Luckily another stage took place in my area so the day after Zoncolan I moved about the race field with a scooter so I could see the riders on more spots and see how they were tackling the day. The general classification needed to be kept under control so the first 10 riders were all together letting some brack aways to take some minutes knowing that they would have all been reeled in as it got tougher along the way.

The top riders were all together till the pink jersey got away on the last climb to finish solo in Sappada and the small groups I saw of the penultimum climb burst on the descent and on the last short but tough climb. I guess that these two stages were pretty hard for some and the recovery was difficult. Some of them probably thought that the cook they came across along the way had some pasta in the pot that he was using as drum instead.

Villages were themely festooned to welcome the riders and the cyclists that were cycling through short before the race was nearing. It is another sign of joy, feast and welcome that I hope everyone coming to Italy for the Giro will look and save as a good souvenir.

Another beatiful thing of this stage was again the crowd, the people I met from Belgium officially following a team as fans and helper because they were handing out bottles to the riders and they toured Italy giving me tale of places they would like to come back privately to visit. Many cycling enthusiasts come to the Giro to kill two birds with only one stone as they visit the country and cycle at the same time.

It has been another great day on Monte Zoncolan today with the riders giving their best as usual cheered by a fantastic crowd that filled every inch along the road leading up to the finish line. The day was long for me as the stage is 150 km away but could not miss it as on that climb anything can happen and you read the suffering on the riders’ face.

Walking up that mountain I came across people from all over the world and it was nice to speak to them and hear their opinions about the climb, the atmosphere the Giro bring about on each stage as they saw quite a few. I like these moments because they approach people from various countries and open their minds and hearts to talk over many things baside cycling.

Froome won the stage but many riders did not finish too far from him and as usual the crowd had fun pushing the riders mainly the spinters helping them get to the top.

Along the climb of Monte Zoncolan there were some pannels with pictures of great riders that made history in the past and I was pleased to take some pictures next to them.