Dudes, I can’t believe how smoothly things are going for me here in Italy. Got to admit I did have a few moments of panic on Tuesday when the reality of the trip started to sink in. When I really clued in that I would be traveling to Italy alone for a World Cup with my bikes and doing everything myself I started to question my decision. But I reminded myself that I’ve gone to many races in Europe alone and that this was no different.

And you know what? I was right. This is no different. Sure I had to drive a car alone. So what? If I was born in Italy, I’d be driving. Had to put the bikes together myself as well. Well, with some help from Vince and Marc I got it done. I took my time and focused on each small task that had to be completed. Then today when I was out for a spin, I stopped in at a bike shop (Bicci and Bikes) and had the mechanic Claudio, check-out my headset for me. He didn’t speak English. I don’t speak Italian. But we got through it just fine.

Tomorrow I’ll go and check out the race course. Most other racers will have at least one support person with them. Well, I’ll manage as well. I’ve already arranged with Christine Vardaros (American racer based in Belgium) for some help tonight. Her husband Jonas is going to give my bikes the once-over. And I’m sure that if I have any issues tomorrow, I can find someone at the race site to help me out. Really all I can do is ask for help.

So Saturday I’ll go and do some pre-riding. I’ll do a few laps. Then section the course down and practice any tricky or important sections. Then I’ll do a couple of hot laps. Followed by one easy lap. Then I’m done. Not a lot of riding. Just enough to get a picture of the course in my head and legs.

Went out for a little spin today to test out both bikes. Did an easy roll around and checked out the sites. Legs felt really good. Thought they might be a bit sluggish. But so far so good. I made sure to drink a ton of water during my travel day(s). I also wore my compression clothing (socks and shirt) – I think this helped. I think the larger than normal supper last night followed by 12 hours of solid sleep helped.

I’ve written a full account of my day over at Victoria’s Island if you want the nitty-gritty on what I’ve been up to.

As for the rest of the day? Well, it is tempting to go into Treviso and do the tourist thing. But I’m not going to do it. I want to make sure I’m well rested and ready for Saturday’s pre-ride and Sunday’s race. I suspect that I might be hit with some fatigue later this evening so I don’t want to make things worse. Think I’ll go set out on the amazing hotel terrace, take my book and just enjoy being in Italy. Tough not to go be a tourist for a few hours. Really tough. But my reason for being here is the World Cup. Treviso won’t be going anywhere. (Besides, I’d rather check out the city with Marc…)

Marc is on his way to Gloucester for New England World’s. Wish I could be with him. Love watching him race and I love racing at Gloucester. I’ll be racing with him in spirit this weekend. Best of luck to the rest of the Ottawa and Cyclery crew headed down to race. Massive thanks to Mike and Cathy for taking in Marc this weekend. Looking forward to reading the race reports.

Many many thanks to my sponsors – without whom this trip and season wouldn’t have been possible.