MS Global -- Stage 4

The morning came a bit too soon for some of us, as we spent a bit of time at a street festival near the hotel last night. There were bands playing on corners and beer gardens along the way. Tons of people, and good American rock music sung by Italians...fun.

But today was a blast, too. It started off on a good note, as many Global-ites were thrilled to find that there were scrambled eggs in the breakfast buffet at our new hotel here. Usually, there is a variety of cereals, yogurt, fruit, breads, and what Americans would call lunchmeats -- ham, salami, liverwurst -- and a bunch of different kinds of cheeses. Oh, pastries and plenty of coffee, too. But today, there were scrambled eggs....they had to fix more fast as we kept depleting their supply.

Before the ride, we met for a group photo which is always fun. I don't have a copy yet, but hopefully can post one in a wrap-up post when I get back to the States. After the photo, I left with the second group -- my normal group -- and we headed out for yet another great day of riding. Great weather and a couple of fun climbs with great descents.

We casually rode out of the city, and within about 10-15 kilometers, began climbing what the ride leaders called, "The Wall." And believe me, it was like a wall. It went for 2 kilometers and the average grade was 14% -- THE AVERAGE GRADE WAS 14%. It was TOUGH. There were a few points where I doubted I could make it up without stopping to rest, but each time I felt like doing that, I thought of Lisa and how she has to ride through all of her MS complications and pain, and I managed to keep turning the pedals over. I can't explain the intensity of that feeling...I feel like I'm pushing myself to my physical limits, and then I think of Lisa and what she endures all the time (I call these "Lisa Moments"), and I'm overcome with a combination of powerful feelings: being grateful that I have my health and fitness, feeling great love for Lisa and her family, and wanting Lisa to continue to have the strength she needs to keep battling MS. Those are just a few of the things I feel and think at those moments.

Back to the climb...I had a great massage yesterday from one of the soigneurs, Christina (Spain), and thank goodness, as my lower back was in for another trying day with the climbing. This wall was largely switchbacks that wound up through apple orchards just above a little village -- gorgeous, but not much time to enjoy the view as I was too busy trying to stay upright and headed forward!

After the wall, we did some easier climbing for a bit, and then hit the first big pass of the day, Passo Palade. After the 14% wall, it seemed fairly easy, though it was long and steady, too -- about 12 kilometers with an elevation gain of 800 meters. This is a view along the way.

At the top of the pass, we had lunch, and, of course, cappuccino -- well, I had hot chocolate, but many others had cappuccino.

And today seems like a good day to show you some more of the faces of MS Global 2007. The first pic is Jim and Vivian Turner and Patti Columbus, all of Southern California, who I've become friends with since we all met last year at MS Global. They're at lunch here on Passo Palade.

Also at the lunch stop: Jack, Jimmy D., and Tammy (my roommate here), who all live in Fort Collins. Those of you who received my fundraising letter know that Jimmy D. (for Dunlap) is one of the riders with us who has MS. He is a former racer, and now promotes races. And he's an amazing rider. He has had a very rough year with some significant time in the hospital with some particularly bad flares, but has been on new medication for the last three weeks, and has really improved. And he's once again kicking everyone's arse on the climbs. He rides with the fastest group each day and is doing great. He's quite an inspiration.

After lunch, we did a long fun descent down Passo Palade, and then we climbed the last pass of the day, Passo Mendola. At the top, we all gathered again, and here are a few more shots of the faces of Global there.

This is Ahmad, a photographer for the Rocky Mountain News in Denver, and he's one of our ride leaders. He doesn't usually spend his time at rest stops like this, but he had a knee injury shortly before the trip, and all the climbing has irritated it. He stopped riding yesterday and won't get to ride anymore while here, so he's been helping out the staff in the support vehicles.

Since Ahmad can't ride, Claus, our mechanic from Denmark, is acting as a ride leader in his place. He does things like the Ironman triathlons, so he's plenty fit for it. I rode with him up most of the last climb today.

Me, Jimmy D., and Karen "lil Hudie" Hudak simply enjoying each other's company.

I have been forgetting to take pics of the signs at the top of passes, but remembered this one...

Our last descent of the day was next, and it was long, windy (as in curvy), and really fun. I haven't mentioned yet how amazing the roads are here. They're in incredibly good shape, especially considering we've mainly been riding high in the mountains. They're smooth and it's almost as though they were designed for cyclists, as the curves are perfect for descending. I'm not the strongest descender, and I've been loving them. On the way down this one, we stopped to take pics of the view. This is Michelle and me -- we not only climb at roughly the same pace, but we also descend at nearly the same speed, so it continues to be fun riding with her.

At the bottom of the descent, we regrouped outside a beautiful old cemetery on the edge of Bolzano.

Michelle, Larry (her boyfriend and a ride leader), Claus and I were the last to take off from here, and we headed down into Bolzano on our own. We ended up getting a bit lost...this is Larry and Claus trying to radio for directions...

But, hey, if you have to get lost, I can't think of a better place to do it than in the vineyards and orchards outside Bolzano!

After riding around the city a bit and asking for directions from a few people, Claus and Larry got us back to the hotel -- all safe and sound. Yet another amazing day on the bikes.

80 kilometers / 1,970 meters elevation gain / 1 wall and 2 passes

Usually we have dinner as a group, but tonight we were on our own. I went to dinner with Karen, Pat, Patti and husband Paul, and Christina, and we went to a brew pub with delicious food.

Patti, Paul, and I shared this - "The Happy Rustic":

It consisted of dumplings, roasted tomatoes, broiled chicken, ribs, sausages with sauerkraut, and garlic bread. And, yes, we had dessert, too; we all shared homemade vanilla ice cream with hot raspberries, apple streudel, and cherry yeast cake. Oh yeah...we'll have the energy needed to do the grandaddy of all climbs tomorrow:

Passo Stelvio

Ciao!

MS Global -- Stage 3

Today was a much easier day on the bike than yesterday. In addition to packing our bags for transfer to Bolzano, we all needed some "active recovery," so we did one "little" climb (I've learned that "little" here does not translate literally), Passo Costalunga, and the rest of the ride was a long descent.

First, outside the hotel in Canazei, we said goodbye to our incredibly special fan club, Sue and Bill Harper. They are originally from England and live in France now. Their son, Duncan (aka "Donut"), is a ride leader, but couldn't make it this year because he's in Moscow learning Russian or something of that sort for work. They came along for part of the week to cheer us on along the road anyway, and yesterday, their encouragement TRULY helped me make those last few switchbacks up Passo Fedaia. At one point, Sue literally ran alongside me, clapping and cheering. She had no trouble keeping up with me on the 15-23% grade.

We left Canazei and did some nice warm-up before beginning the only climb of the day. It was a steep climb, but my group took it at a medium clip, and we made it to the top in no time. We then began the descent, and halfway down, stopped for cappuccino at a little cafe. The countryside was beautiful with a lot of hiking trails apparently, as we saw this gentleman from Germany who was headed out to trek with friends. He's posing here with Gord, who works for EMD Serono in California, again, a big sponsor of MS Global.

We continued on the descent and I was often breathless from the beauty of the scenery as we dropped down closer and closer to Bolzano.

Tammy, Michelle, and I took a moment on the way down to pose for a "Global biker chick" pic. If I haven't mentioned it before, Tammy and Michelle are both HAMMERS, and it takes everything I have to stay on their wheels when we climb. They often drop me. And Tammy got hit by a car about three weeks before we got here...she still kicks my arse!

We arrived at our new digs in Bolzano, a little city whose name I simply like to say. There was a wedding reception at our hotel when we all rode in, and I fear our smelly spandex-clad biker bodies may have been a bit offensive as we found seats in the outdoor restaurant to have some lunch. We arrived around 1:00 but couldn't check in until about 2:30, so it's all we could do. Eh, a few stinky cyclists aren't going to hurt anything if it's really meant to be! A couple shots of the outside of the hotel -- gorgeous.

Aaaahhhh...an easy day with a lovely city at the end. Good dinner, great company, a walk down cobbled streets to a festival with live music and good beer. This is living.

60 kilometers / 630 meters climbed / 1500+ meters descended / 1 hot chocolate drank

Tomorrow, some more climbing out of Bolzano. Ciao!

MS Global -- Stage 2

Couldn't get online last night, so going to start with a post on yesterday's ride (Friday, September 7)

Epic. A fitting word that I may overuse over the course of these MS Global blog entries.
Today...was EPIC.

If there was a theme, it was

"The Tour de France ain't got NOTHIN' on the Giro."

So, the day started bright and early at our hotel in Canazei.

Today, we turned right out of the hotel, and fairly quickly began climbing the first pass of the day, Passo San Pellegrino. I don't usually drink coffee, but drank some this morning, and when we first set out on the bike, though I'd eaten plenty of breakfast, I realized the caffeine may have been a bit much for me. Combined with the fact that I'm still struggling a bit with jet lag that's keeping me from sleeping too much at night, I felt pretty shakey when we took off. As we began to climb San Pellegrino, though, I felt better little by little, but wasn't able to stay with my group as well as the day before...so I got dropped toward the bottom of the climb. It was a beautiful, gradual climb, though: lush green all around and a small river on the right, rushing down the mountain. No pics of the way up, but, of course, one at the top.

The other bike belongs to the good looking Italian who took the pic for me...oooh laa la! In a race, yes, getting dropped is bad, but on a ride like this, you may get to talk to a handsome Italian.

The top of Pellegrino looked like this -- and yes, this is THE San Pellegrino of bottled water fame.

I met back up with my group at the top where we filled water bottles, chatted, got some food, and then we made a long, fast, fun descent into a little village called Falcade. (Oh, and you've probably noticed that the weather was a bit warmer today...still cold on descents, but no snow flurries like yeserday!) Dropping into Falcade was so picturesque, as it was a tiny village with narrow streets that wound through old buildings. There was a lot of activity -- old women in print dresses walking grandchildren to town fountains, people with trekking poles on their way out to hike. Church bells ringing the hour. Beautiful. We paused for a group shot.

(l to r) Mike (CA), Michael (France), Jack (CO), me, Tyler (CO), Michelle (MA), Larry(MA), Tammy (CO)

We then continued descending, and came to a lake (don't know the name) at another village, and stopped for lunch. Nilas, one of our two soigneurs, decided to take a swim...in the second pic, he's holding up a big chunk of ice that was floating in the water. Brrrrrrrrr!

The climb up Passo San Pellegrino was long and fairly hard. Now, with lunch in our bellies, we began the second and last climb of the day, Passo Fedaia.

If I could do a drum roll here, I would. I've done some climbing -- in the Sierras in California, in Colorado, in France, Switzerland, and other parts of Italy.

This climb was the hardest climb I've ever done. Bar none. There are some really strong riders riding here at Global, and almost everyone shared this sentiment. I have a triple on my bike and I can't even remember the last time I had to go into the smallest ring -- I mainly keep it for security purposes. We climbed steadily for about 24 kilometers to reach the top of Fedaia, and about 5 kilometers from the top, just before a series of crazy switchbacks that bring you to the top, I had to pull over to get into the little ring. I wasn't going fast enough to feel safe doing it while riding, and my lower back felt like it was burning because straining to climb was so hard. There was a terrible headwind and I felt like I was spinning to no avail most of the time, but I just kept reminding myself that Lisa just had a baby in spite of having MS...so I could do this.

This is one of the views early on in the climb, looking back at where we'd come from.

I did the switchbacks near another rider from Colorado, Jack, and we made it to the top together. I was so moved when I made it to the top that when my friend Karen from Texas hugged me, I cried. She understood without me saying a word, and knew that I was thinking of Lisa.

Everyone met up in a cafe at the top of the climb, shared war stories and cappuccino or hot chocolate (which is THE best anywhere!), and then made ready for the long cold descent back to Canazei. The view on the way was AMAZING.

It was so good to get back to the hotel. This was a tough yet incredibly exhilerating and inspiring day. And the fun wasn't over yet. One of the great traditions of MS Global is to do a variety of presentations at dinner each night. Deirdre Moynihan, who was the director of THF until just recently, started this, and though she couldn't make it this year, she made arrangements to be sure that special things are done each night by assigning tasks to different Global alumni. Tonight, Pat Perry (Texas) and I were responsible for commemorating September birthdays. We put together a little dramatization, of sorts. I played "reporter" and let everyone know I was going to interview rookies new to Global as well as alumni about their exeriences thus far. I started with Michelle, the rookie from Boston who I've been riding with, and then went to Pat.

Pat talked about how much MS Global has meant to her, this being her second time, and that it feels like family...and families like to help each other celebrate important occasions...and we then crowned Patti Columbus and Karen "lil Hudie" Hudak birthday princesses, and ride leader Mark "Bunny" Schwab, the birthday KOM (King of the Mountain).

88 kilometers / 2130 meters elevation gain / 2 epic passes

Whew. Another day, another unforgettable bunch of experiences at the MS Global.

Ciao!

MS Global -- Stage 1

First, that big lunch I mentioned yesterday...this is the main course, and followed two antipasto-type courses. Yummy! Stage 1 - Thursday, September 6

We rode 64 kilometers (about 40 miles) today, and did 4 passes. It was an AMAZING first day -- challenging, humbling, inspiring, and incredibly fun. I rode with the second of three groups, and we left the hotel at 9:00. We turned left right out of the hotel, and began climbing...seriously. We climbed 800 meters in 12 kilometers...warm-up for the rest of the day! The above pic is about halfway up the climb -- new friend, roommate and rookie MS Global rider, Tammy, from Ft. Collins, and me in front of just one of the amazing views. Yes...that's snow on that thar mountain. Woo-hoo! The top of the first pass!

Pat Perry, good friend from Houston, enjoying some well-earned cappuccino in a cafe at the top of Passo Sella. We all warmed up there, and then...

...put on more layers of clothes, and made ready for the long, cold descent.

A view on the way up the second climb...Passo Gardena. I didn't get a pic of the top of this pass, though I'm trying to get each sign as we come to them.

We stopped for lunch after the descent of the second climb. I love signs in foreign countries...I don't know how to read Italian, but I'm assuming this is telling park-users to clean up after Fido.

Three passes down....one to go!

This is partway up the final climb. There were 33 switchbacks. Thirty-three. THIRTY-THREE! Alpe d'Huez in France (which I did in 2004) only has 21 or 22. THIRTY-THREE!

Top of the last pass -- Passo Pordoi! This is Michelle, Gord (who is here with Serono, a big pharmaceutical company that makes the MS drug, Rebif, and is a sponsor of MS Global), and me!

64 kilometers / 2050 meters of climbing / 4 epic passes

So..there you go. Stage 1. I did a lot of hard pedaling today for Lisa, and frankly, I loved every minute of it. I'm about to go to dinner, and am more than ready to do it again tomorrow.
Ciao!

MS Global Prologue

Last year when I came to the MS Global, my bike didn't. It took two days for it to arrive, so I used a rental bike for some pretty major climbing, and ended up having back spasms a couple days later that kept me off the bike for a day.

So, the excellent news is that I made it to Venice today -- and so did my bike!!!! My luggage made it, too, as did two HUGE duffel bags full of Clif Bar products that I brought for the Tyler Hamilton Foundation. Ride leaders were supposed to bring them a few days ago, but they got lost in the mail, so I had the honor. In case you're wondering...if you fill a very large duffel bag with Clif Bars, Clif Shots, Clif powdered drink, and those little Clif jelly things (can't remember the name of them at the moment -- my brain's not firing too well), the bag will be VERY hard to carry. A tip that may come in useful.

Anyhooooo...I made it to Venice right on time at 9:35 after a peaceful flight, and was greeted about 30 minutes later by two happy screaming friends from last year's MS Global -- Pat Perry from Houston and Patti Columbus from Southern Cal. The Italians standing around waiting for their loved ones definitely knew some wacky Americans had arrived.

We then made a 3.5 hour drive to Canazei in three different shuttle vans full of participants (all but three of us had flown in a few days ago), and one van full of all of our bike boxes and luggage. We stopped for what we thought would be a short lunch on the way, and were fed the most amazing 3 course lunch with fresh delicious seafood and pasta. I have pics of the plates....beautiful!

The scenery on the way was gorgeous, and Canazei is a fairly small town nestled in the Dolomites. Our hotel is great -- huge rooms by European standards -- and we all built our bikes and then took a quick 15-mile ride to loosen up our legs and make sure our bikes worked. It's cold....it was snowing very lightly when we arrived, but we all brought warm clothing, and it was terrific.

Back at the hotel, we showered, went to a wonderful dinner, reconnected with old Global friends and new rookies. Tyler Hamilton is here -- the racer whose foundation runs the show -- and so is his wife, Haven, and it'll be terrific to have them here all week. One of the rookie riders, Tammy from Fort Collins, got a flat today on the way out on the ride, and Tyler fixed it for her. It was the first time she met him, so, of course, that made quite an impression!

I already have pics to share, but it's really late, I'm beat, and the internet connection is a bit slow, so I'm going to go to bed, and load some pics tomorrow after our 40-mile ride -- with LOTS of climbing...

Just wanted to sign in real quick to let y'all know I made it, and to thank all of you who've so generously donated to THF on behalf of my ride here for Lisa. I can't tell you how much it means to me. At dinner when I introduced myself, I let everyone know I'm riding for her, and that always chokes me up, because it really is special to me. And I'm wearing my "dog tags" around my neck that say "Believe," the motto of THF, and "Pedalin' for Lisa" on the back. It hangs right next to my heart throughout the week and pretty much says it all.

For now...ciao!

MS Global 2007 -- Ciao!

This is my good friend, Lisa Kelly, and her 11-year-old son, Aidan.

This is Tanner Paul, born August 3, 2007, to Lisa, husband Sean, and big brother, Aidan.

This is my bike -- well, most of it -- in a box..

...This is the rest of my bike...

...all snuggled up tight in the box.

Now I'm ready to head to Italy so I can climb the Dolomites with MS Global, a weeklong ride sponsored by the Tyler Hamilton Foundation, to raise money for research and public awareness of multiple sclerosis. MS is a disease that Lisa has and that she, Sean, Aidan, and Tanner live with every day. She's one of the strongest and most gracious human beings I know, and I'm going to do my darndest to make her proud as I attack those Italian mountains.

PS My laptop's going, too, though it's not in the bike box....so as long as I can get online, I'll be posting reports and pics September 5th through the 12th. Stay tuned. Ciao!

A Sign on Saturday's Ride

I did a 5 hour ride on Saturday...it was a glorious day, and I had a great time. At the bottom of one of the last climbs, Old Stage Road, as I headed back into Boulder, I stopped to take a picture of this. Looks all friendly and cozy -- "Share the Road" and all...but look closer...
Apparently, someone hasn't learned to share....