Gelato Diet -- The joy of riding in Italy and eating lots of Gelato

[Allez1]

Check out this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FG2Z3pUGXjY

There is no better way to experience a place than by being on bike. This is the story of a bike ride that changed my life--by getting to know Italy, it's roads, culture, people and food.

This captures the joy and spirit of Italy and shows how one can beat the rat race by eating gelato and riding a bike in Italia! Enjoy!
(More info about the trip at http://www.GelatoDiet.com.)

 

[Race Radio]

Very cool. Italy is such a great country for cycling

What part of Italy are you living?

 

[Allez1]

Thanks...

I am preparing right now to go (early March)...I will be living in Perugia (a city in Umbria). My Grandma is from Bevagna and Grandfather from Messina. I haven't been to the southern region yet, but definitely plan to explore the whole country when I go. Glad to hear it sounds like you got some miles in on Italian soil!

 

[Race Radio]

I am preparing right now to go (early March)...I will be living in Perugia (a city in Umbria). My Grandma is from Bevagna and Grandfather from Messina. I haven't been to the southern region yet, but definitely plan to explore the whole country when I go. Glad to hear it sounds like you got some miles in on Italian soil!

I know Perugia well. Good place to train, lots of climbs as well as flats for recovery/intervals. You will have a blast. Are you going to race over there? I seem to remember there is a big group ride that meets at the foot of the climb up to Perugia on Saturdays.

 

[the big ring]

Just so you know. This and any other kind of thread like this, is by far my favourite. Any discussion of how / where to live / train / bunch rides / race as an amateur in Italy, France or Spain (maybe even Belgium) I find enticing, fascinating and well worth reading.

If you get a chance, let us know a blog or otherwise so we can follow your progress!

 

[Race Radio]

Just so you know. This and any other kind of thread like this, is by far my favourite. Any discussion of how / where to live / train / bunch rides / race as an amateur in Italy, France or Spain (maybe even Belgium) I find enticing, fascinating and well worth reading.

If you get a chance, let us know a blog or otherwise so we can follow your progress!

I agree, we need more travel threads.

Getting on a Italian team as an american is hard. You can get a UCI license or an license when you get to Italy. You will need have a doctors appointment so he can insure you are ready to race.

I would also recommend the Gran Fondo races. Super competitive and as a female you will get to start up front.

Here is a list of GF's in Italy

http://www.dalzero.it/

 

[Allez1]

Great info!

Hey, this is soooo great to hear about Perugia. I haven't been there (near there, but not in the town) so very cool to hear about the riding and group ride. I have been really wondering about getting on an Italian team (I want to do some amateur racing...am a Cat 2 in Colorado, but don't want to spend all of my time in Italy training/racing--gotta spend decent time philosophizing over cafe, gelato and vino). Do you think I should buy the USCF international license? (It's $150! ouch.)

It's going to be pretty darn sweet to have a bike there, will try to get to as many places and ride as humanly possible. During March, I'll be riding in Mallorca (Majorca) off of Barcelona as I'm flying to Spain first, then making my way to Italy by the time classes begin in April.

I just built a website where I will chronicle the trip/experiences & I will be very sure to talk a lot about the riding and racing & traveling with a bike (that's what I'm a little worried about at the moment). Address: http://www.GelatoDiet.com. The Blog button is where I'll be keeping the day-to-day journal of the trip.

Definitely fun to discuss...thanks for the conversation/info!

 

[Race Radio]

Hey, this is soooo great to hear about Perugia. I haven't been there (near there, but not in the town) so very cool to hear about the riding and group ride. I have been really wondering about getting on an Italian team (I want to do some amateur racing...am a Cat 2 in Colorado, but don't want to spend all of my time in Italy training/racing--gotta spend decent time philosophizing over cafe, gelato and vino). Do you think I should buy the USCF international license? (It's $150! ouch.)

It's going to be pretty darn sweet to have a bike there, will try to get to as many places and ride as humanly possible. During March, I'll be riding in Mallorca (Majorca) off of Barcelona as I'm flying to Spain first, then making my way to Italy by the time classes begin in April.

I just built a website where I will chronicle the trip/experiences & I will be very sure to talk a lot about the riding and racing & traveling with a bike (that's what I'm a little worried about at the moment). Address: http://www.GelatoDiet.com. The Blog button is where I'll be keeping the day-to-day journal of the trip.

Definitely fun to discuss...thanks for the conversation/info!

If you are not going to be training hard you don't want to be racing in Italy. It is hard and you pretty much have to be on an Italian team to race. The Gran Fondo's are a great competitive outlet but less stress then racing for a team. You do not need a UCI license for most of them. A great one not to miss is the 10 Colli Bolognesi on May 1st. Not far from Perugia and you can get then on the main train line that stops in Torontola. The one lame thing about Perugia is as I remember it is at the top of a big, exposed climb (I may be wrong, it has been a few years) Climbing that thing after every ride could get old. The riding in Umbria is great, as is the Marche regionwhich is just east of Perugia. Once the spring/summer hits the Dolomites are amazing, by far my favorite part of Italy.

Mallorca has some good riding, and good tapas. It is quite the mecca for teams to train in the winter, but a bit touristy for me.

If you are in Italy late March you can watch the MSR then race the GF the next day. Great course and fast.

I lived in Italy years ago and now go back 1-2 a year to ride and eat. It is a wonderful place.

 

[TheDude]

Cheers, best of luck to you. I'll be checking your site. If I read right, you are taking a break from an engineering career. Based on my current project, that sounds like a very good plan right now.

 

[Allez1]

Engineering...

Cheers, best of luck to you. I'll be checking your site. If I read right, you are taking a break from an engineering career. Based on my current project, that sounds like a very good plan right now.

Yeah, engineering has got to go. I'm a really active person who likes people and the one-on-one interaction with the computer daily isn't for me (I've been a desk jockey for 10 years now). Hoping Italy will shed some new perspective on another sort of lifestyle career-wise. Would be amazing to be a bike tour guide or something, but I'm sure it'll all become more obvious towards the end of the 6 months (well it'd better, since I don't have a job to come home to!) Thanks so much, definitely comment on my blog, it's going to be fun communicating back!

Re: racing--that's good to know about the difficulty. I will definitely plan on doing some Grand Fondo racing and I know I'll be on the bike a lot, and with the hills, interval work will probably sort of naturally happen (er, or I can simply focus and do the proper training). That's great, Race Radio, that you got to live there! Were you studying or working? I'm planning on just living in student housing that the Universita per Stranieri offers in Perugia (though I'm a little nervous about living with college students who might believe in partying the whole time they're there). Any suggestions on other living situations? Thanks so much for the perspective you provide!

 

[Race Radio]

Yeah, engineering has got to go. I'm a really active person who likes people and the one-on-one interaction with the computer daily isn't for me (I've been a desk jockey for 10 years now). Hoping Italy will shed some new perspective on another sort of lifestyle career-wise. Would be amazing to be a bike tour guide or something, but I'm sure it'll all become more obvious towards the end of the 6 months (well it'd better, since I don't have a job to come home to!) Thanks so much, definitely comment on my blog, it's going to be fun communicating back!

Re: racing--that's good to know about the difficulty. I will definitely plan on doing some Grand Fondo racing and I know I'll be on the bike a lot, and with the hills, interval work will probably sort of naturally happen (er, or I can simply focus and do the proper training). That's great, Race Radio, that you got to live there! Were you studying or working? I'm planning on just living in student housing that the Universita per Stranieri offers in Perugia (though I'm a little nervous about living with college students who might believe in partying the whole time they're there). Any suggestions on other living situations? Thanks so much for the perspective you provide!

I went to Italy with an idea to ride the bike but this was early 90's, EPO was making things crazy and with the wall coming down every racer in central Europe was in Italy looking for a job. Not much opportunity for a slow American. I spent most of the year learning how to cook and not on the bike.

I can't imaging going back to college life. You might want to try a vacation rental
http://www.homeaway.com/search/keywords:perugia
They are more expensive but since you are going in the off season and the economy is bad you should be able to work a deal.

 

[ImmaculateKadence]

I am preparing right now to go (early March)...I will be living in Perugia (a city in Umbria). My Grandma is from Bevagna and Grandfather from Messina. I haven't been to the southern region yet, but definitely plan to explore the whole country when I go. Glad to hear it sounds like you got some miles in on Italian soil!

I spent some time there when, I was living in Montepulciano. Beautiful city, Perugia. Definately a highlight of my time there. Is this your first time going?

 

[Race Radio]

I spent some time there when, I was living in Montepulciano. Beautiful city, Perugia. Definately a highlight of my time there. Is this your first time going?

Montepulciano, I love that place. Super steep climb up to the town and the Vin Nobile is excellent

That reminds me, don't be afraid of the strada bianca (White roads). They are everywhere, especially around Montepulciano. Yes, they are packed dirt but great to ride on .

 

[ImmaculateKadence]

Montepulciano, I love that place. Super steep climb up to the town and the Vin Nobile is excellent

That reminds me, don't be afraid of the strada bianca (White roads). They are everywhere, especially around Montepulciano. Yes, they are packed dirt but great to ride on .

Yeah I walked that hill every day. My apartment was near the town's entrance, and I was taking classes in the fortezza at the top. Fortunately, I had Cafe Poliziano half way up to refuel .

The Vino Nobile is indeed excellent. One of the things I miss most though is the Pici. Haven't been able to find it back in the states. Every now and then, I stumble upon a good bottle of Vino Nobile, but good pici has eluded me.

I second your strada bianca comment. I wasn't anywhere near the cyclist I am now, but I did a get a chance to ride those roads on this organized tour we took. The bike was a heavier than sin rental but a good experience nevertheless.