Saturday 16th July
That tiredness and those aching legs are probably gone from the legs of everyone who rode the Giro Donne, so what better way to test that out than by heading to Cento in northern Italy for The GP Cento, Carnevale d’Europa, a one day race with a nice chunky stretch of cobbles on the passage through the centre of town and over the start-finish line. And this is one of the few races each year for which we get genuine live pictures, even if those pictures come from a webcam in the piazza, so if you’ve ever wanted a bird’s eye view of what goes on both back and front stage then get your sandwiches and sit down to enjoy it. The race proper gets underway at 16:30, should pass through the plaza every 15 minutes or so, and finishes around 19:00. Or if you prefer, then last year ABChannel showed 20 minutes on TV which later was posted to Ciclonews. I’ve no idea if they intend to do so this year as they are currently also filming the European Champs at Offida. Beyond that I’ve nothing to add to what I managed to find out last year. Eleven laps of a 10km pan-flat circuit, at the end of which everyone will be trying to stop Giorgia Bronzini winning for the third time in a row. And if they can’t manage it this year then next time they’re already working on a cunning plan that involves some 600 schoolkids.