Pelago SIMONE TERRENZI-Route

Simone Terrenzi was my source of information in 2003 when I went cycling here for the first time. As a local man, he knew all the attractive roads and climbs, and now and then he managed to take the time to go on a tour with me. As the "landlord" of the holiday accommodation Villa Grassina, it is not easy to find a few hours to ride during the high season.

Wearing the then-popular Saeco jersey (Simone Cipollini!), we set off for our first ride together, "andiamo all'Olmo," we are going to Olmo, he said, but I had no idea what or where Olmo was. What I knew more than an hour later was that the route to Olmo was almost constantly uphill: as we literally left the Arno River to our left in Compiobbi, that was already the case! The panorama of Florence made the suffering a bit easier, and when we took a brief detour to Fiesole, I immediately understood that I had landed in a wonderful landscape!

So Olmo was still a bit further to climb and marked the turning point of this tour. We continuously went up and down on a kind of plateau, far from flat and therefore also far from easy.

Rufina came into view... vineyards too... heavenly descents!

From Rufina, beautifully up to Diaceto and then... straight to the bar in Pelago for a delicious refreshment!

Mille grazie, Simone Terrenzi!