Nick and Rebecca Wilson, Dave Greenwood, Mark Amon, and Steve Gooch are in the Dolomites for the Maratona this weekend.

Looks like they are getting some miles in and taking in the views.

Thursday 04 July: Whilst the UK were preoccupied with the general election, the Rye Maratona contingent were more worried about how the legs would react to the vertical terrain after a long journey the previous day. At breakfast, it was agreed to ride the Sella Ronda in the opposite direction from the race day route. This ride circled the giant Sella mountain taking in four climbs. It was decided to drive down to Corvara and park up at the foot of the first climb (the Gardena). Bikes were offloaded and everyone was soon going up with the usual pecking order soon established – Nick, Steve, Dave, Me then Rebecca strung out within minutes. The Gardena is a longish climb and was perhaps not the best one to start off with! The views were stunning as always and the Dolomites are well worth a visit, especially if you want to get fitter!
The ride continued up the Sella, Pordoi and Campaglonga before we finished where we started. A ride of just over 30-miles had taken hours, but everyone was satisfied with their efforts.
There was a stop for a snack at the summit of the Pordoi and a giant slab of strudel in Corvara with Rebecca wisely ‘gilding the lily’, ordering cream to accompany it!
The rest of the day was spent tinkering with bikes before another smorgasbord of fantastic food for dinner at our sublime hotel, the Ostaria,  before another drive to collect our numbers. Upon return, everyone soon decamped to their rooms for the night.
Rider of the Day Award: Rebecca. Despite not riding her bike for months, she made it up all of the mountain climbs with her usual tenacity and unique riding style of being hunched over the bike, looking like she is fighting it the bike.
Mark