We’ve got a full Giro camp, and we’re looking forward to an exciting time following what is often the best Grand Tour of the year. For those of you who weren’t able to pull the trigger before registration closed, there’s always 2013. Of course, if you can’t wait that long to get to Italy, we have 2 climbing camps in Bormio this summer, several Gran Fondo rides in June and July, and lots of amateur racing nearly every weekend.

As a reminder, camp is open this year from June 1 until August 2.

Grazie, e a presto!

But it’s more than just looks, we’ve updated how some of the pages work so it should be easier for you to find information, register for camp, and connect with us on social media. We’ve tested it in all the browsers we can think of, and the new design adapts to tablets (like iPad) and smartphones (iPhone/Android/Windows Mobile) as well, but we’re not perfect. If you encounter anything that doesn’t look quite right, or plain old doesn’t work, please let us know!

Because it is so woven into the fabric of the camp, we couldn’t help but be thrilled that Jered Gruber fell in love with it. We’re just as excited that he turned to his talents, writing, riding, and photography, to tell the story of this fantastic place.

In the west, the ascent from Romano d’Ezzelino — the Strada Cadorna — is the classic, easiest approach of Monte Grappa. It was the main military supply route during the crucial series of three battles that culminated in Italian victory. Even then, it was built as a main road, so it is kind, generous, pleasant, and still 26.5 kilometers of climbing — my least favorite. Behind the Strada Cadorna are the two other main road climbs: Caupo to the north (with its remote, demanding twin paralleling it from Seren), and the Giro’s selection for the 2010 Corsa Rosa, from Semonzo to the south. Both of these climbs are tougher than the Strada Cadorna. The ascent from Semonzo is nothing short of Grand Tour perfection, averaging 8 percent for just about 20 kilometers. It’s fantastic, nearly perfect.

If you’d like to read the full article, it’s in the April edition of Peloton Magazine. You’ll find Peloton at local newsagents and book stores. If you’ve gone fully digital, you can subscribe to the online-only version of the magazine as well!

The following list includes a few assumptions; you’re not an elite in any frequent flyer program (that can lower some fees), you’re flying discounted coach (full-fare & business can lower fees), you are flying from the US to Europe (other regions have their own fee structures), and your flight handles baggage on the “piece concept” (meaning you get 2 bags with a max weight, not a max weight with unlimited bags). It is true as of 5/1/11 to the best of my knowledge. As we all know, the airlines can be fickle and change their policies on a whim. Check the included links for more info and call the airlines to be sure. This is only a rough guide; if you don’t check and get hit with an unexpected fee, don’t come crying to me!

¹$75 in US, €75 from Europe
²$200 in US, €200 from Europe

A couple of other notes. The fees have been converted to US$ (if necessary) from Euro, and weights converted to kgs. If you are travelling on a code-share (e.g. Lufthansa ticket but United planes), it’s best to assume the most restrictive fees and weight limits will apply. The weight limits are often the most difficult to figure out, so definitely double-check these before heading to the airport. If there is a standard checked bag fee, that has been added in already.

If you’ve had other experiences or better information, please let us know in the comments.

photo courtesy mudmucks, on Flickr

Here at Velo Veneto, we’ve always made whatever accommodations we could to make sure your trip was exactly what you want. This year, we’re taking that one step further and offering that same completely customizable service to groups. Our first group is from Cycle of Business. Cycle of Business is a new venture from one of the partners at Focus & Execute, a consultancy that not only helps you develop strategic plans for your business, but then execute them to the best of your team’s ability.

This will be an amazing 9-day trip from 27 August to 4 September, with a ride each morning to get the blood flowing and prepare you for a full afternoon’s work. In addition to group training sessions at the hotel, we’ll also be visiting cycling businesses in the area to see how a customized strategy for your business is much like customized cycling products.

During the week, you’ll develop solid plans for business success based on stakeholder needs and desired results. You’ll also learn how to drive execution of those plans through your organization, and bring everyone on board.

As a culmination to a hard week’s worth of work, the final day’s ride will be up the highest pass in Italy, the Passo Stelvio. We’ll be there on Stelvio bike day, where the mountain is closed to cars and the road is yours! You’ll come home with a winning strategic plan, noteworthy cycling accomplishments, and memories to last a lifetime.

Outcomes from this workshop will include:

• Well thought out actionable plans to drive results
• Leading your team through the execution process
• Understanding of stakeholder needs
• Alignment of your organization to desired results
• Networking with peers
• Riding hundreds of miles through the Italian countryside

What’s Included for Everyone:

• Accommodations in three and four star quality hotel(s)
• Three meals per day including beverages
• All Ground Transportation
• Daily Rides
• Leadership Training
• Event Entry Fees
• Team Jersey and Shorts

To register for this special session, visit Cycle of Business

Even if you don’t want a new bike, you might be worried about getting yours over to Italy in one piece. To help out a little bit, we’ve secured discounts on Sci-Con bags and cases for you. Our discounts extend to things like saddlebags and even luggage, so even if you’re not in the market for a case, we can still help out. This is the final week to place your discounted order! Email us for full details.

Once you’re on your bike, it’s always handy to keep track of where you’re going and where you’ve been. This year, we’re working with Strava to give you some fancy-dan new technology to track your kilometers. You can upload your data to Strava either from a Garmin cycle computer or from your GPS-enabled mobile phone. To make the latter easier, Strava now have an iPhone app. Of course, any other GPS-enabled phone will work with a simple email process. Don’t forget, we’re using Strava to track the climbing records going forward, so if you want to be a record-holder, you’ll need to sign up!

Of course, you might want a Garmin after all. With their new Edge 800 touchscreen computer, you’ll be able to see where we’re going and never miss a turn again when you drop Jason on a climb! We have discounted pricing on Garmin units, so Email us for full details.

And of course, if you haven’t bought your flights yet, now’s the time. With oil prices continuing to rise, and the dollar getting weaker by the day, airlines sure won’t be dropping fares. For those among you who enjoy the hunt, we recommend checking out Kayak or ITA. If you’d rather have someone else do the looking, we recommend Caroline Fogarty with Peak Travel.

And of course, we’d be remiss not to mention travel insurance. While the likelihood of something going wrong is small, it’s good to have your back covered. Your health insurance might not cover you in Italy, an Icelandic volcano might blow again, who knows!? We’ve made arrangements with Travel Guard by Chartis, so simply fill in your trip dates and pay with your credit card and you’re all covered!

That’s more than enough business for now, back to the riding. Keep your eye on the Giro del Trentino, which rides on some of the same roads in the Dolomites we’ll ride this summer. And of course, la Flèche Wallone tomorrow and La Doyenne on Sunday! Buon ciclismo a tutti!

Enter Strava. Based on widely available GPS technology, not only will Strava track your ride, but now it will automagically keep our climbing records for us! As soon as you upload your ride, your time will be added to the leaderboard – if you’re the new KOM/QOM for your age group, you’ll know immediately! Strava does a lot more than that, and this video will show much better than I can tell, but if you are even slightly interested in analyzing your rides, Strava is a really cool tool. To put this really cool tool in your hands, we have arranged for all Velo Veneto riders will receive a free 3 month trial!

Strava for Cyclists – Product Tour

You can see from the tour that Strava provides a lot of useful information in a nice visual format. The auto uploading and organizing of the ride data is particularly useful if you’re bad about entering data like me. With a little bit of extra effort, you can even keep track of maintenance so you know when it’s time to replace that chain, cassette or other component. Stuck on the trainer? No problem, you can manually enter indoor rides as well.

Of course, for our purposes, it’s most useful to track your performance on ride segments. As long as your GPS is on during our rides, Strava will automatically record your start and finish times at the exact beginning and ending of the climbs, so you’re sure the time is correct. You can virtually “race” yourself or others on climbs or ride segments even if they weren’t on the ride. Another big bonus over our old system is that the new leaderboards will run several riders deep, so even if you’re not the KOM/QOM, your effort will still be recognized.

In the meantime, once you register for Strava, join the Velo Veneto club in the Strava app. You’ll be able to compare yourself against other Velo Venetians before you get to camp, while you’re there, and be able to keep up with them after you leave. As we build the leaderboards for the various climbs, we’ll come back to you with more information.

Quick FAQ
Q: What does it cost?
A: After your initial 3-month free trial, the cost is only $59 per year or $6 per month.

Q: Do I need a GPS cycle computer?
A: No. In addition to Garmin Forerunner and Edge devices, Strava supports iPhones and Android-powered phones. Each are available with GPS, and their built-in apps can upload files directly to Strava. In fact, Jason’s rides have all been recorded on his HTC G2 phone.

Q: Should I just use my free trial while I’m in Italy?
A: You can, of course, just use the trial to join our climbing competitions while you’re in Italy, but you’ll be missing out. Prior to camp, you’ll be able to compare yourself to other riders from around the world and gauge your fitness. And who knows, we may just have a contest or two before we head to Italy!

Q: If I don’t use Strava, can I still be on the Velo Veneto climb leaderboard?
A: Yes. You’ll need to track your time yourself, but just tell us and we’ll manually add it to our list.

Every year, we get more requests for extra clothing, different items, etc. So, in order to more easily fulfill those requests, we’ve created the Velo Veneto online shop where you can order any clothing item that ThreeFace makes for us. This includes not only bibs and jerseys, but vests, jackets, gloves, caps, and socks. The store’s not fancy, but it gets the job done.

The clothing is made in Italy and will be shipped to you starting in May (or waiting for you upon arrival in Italy). However, to get this shipment done in time, ALL ORDERS MUST BE COMPLETE BY FEBRUARY 28, 2011! That only gives you about 2 weeks, so get crackin’!

Like all web projects, we’re launching this in Beta, so if you see anything that doesn’t work or is just a bit off, please let us know!

Announced fully today, after months of leaking, the UCI has created the UCI World Cycling Tour (UWCT). Comprised in 2011 of 8 events scattered around the world, these Gran Fondo-like events will serve as qualifiers for the official UCI Amateur World Championships. The UWCT final will be the second weekend in September in Stavelot, Belgium, with several of the Liege-Bastogne-Liege climbs on the route. The UCI has contracted experienced Belgian race promoter and marketing agency Golazo to handle the WCT for them.

The promoters of the previous Masters World Championships have reformed their organization into the World Masters Cycling Federation. The events will go ahead as in previous years, including the Deutschlandsberg World Masters Bike Week events, and the WMCF will crown a world champion. Given that the UCI has now trademarked the rainbow stripes, we’ll have to wait to see what that jersey looks like. As an added benefit, you will no longer need a UCI license to race in St. Johann.