Giro D’Italia — Stage 15

We are at the hotel Belvedere in the small city of Facade. About an hour plus north east of Trento. It is a small hotel and it is only us and AG2R. The parking is so tight that only the two team trucks can park in front of the hotel. Both team busses, our small camper and a host of cars must park 100 m away at a church parking lot. But we have to wait for a bit to park there as there is something going on at the church till the early afternoon (just after the stage finishes). So we are (temporarily) parked illegally until the church parking opens up. We were grilled by the local cops to not park there. We told the local cops and they will be OK with our illegal parking for a short while.

The two trucks are parked soooooo close to each other that Kurt was in a race to get set up and get power so we could open our canopy/awning. Even if it was just extended 4 feet. There was not much space between our trucks AND we were at somewhat of an angle to each other. Four feet would be better than not at all. And even with it not open fully (4 feet extended = 1/3 open) AG2R could not open theirs much if at all. Maybe just enough to not let the water fall into their kitchen. That’s it. And it has been steadily raining. Not very hard, but enough to not want to work in the rain.

After the stage I went sign hunting. I was hoping to get (steal) a cool Giro “caution” sign the signaled a rather challenging (dangerous?) turn coming off the San Pellegrino Mountain. But alas I was late and some “hunter” got it before I did. And we are so close to the top of the San Pellegrino you can almost taste the water. Aqua frizante please? San Pellegrino please? No? You don’t have that brand here? What’s up with that?