Milan-Rome non-stop, pedaling for 24 straight hours across half of Italy, 24 hours without ever looking back.
This was the last adventure for the Assault guys, who thought it best to close out a 2022, already full of satisfactions, by aiming for the capital without stopping, a journey that will not be easily forgotten, a journey that will probably never be forgotten.
The Milano Roma one-shot was actually a project the Assault guys had been putting on paper for a good four years, but as you can imagine, managing to fit in the right year between physical fitness, personal commitments, two years of Covid and, why not, even the fear of failure and of not being able to face such a test, meant that this adventure materialized four years after its inception, on a weekend at the end of the season between October and November.
By now we know well that Andrea Filippi, aka Pippy, likes to work hard on his birthday and is always willing to take on some ambitious project, so why not try the Capital on this very occasion? I almost jokingly throw it out there to Stefano Ellea, who immediately gets tempted by the idea of closing the year with a great circus act, and in no time, here is the zither quartet, Pippy, LA, Walterino and Manzoni, ready to go, as if it weren't 650km, as if it were a normal thing.
The day of departure soon arrives, and the Assault guys are gathered in the Duomo. The starting group is large, and there are plenty of friends to accompany them for the first 100km. For them, that day will be 200km or more, which is not a small amount. Once they arrive at the moment of saying goodbye, our four protagonists continue at a good pace until sunset, exactly where, after 320km from home, the plain ends and the second half of the route begins, the toughest one, the one without a single meter of flat land, the one that crosses Tuscany and then Lazio, km after km, hill after hill.
The night was certainly the hardest test for everyone to overcome, the temperature difference between day and night hours during the early hours of the morning reached 25 degrees, a 25 degree difference to be faced without any changes of clothes, only by layering up with the materials everyone had decided to bring with them before leaving, completely independently, without cars in tow, without assistance. It is no coincidence that the choice of clothing on this type of project is far more than fundamental, I would even say VITAL.
Finally dawn has arrived, and the boys, between a hearty breakfast and the temperatures that have quickly returned to being mild and welcoming, regain their energy and the right mood to continue. A beautiful sun now warms their tired and worn bodies. They have arrived in Lazio, the hard part is done, now it's time to head for the capital.
Even though the signs saying "Rome" began to rise high above our heads before we reached the gates of the Eternal City, another 7 hours had passed since that regenerating breakfast. After all, we all know by now that the Assault boys have never liked easy things.
It's 3:00 PM on a classic "Roman October" day when Andrea, Stefano, Walter, and Francesco arrive together in front of the Colosseum, 30 hours after setting off, after pedaling for 24 consecutive hours, after pedaling 650 km and 5,000 meters of altitude difference, uniting two of the most beautiful cities in the world.
This is ASSAULT TO FREEDOM.
The clothing we used during our adventure.
HERO BLACK overalls
Sormano Jersey
Vest X VEST
SCARABEO cape (for the night)
Here you can find some photos of our company.
