Giro - Part 2

We continued to work our way around the course towards Mike's apartment. On this long stretch we saw the race go by twice. Brandon spotted a supermarket, so we had to stop and get snacks and drinks.





The Giro had souvenier vans driving around the course. We got sucked in by the hype and bought a bag of goodies: t-shirt, hat, bracelet, backpack, magnets and a window sign with suction cups, all for only e10. Actually not a bad price.



They also had these Segways moving around the course selling lanyards and newspapers.







We continued on down towards Giardini Pubblici, a big park where the media area and all of the team buses for the Giro were located. Before entering the park we watched the racers take this sharp corner. The Astana car is for the team that Lance Armstrong races on.



Once inside the park Brandon spotted a playground and wanted to play for awhile. I decided to go up to the parking area on the hill behind the playground to see the team buses. Of course, I had to check out the Astana bus. I met Julie from Austin TX, who is a photographer travelling with the Astana team. She is taking freelance pictures of Lance for an upcoming book. It was fun to talk with her for awhile. She was already tired from one week of racing. She said that travelling with the team and taking photos of each stage is logistically very tiring.

We finished off the day walking over to Mike's apartment. Its a cool 1 bedroom place on the 4th floor of a building in the heart of Milan. I think he's really going to enjoy his neighborhood and all it has to offer.

After leaving Mike's we walked back over the the race course to see the final lap. Approximately 20 riders were sprinting for the finish. The other 150+ riders took it easy. The riders did not appear to really be racing during the first few laps. I took it as a sign that they were waiting until they were partway through the race to really get into it. Or they were waiting for a few riders or one team to try and break away, a typical strategy. But no, it was just one big peleton of racers for all but the final lap. They did finish all their laps, but it turns out that the day we full of controversy:

"May 17 update: It was a day of polemica at the Giro as the riders refused to race, protesting the danger of the Milano circuit and the risks of the previous stages. The race organizers agreed before the start of the day to neutralize the stage for the general classification riders. But leading riders in the Giro field decided this was not enough, and on the road, they agreed not to contest the stage until the final kilometers. Race leader Danilo Diluca announced the decision, stopping the race a few laps after the start. "We ask for the understanding of the public, but today, we do not want to take any risks, because the circuit is too dangerous. We will continue the stage, but we are not going to push at all." Julie Macur of the New York Times reported via Twitter that the Giro organizers will not award prize money or points for the stage. No race, no paycheck." (Steephill Tv.com)

You can see more pictures on Katrina's blog.



The race coming by for lap 2.



Can you believe how many support vehicles follow the racers!!