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THE TOUR OF SICILY
2-13 May 2006
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Prologue: (71km)
Having experienced Italian
traffic on the drive south from Rome, it was decided that a
familiarisation ride on the day before Stage One was essential.
Accordingly, we threw ourselves on the mercy of the road and hesitantly
set off along the coastal road from our home base at Villafranca towards
Messina. Generally, the roads were surprisingly good - the smooth hot
mix surface was in direct contrast to the harsh gravel that passes for
road surfaces in Australia. The roads got the thumbs up, however we
were stunned and amazed by the antics of the local drivers and scooter
riders in the anything goes traffic environment. In fact, the experience
brought back childhood memories of dodgem cars and carnivals. It didn't
take long however, before we realised that despite their apparent
suicidal approach to driving, the locals actually had very highly
developed driving skills. Missing was the debris and broken glass so
familiar to cyclists on Australian roads; evidence indicating local
drivers mostly avoided crashing into each other. Missing also were the
monster 4x4 urban assault vehicles, road rage and intimidating behaviour
that we consistently experience in Australia. Although the concept of
remaining alert but not alarmed was to remain with us for the duration
of the tour, we felt relatively safe sharing the road.
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Numerous fishermen were seen coming in along the beautiful
coastal ride |
Rocky thought this was too good to be true and pulled up at a
roadside fish market to check out the catch of the day |
Here's some of the boys stopped on one of the gentle climbs
returning to Villafranca from Messina. |
At the conclusion of the ride came the
mandatory coffee stop. |
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