Passo della Colma is 8.9 kilometers long for an elevation gain of 490 meters giving an average gradient of 5.1%. The climb starts near the historic town of Varallo, which is worth a detour.

I'd decided to come back this year but even with my x32 it is at the limit of what I can ride at the moment. The climb was ok temperature wise but just too dam steep now. 53 minutes from Montebuglio.

Main climb was pleasant but still finding the very steep ramps hard. Little shake down of the bike after the trip.

A commute via St Mury. It took  a bit of discipline to get up and go at 6.45 given the damp and gray skies. VAM of 817 for the climb. A bit slower than last year when I was riding around 880.

Been quite a while since I've cycled this way. Surprisingly slow. 1m04 for the climb to St Hilaire, record is 49 minutes (vam of 800m/h).

V. slow 35 minutes for the climb compared to a PR of 27m. Clearly a long way off my best, is it just tiredness or lack of riding this year? It is not as if I've done no sport but a lot of 5km runs.

I saw that Amberieu was 20 minutes by train from Lyon which meant I could cycle a chunk of the Via Rhona, the long distance cycle path that goes from Geneva to the Mediterranean sea.

Took the Montee de Choulans from Perrache, hard at first but it went by a flat I wanted to look at. Pleasant on top of Fourviere, 4C cooler. Descent always sporty due to poor 1970s braking.

After yesterday's hard day I had "heavy legs".

It has been like winter this May. Rain, snow, cold, wind. Not very inviting. Finally a break in the weather, a bit unexpected and I decided to ride the Croix de Fer or Glandon.