Transalp is too easy; we decided to add bonus stages

Sonia decided that the Transalp was too easy and that we should add bonus stages! Today we went off course and left Arraba for Cortina d’Ampazzo, home of the 1956 winter Olympic. This is not part of the Transalp course and we will come back to Arraba tomorrow to continue the three remaining stages. We were in Cortina in 2004 and we really enjoyed our stay. We remembered the beautiful “refugios” in the mountain and promised ourselves that we should stay in one of them someday. In order to get there we took the asphalt route and climbed the Falzarego pass. This is a 17 “tonanti” climb that is used during some of the Giro d’Italia race. Sonia and I never climbed European passes like this in the past and were not knowing what to expect. The climb was not as steep as our everyday courses and I guess we were in shape that morning because we did it in a very good time..

We are now in a Refugio called Malga Ra Stua (www.malgarastua.com). We are considering this a rest day even if we did 55 km. We are now out of GPS route and we will need to get directions from the locals to get back to Arraba.