MOUNT GRAPPA

My first trek was up Mount Grappa. The wicked local drink is named after this mountain, as are many towns including Bassano. Grappa is 1775 meters high. The steep road from Bassano to the top is 38 Km. I remember years ago, the first time I was driven to the top of Grappa passing the many cyclists along the way. I thought they were absolutely crazy. Then 2 years ago I declared that I wanted to bike it. Luisa's family scoffed at the idea. The challenge was set. New York City may be flat, but we we've got those East river bridges that I've been hauling my kid over daily for 3 years now. I was prepared for Grappa. I did it in 3 hours. Of course, now they're telling me stories of people who did it in 2 hours, or someone who screamed up it in only an hour and 15 minutes. They just don't want to give me the credit due. It was a tall accomplishment. And it took only 30 minutes to descend, ripping at speeds of up to 50 MPH, completely freaking me out. I was afraid I'd lose control or my brakes would fail. I'm still reeling from a bad accident I had before I left on the Williamsburg bridge. I'm pretty sure I broke my left pinky or fibula or something. My entire left side was scraped raw. My foot is still so swollen I can't fit it into a shoe. So I'm doing all my biking here in Birkenstocks, which is a somewhat dangerous, especially on those insane descents.