Each year as I ride the various Pro Tour Cycle Races I am amazed by the “Kindness” shown me by complete strangers who choose after a request to set up camp on their property to go further and offer use of their facilities and even invite me to sit down with their family to eat not only evening meal but breakfast also. Some times they give me food and drink to take away with me and can be quite insistent there even after showing that there is already enough but that the offer is appreciated.
Tuesday evening in Fossano I found the home of Maurizio & Giovanna by chance simply as it had vacant ground attached. Spoke French with Carlo who gained permission for me to camp . As I was setting up camp I was invited in for the evening meal with the family, a simple meal but welcome. I contributed some wine which only Carlo was drinking with me. After Grace a variety of dishes were offered and the conversation was in a variety of French, English & Italian. There are 11 children in this remarkable family and not all were at home during the meal. Various other people came and went in the course of the evening and after a shower I retired to the tent with an invitation to breakfast.
This family has two disabled children , one with speech difficulties and the other is wheelchair bound and severely incapacitated. Feeding required great patience so you can see just how generous these folk were to offer a complete stranger such a warm welcome. Humbling experience to find people such as these surmounting their difficulties to help others.
Wednesday found me in an area near Tortona as I was looking to ride the Novaro-Novi Luguri route in the morning. Stopped a road cyclist to see if he could translate a request to a Caravan rental yard but was no help so had a go myself. Householder passed me to her sister who having lived in the USA was reasonably fluent and handled the intros and location of the tent. Working on the site were a Pakistani and a Indian who as I set up the tent insisted I join their meal. Kitchen facilities left a lot to be desired but the meal of soup and sausages and veg Asian/Indian style caused no ill effects. They surprised me in the morning by bringing me Indian coffee and delicacies for breakfast, totally unexpected. Neither would accept thanks for these efforts which knowing that they were working for low wages shows how generous people can be to strangers.
Thursday night after setting up the bike for the next days at the park Hotel in Piacenza I headed east towards Modena but decided on a roundabout to try a farm signposted. Several houses to choose from and so as luck would have it knocked on the only door with English speaking residents. The daughter answered and the mother invited me in for coffee whilst contacting the foreman of the farm. He put in an appearance and recommended setting the tent in a barn where the trucks are parked in winter. Once that was sorted I was invited into dinner which was very generous and tasty. Leah is from the Philippines and the children I think were all born in Italy certainly the youngest only spoke Italian and was absorbed by his computer As the daughter worked her face book photos on another , the other daughter was watching the TV amongst other things. Morning once again was a sit down breakfast with the family before I headed back into Piacenza to meet the owner of Vivo sports store.
Since I couldn’t ride the bike comfortably around the Team Pullman parking area at the Fidenza Village start area later that morning I decided the best and safest option was to head back to Zillertal to recover from the injuries of Thursday’s accident. Driving was no problem as I was placing no weight on the muscles but walking was a parody of a 80yo drunk shuffling along. With access to Eurosport I have feasted on Australian Sporting Success these past few days .
Bob Hawke a former Prime Minister also a great sports fan on the day Alan Bond won the America’s Cup declared any employer penalising workers that day was a “Bum”! Well this past week has been just as thrilling for me.
TO ALL AUSTRALIAN SPORTS PEOPLE , THANKYOU FOR YOUR EFFORTS, LONG MAY YOUR SUCCESS CONTINUE !!
YOU TOO CAN ASSIST " ADAPTIVE / PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED SPORT"!!..... THIS BLOG REMINISING ON PLACES AND PEOPLE VISITED OVER 24 YEARS OF PEDALING "PRO TOUR " RACE ROUTES". SIT BACK AND ENJOY THE VISIT . Note that i ride alone and unassisted ! I represent NOBODY and my views in relation to " Para Sport " are personal BUT what others do is their OWN affair ! I encourage ALL to help their National Paralympic Org. assisting those living in their area with dreams of Sporting Achievement .
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