Dolomites Day 4: Biking Sassolungo and Val Duron!

What an active vacation it would be if we didn't include a little mountain biking in the very busy plan. The fourth day in the Dolomites was intended for just that. Sassolungo with its 3181 meters high, towered over the view from the terrace of our stay in Val Gardena. So it was easily chosen as the location for our cycling day.

The previous day, before the Adolf Munkel Weg hike, we stopped by a nearby village and visited several places where you can rent a bike. I knew in advance that only eMTB was possible choice for next day. My physical abilities have long passed their zenith, and the surrounding tracks seem like a little help from the engine would be more than welcome.

Although my friends, according to their history, chose Specialized Turbo Levo bikes. I was not so lucky. The size M Specialized that fits me, was simply not available. I briefly hesitated about a Trek Rail model, but the Tektro brakes that were on it seemed like a bad choice. It was mainly because of them that I continued my search. I'm very likely wrong there, as Trek's 160mm suspension would have come in very handy on the trails in Dolomites, but wait until the end of the story.

I found a place not far away that offered Cube Stereo 140 bikes with pretty good gear. The point is, they had bikes in my size, and my previous analog bike ridden for years, was the Cube model AMS 140. Also, the Cube Stereo 140 was one of the bikes I considered when I was shopping for my eMTB. Luckily I found the desired Orbea Rise which I drive these days, because that Cube is not good at all. But I will find that hard way. I thought - that was it, rented Cube and looked forward to the next day.

At the very beginning, I noticed a small problem. The bike settings just didn't suit me. I went back to the service station several times, pumped and bled the shocks, but I just couldn't find the balance. In the end, I chose a slightly harder setup expecting a lot of climbs and started driving. What a mistake, what an epic mistake...

The day started, how else, than with a painful climb up the path where the mountain goats go around. Although very exhausted, I reached the top of the trail with a huge 800 meter climb as the only one who didn't get off the bike and pushed for at least part of the trail. The excellent Bosh CX motor proved to be far more powerful than the Specialized motor, at least on the technical climb. In addition, I never once used its full power and Boost mode, which gave me a lot of confidence. With a little more gentle ascent, we reached the Rifugio Emilio Comici at 2,154 meters and the first rest stop.

From there, the descent started towards the valley between Sassolungo and Monte Pan. I must note, at this point, if it's not absolutely clear, the Dolomites are rocky. The paths are mostly rocks, stones and coarse gravel. The height differences are significant. The speeds that can be achieved are considerable. On several occasions I drove over 50 km/h, which in MTB world means that I was flying.

I had to stop the first descent several times. My only impression of that descent was that the bike was very, very uncomfortable. I couldn't control it properly, my hands got so tired from compensating for bumps and vibrations that they went completely numb. And what had never happened to me before, the road was so bumpy that I couldn't focus my sight well. Simply, the shocks and vibrations were so strong that the bike and my body could not cope with it, and I could not focus my sight. I struggled a lot.

After a few hours we reached Val Duron and took another break for lunch and rest. I had to admit to my friends that for the first time in my life I wasn't enjoying riding at all. The Cube Stereo 140, the bike I chose, was simply disastrous. Absolutely not up to the task, very uncomfortable, almost unmanageable... if I could, I would have called someone to pick me up and drive me home. Also, since the Garmin was on my arm, one of my friends noticed that my heart rate was unusually high. My hart rate was128 beats per minute during rest! A lot above usual. I commented that this was probably due to me not feeling comfortable and being quite annoyed with the performance of the bike. But we still had a lot of climbing ahead of us before returning to Val Gardena. That was it, and after half an hour brake, we continued on.

We ride Val Duron to town Campitello, where another big climb awaited us. However, it started to rain, and in the blink of eye we decided to skip that climb and go up to Col Rodella by cable car. Half an hour later we were on Col Rodella and more importantly, above the clouds. We saved ourselves another 800 meters of ascent, which I have to admit, I don't know how I would have managed in my condition. I had enough battery for max eMTB assistance on that climb, but the will was at an all-time low.

From the Col Rodella there were several choices of how to get back to Val Gardena. I, completely contrary to my usual decisions, chose the asphalt and a slow pace all the way to the place where I rented the bike. With 50+ kilometers and about 1500 meters of ascent (plus 800 meters with cable car to a total of 2500 meters of ascent), I finished the ride completely exhausted, anoyed and very dissatisfied with the day.

However, the story did not end there. Tired and exhausted, I didn't pay too much attention to the consequences of driving in the following days. It is completely expected that such physical effort will absolutely grind you down. However, something wasn't quite right.

I woke up one morning and became fully and definitely aware that I couldn't see well. The vision in my left eye was dotted with large floaters that obscured a good portion of my view. But, that was still fine, my right eye was even worst. I could hardly see on that eye. I had a very blurry out-of-focus image, and a very dark circle-shaped floater was obscuring the little bit of the image that wasn't completely blurry. I was extremely sensitive to light and when I blinked there was a bright halo in my right eye that flashed like a sun. To make matters more complicated, it was the day of the return and a Sunday when visit to the doctor was simply not possible. I arrived home with seriously bad eye sight and immediately made an appointment with an ophthalmologist.

It would turn out that the shocks and vibrations caused vitreous body of the eye to suddenly separate, putting the cornea in danger of separating and damaging as well. If things didn't get better, I was in for very complicated surgeries and possible vision loss!

I was given medication and ordered to rest until the follow-up, which is in a couple of days. In the meantime, things have improved a bit, but I still can't see well in my right eye. I haven't even move fast for two weeks, no bike at all, I haven't hiked, walked... I haven't even stood up suddenly from a chair. There is nothing dignified in getting older, believe me.

But I am optimistic that everything will be fine. I've already had some very nasty and dangerous injuries while cycling. I haven't counted the broken bones and joints for a long time. I've been stitched up many times, and probably since I was 15, I don't know of a condition where I don't have some kind of bruise or scratch.

Some will say I'm crazy to still do sports that have caused me so much pain over the years, and they'll probably be right. But cycling is my life. A life that would have been much poorer if I hadn't competed for years, and then toured a good part of Europe on two wheels. I saw wonders and beauties that are indescribable thank to cycling. And I'll go further on two wheels, because that's the only way I know! Wish me luck, and (hopefully) see you around!

PS. The Cube Stereo 140 is, in my modest experience, a complete piece of crap to be avoided at all costs. With experience of riding in extreme conditions more than 30 different MTB bike models, this is by far the worst one I ever try. In my humble opinion, of course.

PPS. Sassolungo trail is actually very, very beautiful! You should ride it or hike it for sure!! Don't miss it if you are in Dolomites, views are just amazing!