The Ride, Part I

Those of you that know me at all know I like to ride motorcycles, and those of you that know me very well know that I love, live, and breath motorcycles. So what am I to do in a country blessed with beautiful landscape, great roads and hardly a speed limit? Ride of course, and ride a lot. Only problem is my beloved Ducati is 7000 miles away tucked away in the garage. It would be difficult for me to buy a bike here since I’m not a resident, not to mention I’d have to deal with insurance and other details, and God knows what the Italian government would put me through. So I went the easy route and rented one. My steed of choice was of course a Ducati, similar to mine, so I would be on something familiar while traversing Italian traffic. Then I needed some riding gear since I didn't bring anything with me, so I bought a stylish new Italian helmet, a jacket, gloves, pants and shoes, all waterproof, something that would prove to be very usefull.

Since the medicine the doctor prescribed wasn't working I decided to prescribe myself two full weeks of riding southern Italy. My plan was to start in Rome, follow the coastline south, cross the Straits of Messina, do a lap around Sicily and then return to Rome, riding about 150-175 miles each day. My first day I was to ride from Rome to a small town a few miles south of Salerno on the coast where I reserved a hotel for the night. Packed and ready to go, I found my way out of Rome to the Autostrada, highway, and headed south. I decided to take the Autostrada instead of the slower country road because I got a late start and there was a chance of rain that day. After 15 minutes of riding the chance of rain became definite rain. I spent the entire trip bent over with one hand on the gas and the other in front of my face, doing about 80mph+ and praying for the rain to stop. During which time I realized the "waterproofness" of my new gear. The jacket is great, warm and dry. Plastic rainpants are O.K., but somehow I get wet where I contact the bike and seat. Gloves and shoes, NOT waterproof. My hands and feet were soaked by the time I found the hotel. And the nice looking OPEN FACE helmet I bought for those nice sunny summer days is definately not what I wanted on this day. I was so happy when I finally pulled up to the hotel, which was really in the middle of nowhere. Fortunately it was a nice new hotel with a good heater in the room which I used, along with the hairdryer, to dry out my gear and me. After a hot shower I went across the street to the restaraunt for a good hot meal before going back to the hotel to sleep and dream of sunny California.

Amazingly, the next morning I awoke to clear blue sunny skies. I couldn't believe my eyes, so I had breakfast, packed my things and got on the bike as soon as I could. And then it wouldn't start. The day before the guages and turn signals had all stopped working, surely because of the rain, so I thought maybe there was a short in the electrical system. I checked all the fuses and then some electrical connectors, and when I tried again the bike started. Whew! So off I went. I rode about 30 miles and decided to make a stop in a place called Paestum where there are some very impressive Greek temples. Yes I'm still in Italy, but the south, and especially Sicily, were once inhabited by the Greeks and there are actually more well preserved Greek structures there than in Greece, not counting the Acropolis.

The temples were beautiful, but I only stayed a few minutes because I really wanted to do some riding. I got back on the coast and it was amazing. Beautiful blue sky, curving roads perched on cliffs dropping straight into the blue-green sea, this is what I came here for.

I rode for a while before stopping for lunch in a little seaside town. After some seafood pasta at an outdoor table I got back on the bike for some more great roads and views. The road was winding and while coming out of one sharp corner I saw Jesus! No, it wasn't a close call with a Fiat, it was actually a giant white statue of Jesus standing on a clifftop.

Before coming to Italy I was given a DVD from Doreen called "Visions of Italy", which was a PBS show that was basically video taken from a helicopter as it flew around the country. It showed the coastline of Sicily and that is where I got the idea for this ride. So I recognized this statue from the video and knew I had to see it up close. I decided this was a good place to stop for the night and found a small bed and breakfast. Then I unloaded my stuff and headed off on the bike to get to the top of that hill before the sun went down. I found my way through the small town and up the hill, which included a piece of road that literally looked like a roller coaster from below, winding back and forth and entirely on round concrete colums on the side of a cliff. On top of the hill there was a church, a couple houses and the statue. The view was amazing and I got to watch the sun go down on the sea, bellissima.

The name of the town is Maratea and it was beautiful. Located on a hill, above the sea and below Jesus, it was very interesting. Buildings stacked side by side, narrow alleys, small churches and a couple small squares, it is the perfect little hill town, and one of my favorites on the trip. All in all it was a perfect day and I was looking forward to tomorrow.