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The Pink Roads
The organizers announced the route of the 2011 Giro d'Italia recently. Each year we like to see which roads we might share with La Corsa Rosa (the Pink Race) during our guided tours. In 2011 we'll likely see the graffiti left by the tifosi during our Cilento Coast tour as we follow some of Stage 8's route from Sapri, and some of Stage 4's route during Vineyards to the Sea. We ALWAYS trace some of the routes during Legendary Climbs EAST, This year we'll ride some of Stage 15's route over Passo Giau and Passo Fedaia, as well as some of Stage 18's route along Lake Lecco. Reserve your place now, before the upcoming busy holiday season. |
You can now reserve and pay on-line for your space on a CycleItalia vacation via our new, easy PayPal link. Once your space is confirmed you can access confirmation materials in PDF form on our website. It's never been easier to join us! What are you waiting for?
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CycleItalia Guided Tours 2011
Here's the lineup for our 13th season of "pedala forte, mangia bene!"
Guided tour dates include flight day and are limited to TEN guests. Reservations taken on a first come-first served basis. |
Recipe: Goulash delle Dolomiti
 Fall's a great time for slow cooked meats, especially if you have a hearty red wine to go with them! Heather gives this dish life-saving properties as she first enjoyed it on a cold day in the Dolomites. It remains our most-requested recipe and draws raves from everyone who tastes it. Use beef chuck or "stew meat" so the chunks will hold up to the cooking.
4 T extra virgin olive oil 2 large onions, thinly sliced 2 lbs lean beef, cut in 2" chunks 1 C full-bodied red wine 1 T red wine vinegar 2 T high-quality paprika 2 C meat broth 1 15 oz can Italian tomatoes 2 bay leaves 1 T each: butter, ground cumin, marjoram 4 cloves garlic, chopped 1/2 t grated lemon zest pinch of red pepper flakes and a few drops of lemon juice salt and pepper
Heat oil in large pan, add onions and fry until soft but NOT brown. Remove onions, add meat and brown lightly. Mix onions and meat together, cook until crust forms on pan. Add wine and vinegar, scrape up crust and cook until liquid is gone. Add paprika and red pepper, stir until meat is well coated. Add broth, tomatoes and bay leaves, cook on medium heat 90 minutes. Check sauce for consistency, cooking longer to thicken or add water if too dry. Add remaining herbs, lemon juice, lemon zest, butter, cook briefly. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve with polenta, pasta or rice. Amarone della Valpolicella goes well with this dish.
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Featured Tour:
Campania's Cilento Coast
Every cyclist's dream is to pedal along a rocky coastline next to an azure sea. Think of Campania's famed Amalfi Coast. The reality is that these roads are generally clogged by tourists in rental cars and tour buses. After considerable research, we were delighted to discover a different corner of Campania with all the rugged beauty but without the crowds and tourist traps of the Sorrentine Peninsula. The Cilento is protected as a National Park. The population density is the lowest in Campania. Its traditional cuisine, hilltop vistas, and quaint seaside villages are sure to make your dreams come true.
 May 19 - Overnight flight to Rome's Da Vinci airport.
May 20 - A Benvenuto in Italia! After a short shuttle to our Rome HQ, assemble and fine tune your bike (or be fitted for one of ours) before our orientation meeting and welcome dinner featuring traditional Roman cuisine.
May 21 - Enjoy lunch immersed in an olive grove after our van transfer, before pedaling among olive-lined hills to Paestum, an ancient Greek colony boasting three of the world's best preserved temples. Descend towards the sea and check in to our night's lodging in a restored flour mill just outside the ancient city walls. Enjoy a group dinner of regional specialities such as Paestum artichokes and fresh buffalo mozzarella after gazing at the temples in the twilight. Click here for full day-by-day itinerary.
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Last Chance for new CYCLEITALIA helmet
People who've tried this helmet rave about the looks and fit. You may recall that we scored some of the original tricolore helmets Lazer designed for Italian national champion Paolo Bettini a few years back. After "Pippo" Pozzato won the title he sported this version of their new HELIUM series helmet. As part of their "Road Warrior" collection, Lazer has made it available to non-champions. We've created a special, limited-edition CycleItalia version just for you with graphics similar to the original. We'll even add your name if you like! Comes with deluxe box, racing cap and transparent aero shell to keep your head warm on cool days or help you cut through the wind. $250.00 includes shipping.
"Pippo's" no longer the Italian champion, so don't wait -- availability is limited!
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On-Demand CycleItalia
Don't see the tour your group wants to enjoy? We have some old favorites and other itineraries we've designed over the years that are not on our current schedule. They're back on the website in a new
category. Depending on your group and the dates that work best for you we may be able to produce a private version of these (or our current offerings) just for you! Contact us for more details. |
 Mechanic's CornerDrivetrain Care
There are lots of myths about bicycle chains and their care. Old cycling magazines regularly featured how-to articles about cooking your chain in wax (paraffin) on a stove, always accompanied by fire-prevention warnings! Luckily for fire departments everywhere this practice has died out, but wax fans can still buy chain lubes made of paraffin mixtures suspended in quick-drying solvents.
Regarding chain "waxing" I've yet to see any chain maker recommend the use of these "lubricants" over oil-based lubes. It's pretty much an either-or situation; so-called "clean" lubes are poor lubricants, while oil-based lubricants work well but tend to be dirty. Think of your car -- if you filled the engine's crankcase with wax lube instead of oil, I doubt you'd make it around the block before the engine seized up. Bicycle chains need a thin film of oil between the tiny rollers and the plates/pins (as shown in the photo) to prevent metal-to-metal contact, just like the bearings in your car's engine. Lube should be sparingly dripped into the space between the roller and the plate so capillary attraction can help the lube to work its way inside. You can wipe away the excess with a rag to reduce the attraction of dirt. Add lube ONLY when this space appears dry or when noise from the chain increases, otherwise you're just making a mess and wasting lube.
Cleaning chains is another subject rife with mythology. If you try to clean your chain with powerful solvents, either by removing it from the bike or using one of the many chain-cleaners on the market, you remove the precious oil film from the area inside the roller as you remove the dirt -- exactly what you DON'T want to do! Once your solvent has dried, applying enough lube to get back into all the rollers before your next ride causes a mess - so most folks just drip on a bit of lube and go riding. The chain wears until the lube works its way back into the critical areas. Campagnolo (Official Supplier to CycleItalia) suggests cleaning your chain by applying plenty of the lube of choice before going for a short ride, then wiping off the excess along with the dirt and grime. In the next issue we'll cover Lorenzo's method, long used by pro team mechanics the world over and still used for the CycleItalia rental fleet. |
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No connection to or endorsement by Italy's La Gazzetta dello Sport is expressed or implied. All rights reserved CycleItalia LLC
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