Asciano & Siena

Contrast

Staying in Asciano with Izzy and Scott in a farmhouse about 2k out of town, surrounded by the rolling hills of Tuscany.
A visit to Siena flips the switch back to the buzz of a tourist town.
Siena is special to me because it is the finish town of one of my favourite professional bike races, Strade Bianche (the white roads). It covers 215k, dotted with punchy climbs and about a third on the white gravel roads. There are 11 climbs in the last 30k with the final into Siena. It’s only 0.7k at 9.1% gradient, with the road surface of ancient block cobbles before dropping into the Piazza del Campo for the finish line. It is ranked in the top 5 of one day Pro races. Tadej Pagačar, aka The Pog, and Slovenian cyclist mentioned in earlier posts, won here at the March 2024 edition.
We had left our car on the edge of town. As we are walking into the centre I recognise a stone arch here and then a street corner, followed by a steep pinch in the road. I had to pinch myself. I was actually following the parcours of the Strade. Cool! The finish in the piazza makes for a spectacular sporting arena, the bowl of Piazza del Campo overlooked by Palazzo Pubblico and crammed with cycling tiffosi. I got goosebump, and there wasn’t a bicycle in sight. I Imagine race day in March.Читать далее