Fabio Biasilo climbing Monte Amiata in the Toscana region

Along the beauty and the difficulty of one of the most scenic country of the world (Italy), the third edition of a 1001 mile Race took place from Nerviano, outskirts of Milan, on July 23, 2006, with nine solo riders, a two-man team and a four-women team. We raced 1001 miles through eight of the most beautiful regions of Italy: Lombardia, Emiglia Romagna, Marche, Umbria, Toscana, Liguria and Piemonte with almost 40,000 feet of total climbing. To make this wonderful race more difficult than normal there was an incredible and unusual heat wave (over 100° F) that followed the bikers for the entire course.

Fermo Rigamonti, the organizer, and his staff put together a great event, with prize money and presents. Italy is few times smaller than California; we do not have big open spaces like the Mojave desert or the huge prairies of the west of the US. Cities large and small as well as villages are very close together. This means a lot of turns and cues for directions with a big possibility of wrong turns. Trying to avoid heavy traffic is really difficult and sometimes you have to pass through populated areas anyway. Rigamonti and his staff created a safe and wonderful course to let us enjoy the monuments and the nature of Italy, from north to south (almost) and back.

The Monferrato area in northern Italy

The big improvement for this event was the introduction of a GPS system to monitor the speed of each rider, the distance between the racer and the pace van and the time that every competitor spent off the bike. This revolutionary system gave everybody the sensation of something real and precise. The system consisted of two control lights, red and green, that showed the relative position between the rider and the pace van. They blinked only when the rider was not riding safely. These lights were installed in each pace van and at race headquarters.

John Hughes asked me to ride the race and to write an article about the it. I had finished RAAM just one month earlier and I hadn't recovered enough for a race like this, with my two fractures from crashing during RAAM not completely healed (one on the small toe of my left foot and one on my left hip). However, I decided it was a shame to miss a race like this in my country. At the last minute I signed up for it, keeping in mind that I would stop any time my body wasn't able to ride safely.

It was a great experience for me (I never tried to ride a hard and long race like the 1001 Miglia just one month after I finished RAAM. I learned a lot about how my body can react during and after the race and I can share that knowledge with the ultracycling world. My physical condition was pretty good and I was able to ride fast in every kind of terrain. The only problem was that I didn't have any sleep deprivation ability (normally during RAAM I sleep from 7 to 9 hours total) so I had to stop for sleep 3-4 hours a day comparde with my normal 2-3 hours total for a race like this.

De Angeli climbing up to San Marino

We all started racing at 3 a.m. and for the first 60 miles we rode together (probably too long). At the second Time Station in Fombio the real race started. The total distance was divided in 19 Time Stations about 30 to 68 mile apart, with five mandatory checkpoints where the biker had to stop and get his race card stamped.

The first 266 miles were completely flat. At the end of TS #5 a 10-mile climb up to the independent Republic of San Marino let us forget the flat land for a long time. By then the Lombardia Region and Emiglia Romagna were gone and the hardest part of the race started. Rolling roads as well as long climbs of about 12% or more took the bikers into the heart of Italy. The Apennine chain, less high than the Alps, goes along the middle of Italy from north to south, so Marche, Umbria and Toscana are part of the chain. From TS 6 to TS 12 (357 miles) we had to let our minds focus on the vineyards of the Chianti wine area, or on the wonderful history of Etruscans and Romans, or we let our noses enjoy the intense fragrance of the chestnut forests.

Biasiolo chasing De Angeli

We got just a little break riding the 43 miles of TS 13 from Ponsacco to Castelnuovo Garfagnana. Then we started the long climbs of TS 14-15-16 (161 miles). The 55 miles of TS 14 drove everyone crazy — very short climbs but steeper than 14% on both sides. In my opinion this was really too much, especially because in case of rain it could be very dangerous for bikers and vehicles. (Rigamonti understands my point of view and probably will cut this part of the race in the future). The last three Time Stations (104 miles of Fausto Coppi's training roads) become "humane" again but at this point for some riders it did not make not a big difference.

All the competitors were well prepared with experience in world-class events like RAAM, Paris-Brest-Paris, the Tour of Sicily Non Stop and a lot of brevets as well as the Ironman Triathlon. Immediately after the beginning of TS 2 I took the lead with a fast and easy pace but close to the sunrise I had to stop for sleep even though we were only five hours into the race. Unfortunately the team of four women dropped out almost immediately for mechanical problems. Enrico De Angeli, the eventual winner of the solo category rode a really strong race. He took the lead from TS 4 until the end, increasing it to a lead of six hours at the finish.

Race winner Enrico De Angeli

As soon as the sun was high in the sky everyone had to pace himself up first climb of the race. At TS 6 Gaetano De Faveri was the first solo rider to drop out for physical problems. At TS 7 in Passignano Eris Zama, a good friend of mine and a very strong rider had to drop out. He was one of my crew members in RAAM 2000. Just one week before he rode a hard 500-mile race in Europe in 27 hours.

Carloni Vittorio and Tassinari Alfiero rode a steady race until the end, fighting for second and third place during the first half. Only after 550 miles on the way to Montefiascone (TS 9) was I able to pass Vittorio and on the long climb of Monte Amiata, 50 miles later, Alfiero. Vittorio kept hammering and with less than 150 miles to go on the last night, he passed Alfiero to take third place.

At the end every single participant got the GPS Race Report, to let us know how precise and reliable this system is. Will this be the answer to preventing cheating problems?

Further information: Fabio Biasiolo www.fabiobiasiolo.it

Fermo Rigamonti also organizes the Italian brevets. Because Paris-Brest-Paris is in 2007 the next 1001 Miglia will be in 2008.

Complete Results

Solo
Rider (Sponsor)	Time HH:MM
Enrico De Angelis (Utracycling)	72:02
Fabio Biasiolo (Schwinn)	78:08
Vittorio Carloni (Monta in Bici)	84:35, RAAM Qualified
Alfiero Tassinari (Polisp. Bulgaró)	89:45, RQ
Michele Rota (Rota Capiago)	94:28, RQ
Luca Bonecchi (Bulletta Bike)	96:54, RQ
Giancarlo Brocci (Parci Chianti)	105:15
Gaetano De Faveri (CT Portogruarese)	DNF TS 6
Eris Zama (Libertas Gambettola)	DNF TS 7
Two Man Team
Massimigliano Cervini & Stefano Nesi	68:20
Four Women Team
Dala Bibor, Barbara Lancioni, Erica Mantello, Elisabetta Sazzini	DNF TS1