Tour 2016, departure postponed!

Here we are after months of meticolous preparations,  tracing itinerary and stops, looking for sponsor to support our charity projects, new postcard, presentation pamphlet, planning a few presentation events and doing everything in our power to consider each possible detail, with the ambition of exceeding 4000€ total donations from 2015 and 600 postcards sent out from Australia.

Mission partly accomplished in 2016: up to August, the 5th we reached 6325€ but still haven’t managed to exceed 600 postcards mailed out. We are indeed happy with our results and wish to take the chance to thank everyone between sponsors, friends, relatives, colleagues and every person who bought a postcard and helped us shipping them. Thanks to your effort, we managed to break our donation record from last year.
We aim to do more though, to keep giving away smiles.

Tiziano, are we ready? It’s June the 30th and we are almost good to go. Let’s put a few more kilometers under our belts before we take off.

July the 23rd, we will be off to a  3500km journey from Verbania, through Lubiana, Gornja Bistra, Zagabria, Belgrado, Sarajevo, up to Dubrovnik, then Medugorje, Rijeka, Gorizia, Trento and back to Verbania, with our bikes loaded with emotions to share on the road while pushing on the pedals.

Alright! It’s the 3rd of July and looks like any other sunday spent out on the bike. We decide to take on our tandem, fill our water bottles, blue sky and about 150/170km ahead of us, with laughter, ice cream and a lot to juggle in our minds.

15km in and the lights go off damn, this hurts! I find myself on the ground, a car breaks right on a pedestrian crossing and we end up right against it. I can’t move and it hurts so bad. Damn, it really hurts! Ambulance, smashed bike, but at least Tiziano is fine! With tears in my eyes, my first thought is “it’s just a bruise!”. Hospital, x-rays and the doctor at 15.00 steps into the room and says: “I am sorry, but we do have a broken pelvis and a 30 days ahead of complete rest. Do not use the legs for any heavy activity, we will check back later on.

No! No! No! I am sobbing like a little girl, can’t contain the tears, I am angry.

I am laying on my bed. My body lays still, motionless and my daughter Valentina is taking care of me in a strange exchange of roles.

“Mamma be careful! Mamma call me or text me at least! Wear your helmet!” And I get back: “Ok, ok, ok! Valentina, chill out!”
I share with my family my decision to leave right after the orthopedic check-in at the hospital.

Everybody rest assure, we will be riding our bikes only for a quarter of the total trip, but I do want to reach Gornja Bistra on my own legs!

Needless to tell about their reaction.

I am leaving! How? Well mostly it’s a matter of heart, then it’s all about the 800 postcards we must mail out once in Gornja Bistra and then I can always spend a couple days at “Il Giardino delle Rose Blu” hospital. How, you ask? We are evaluating he situation.

After a forceful rest lasted for 30 long days, the fracture literally just fixed, it’s kind of hard to consider covering long distances on the bike.

Alternatives: Electric bikeCamper + bikes in turns,Tiziano?

Let’s take at the right time, leaving date August the 9th… we’ll see how it goes!
We will keep you posted!

Milena, di mi&ti