From the Jersey Shore to Southern Italy: Falling for the Magic of Ciclismo Classico
I first learned about Ciclismo Classico Cycling tours when I participated in a charity bike ride with my father-in-law around 2009-2010. That day, I had signed up to be on the mailing list, and whenever the tour catalog arrived in my mailbox, I would scrutinize every tour and wonder when I’d be able to start signing up for them.
A few years later, I was on a walking tour with my colleagues from school and saw some cyclists touring through Cesky Krumlov in the Czech Republic. I thought to myself, “Enough with these walking tours in Europe, I want to ride my bike through these beautiful places so I can exercise and indulge all at the same time.” A few years passed again, no CC tours were taken, but a first cycling tour to Gran Canaria with my husband took place just days before the world shut down. At its conclusion, I was hooked.
COVID happened, travel halted, and then reconvened. In Summer 2022, I was talking with a colleague about her most recent trip to Puglia ( which I knew nothing about at the time), and as she started explaining her trip and the places she had visited, I began googling. It sounded and looked so fantastic that I immediately wondered if Ciclismo Classico had a tour to Southern Italy covering Alberobello. After scouring the webpage, I found exactly what I was looking for -an Advanced Tour entitled “Bike Across Southern Italy. “
Now I had been mountain biking on and off since 1998 and riding a road bike regularly since 2008 so I wasn’t new to cycling, but this tour level was definitely a bit out of my comfort zone, especially since some daily mileage and elevation was more than I was used to, especially since I live at the Jersey Shore. On the coast, we have very little elevation to gain with the ocean within view and the waves within earshot. Regardless, I decided to take on the challenge. I’m always reading how humans need to do hard things, and I’ve always been one to challenge myself in that capacity. I am a cyclist who is always in training for one-off events, but I do not regularly race. Instead, I have trained on the bike to stay in shape and explore cool places.
And so with this selected itinerary on the horizon and 9 months to train, I definitely had some work cut out for me. Needless to say, some days on the tour were hard, and other days were really hard. With a perfect bike fit on the Officine Matteo carbon road bike and enthusiastic and supportive guides, each day I awoke with a smile on my face and a new route to tackle. With CC, everything was taken care of for me; all I had to do was show up, peddle, eat, sleep, repeat. Well, let’s just say that the one 50th birthday celebration trip of 2023 has led to another one or even multiple every year since. I’ve done Mediterranean Island Hopping in 2024, Bella Sicilia in 2025, and even Verona to Salzburg in 2025. I can’t get enough of these tours! If I could do one a month, I would! I just love riding my bike in beautiful places while enjoying cultural experiences, fantastic wine, and meals. Not to mention, the comfortable beds and luxurious hotels that await when the ride concludes. There’s nothing better than falling into a comfortable bed after a hard ride.
Even when times get tough and plans need to shift due to a road closure or any sort of modification to the plan on a tour, the Ciclismo guides handle it with grace. They always have a smile on their faces and something new and interesting to uncover for us. With Ciclismo Classico, it’s about the whole experience. The guides who become lifelong friends, the guests with whom you forge new friendships, the uncharted, serene territory, the satiating food, the complementing wine, and the drop-dead gorgeous resorts that we are fortunate enough to stay at. I absolutely love Ciclismo Classico. The way the company operates its tours is top-notch, and I can’t wait to commit to the next trip…
