Today won't be making it onto the leader board for best days of the tour, I'm afraid. It began well enough - what's not to like about a mile long 9% climb through the city to start out the day? It seemed stiff at the time, but all was forgotten when we got to the summit of Ragusa Superiore and looked over the edge into the abyss.
Climbing west from our hotel through upper Ragusa. Not the ideal start to a ride, with no time to warm up - a mile climb at 9 percent, starting right from the room. Who planned this ride, anyway?
Our plan for the day was a loop ride west of Ragusa, taking in Comiso. We weren't looking for anything in particular - just the chance to see some of the surrounding countryside, and to pick up some lunch somewhere along the way. The weather when we set out was moderate, but grey and windy. We weren't concerned though, because the rains weren't destined to arrive until around 7 PM.
The first part of the ride was quite beautiful.. After dropping a thousand feet off the plateau, we followed tertiary roads north toward Chiaramonte Golfi. We deviated from the planned route when it went steeply back up the ridge on a rough-surfaced path that barely qualified as a road. After riding up about a quarter mile, we decided that we had a different idea for the day and dropped back down. A few minutes later, a club ride whizzed by and charged up the road, making us feel foolish and wimpish.
We biked into Comiso in early afternoon, just in time for lunch. Comiso is a very odd town - very little commercial activity that we could see, but perhaps it was because it was Saturday. We were about to give up and getting anxious about having enough calories to make it back to the room when we stumbled upon Disio, an excellent vegetarian restaurant. As we locked up our bikes, a few drops fell from the sky.
The land just west of Ragusa is all rolling hills, stone walls, fields of grain and cattle. Beyond, a 1500 foot drop to the agricultural plain.
It was quite windy this morning. Gusts of wind blew ripples through the grain fields. Very beautiful and peaceful, with no sounds but the wind, the whipping grain, and the occasional magpie.
We emerged from lunch to find a steady drizzle underway, and the cobblestone streets slick and slippery. Unhappy with our luck but with no other choice, we set off for the room - 17 miles away, virtually all uphill and into a significant headwind, with some of the miles steep enough to push (full disclosure - Rachael pedaled the whole way, but under the added wwifht of a larger lunch my tires slipped on the slick pavement and I broke down and watched a bit).
Finally, eventually, we made it back to the room, warmed ourselves up in the shower, and settled in for a lazy few hours until venturing out again for dinner. It should be noted that Rachael was awesome all the way back this afternoon - way tougher than me, I'm afraid.
Total elevation gain: today, 4,100'; for the tour, 48,600'.
