Immediately at the start you hit the steepest part of the climb- 1.3 km of 12.5% average gradient, with stretches above 15%. I stood for most of this, which was good because I hadn't stretched and warmed my muscles. After you pass Santuario di Madonna del Monte, the grade lessens somewhat and you can catch your breath. The next 8 km to Rifugio Bornass average 5.4%, with several sections of 8-9%. Not bad at all.
The wintery forest is pleasant to ride through at first, then after crossing Torrente Ossena, the hillside opens up and is exposed to full sun. Here I found quite a lot of Erica (heather) in bloom. It's especially colorful given the dead grass otherwise covering everything.
At Rifugio Bornass (a hotel and restaurant at 767 meters) you join the newly paved main road from Piancavallo to Aviano. Beautiful road with lots of curves- feels like you're flying!
At the bottom, I turned left and headed up Via Pedemontane toward Giais. The rolling hills felt easy, and I made it home in time to take the pups for a walk before leaving for the appointment.
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| Madonna del Monte |
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| Erica (heather) in bloom |
Close up of erica blooms
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| Madonna del Monte with Pala Fontana (1637 meters) in background |
Map of the ride
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| The grade |
At 75.7 kph are you pumping, coasting, or on the brakes a bit? (That might be more than my nerves could take.)
ReplyDeleteThat's coasting (having already spun out top gear), in an aero tuck, whipping through the chicanes hollering "Yee-haw!"
ReplyDelete