My 2024 Tour Highlights

Cilento

Certain things in my life have terrified me early on and now thrill me forever—Girls, gravel roads, wine, and southern Italy. My heart has switched, obviously, on these topics as I’ve moved through life. For my geographic challenge it only took a fresh mozzarella from my Napolitano friend, Enrico, to send my tastebuds to heaven and an ensuing curiosity overcame my prejudices about southern Italy. Now I travel there whenever I can to meet new people and find where my favorite, simple foods come from. For me spring in southern Italy is as good as it gets. Between the riding and the cuisine it is one of the best places to wake up the winter legs and reward ourselves afterward at the table. If you’re up for it, Enrico and Cinghiale are ready toshow you the way.

Strada Bianca

When I raced long ago I would let myself get distracted on training rides with excursions on to dirt roads and gravel paths. Good pros would do as many kilometers on great roads as they could. I couldn’t resist taking shortcuts and, more often, long cuts to where I was going. Once I retired from racing, training rides no longer a requirement, the riding became even more fun. My brother Steve was making bikes, so I asked for a bike with larger tires to ride on even dirtier roads. That was the 90s and the birth of our Strada Bianca frame, and now with my new La Vie Claire painted Hampsten Il Mostro I can ride just about anywhere I please. Bonus is it is light enough to hike across dead ends and carry through other bad decisions. With the prompting of Steve and other fun, gravel riding friends we have designed a Strada Bianca tour in Tuscany. No hiking needed, with plenty of perfectly great paved roads to get our distances covered to the next remote stretch of non-paved road.

—Andy