ramps at 18% gradient. So steep and slippery that Sam actually fell off his bike. So we are totally knackered by the time we get to the top and we have a long descent, followed by a 10lm drag to Vinadio where the start of the Col de La Lmbarda awaits us. We loose Crhis on the descent and he ends up taking hte main road to Vinadio whilst Jeremy. Sam and I follow the course along a quiet lane on the side of the valley. The Lombarda is no joke. It is 20km long and climbs up almost 1500 mt. We stopped for lunch two thirds of the way up with nothing left in the legs. In total the climb will take over 2 hours to complete. After the descent down to Isola 2000, Jeremy, Sam and I decide to get into the van. Chris abidesby his EFI (every fckng inch) principle and rides a further 40 km to Auron. It is our second time at the Chalet de Auron hotel and hopefuly our last as nothing has changed in the last 10 years. The old owner is still obsessed about us leaving with our keys, service is poor and to add insult to injury there is no internet nor telephone.Read more