October 17, 2024
Rome day three
ready, set, go.
That`s right ...... 5 kilometres on our bikes were bagged today! Today is the day that we switched from being in tourist mode to focusing on the details necessary to start riding our bikes. The changing weather forecast was a bit disappointing for Scott as he had planned a few days of riding heading south directly from Rome. But cycling in the rain has never appealed to us. So with train tickets in hand we headed to the train that will take us over 300KM southeast to Barletta and the Adriatic coast. We are hopeful for drier conditions but the short term forecast is not super promising.
It was time to build the Bike Fridays and take them out for a check ride. Our spacious room was a perfect place to assemble the bikes. it was now clear that both bikes travelled very well through the airline baggage systems as they went together without any issues. Always a bit stressful and a big relief when done.
The tires were filled with air and the bikes taken down to the street for their trial run to the train station. The streets of Rome can be a bit nerve wracking to cycle as they are often very busy with vehicle traffic (mopeds, cars and scooters) with few designated marked areas just for bikes. We rode beside the cars often near the parking lane without any real problem but this requires a particular tolerance and skill level. We did stop on route at a restaurant that we discovered on our walk to the station yesterday that served real breakfast food. Not just cakes and pastries which are often the Italian norm. Our espressos and egg dishes were a great way to get going even if it was already midday.
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The Rome train station is massive. With 32 platforms, Roma Termini is one of the largest railway station in Europe, equal to the ones in Paris and Munich. We wheeled our bikes inside and oriented ourselves with the track assignment monitors and the track layout. Our reconnaissance will assist us to be ready for our 08:05 am departure tomorrow morning. About trains in Italy: on the high speed Frecce service you can bring a single bike free of charge disassembled and contained in a bag or a fully closed folding bike. So that means we will be folding and bagging our bikes for our train. Two other services, City and Regional, will take full bikes for a small fee.
Leaving the station we encountered a light rain shower so we hustled directly back to our hotel. Here the packing and organizing continued. Final cuts were made and any clothes not traveling with us were loaded in the bike suitcases. Fortunately we could store them at the hotel while we are away, a key ingredient in our cycling plan. This small detail was agreed to before we completed our booking.
Shortly before dinner we dropped the suitcases off at the hotel reception and headed out for our last meal in Rome. We shared a salad and margarita pizza at a outside restaurant table on a busy pedestrian street. The nights are warm enough that dinning outside is quite comfortable. The street scene in Rome is really busy right now and a fun place to be. Peak tourist season maybe another matter.
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We went to bed early in anticipation of our 06:30 alarms. The two mid day scheduled runs to Barletta would have been so much easier to use, but on a Friday afternoon they were already full. So we will be up dark and early tomorrow, anxious but excited to get started.
Today's ride: 5 km (3 miles)
Total: 5 km (3 miles)
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1 week ago
6 days ago
Our bike bags came with the bikes years ago but I believe they are an older version of the bag that Bike Friday sell on their website. They are a very strong nylon material with good zippers. They do make packing the bikes on and off trains easier when folding the bike is required. We have a system that we also carry an empty light weight nylon duffel bag too. We load it up with Pat`s smaller paniers and all the extra stuff we pack along (helmets, water bottle etc ) to keep everything together. The three bags are rolled up tight and put in a compression type bag and Pat carries it strapped on to her rack above the paniers. We have used this system for years and pull it out when a train has no space for bikes or they prohibit bikes on board. It takes us about 15 minutes to pack up or unpack the bikes.
5 days ago