Transitalia 2021

This year, my supplier T.UR invited me to take part in the Transitalia Marathon. It's not really a race, as there's no stopwatch, but it's not a sightseeing trip either. This is the 7th edition.

I arrived in Milan where Diego, the head of Tucano Urbano, who founded the T.UR brand 2 years ago, was waiting for me. This is an adventure and touring-oriented brand, and Adventouring ???? is exactly what we do at Ixtem Moto. I also met up with Benoit, who represents the brand in the south of France. They both have solid enduro experience, so I was warned.

As soon as we arrived, we headed for Rimini, the starting town for the 4-stage Transitalia: Castiglion Fiorentino, Casciana Terme, Bolsena and Nocera Umbra. We crossed Tuscany.

Honda Italy had provided us with 3 magnificent 2020 Africa Twin 1100s. That's a bit of class. The event was well organized, with a dinner in a tent for all participants. This will be the case every evening. You get the feeling that things are easier to organize in Italy than in France. We're approaching 400 participants.

In the evening, T.UR and the marketing team prepared our outfits for the Transitalia. I found myself wearing :

• the excellent T.UR J-FOUR jacket,
• the P-FOUR pants,
• T.UR U-SKIN underwear,
• and T.UR G-THREE enduro gloves.

Underneath, I wore my Klim airbag vest in " adventure " mode . Going through the airport with an airbag vest always takes a while, but it's fine.

The jacket and pants are made of mesh, which was perfect for the heat still present in the regions we're about to cross. In case of rain, these garments are equipped with a removable internal rain lining. I was also supplied with a hydrabag to put in the jacket, which has a pocket for it. I wasn't really convinced by this accessory, which reminds me of the Decathlon one. The rest of the T.UR equipment is well designed, practical and resisted my falls well. Yes, I know I didn't have to give my body to test them, but I like to see things through to the end.

This was a rather special stage. With Benoit and Diego, we had to do a photo and video shoot during this first stage to illustrate T.UR products. We set off on the trail, only to leave it 50 km later to join the T.UR marketing team, who were waiting for us at a magnificent spot to shoot the famous videos.

We spent part of the day there. We were able to free ourselves around 5 p.m. and set off on the trail, which we didn't finish. Diego chose a splendid route through the mountains that took us to Castiglion. We rode like kids on the beautiful Africa Twin bikes.

We set off early through the Italian countryside. Diego and Benoit, both experienced enduro riders, took the lead. I tried to keep up with them, following Benoit's advice. On the white roads, he literally surfed the gravel. It bluffed the Italians he came across. "It's just a question of support", he told me benevolently.

In these landscapes alternating olive groves, cypress trees, wide plains and vine-covered hills, I took in the sights at my own pace. For lunch, we made a stop in San Gimignano, a picturesque little village in Tuscany that I'd been lucky enough to visit with the kids this summer in a camper van.

We arrived early in Casciana Terme. Diego had to take the Africa Twin back to Milan. He had an important meeting the next day.

The most beautiful stage for me! I had got to grips with the Africa Twin, Benoit's advice was starting to sink in, my pace was above average, and I was riding the trails with greater ease, enjoying the Tuscan countryside. What a pleasure to feel the bike react to my requests, I could have gone on for miles without getting tired. Well, it was a decoy and I'd figure it out by stage 4. With Benoit, we found a small family restaurant to have lunch and taste the famous Pici, a kind of large hand-rolled spaghetti.

It was a moment out of time. We arrived early in Bolsena, a pretty fortified town on the shores of a lake. You'd think you were by the sea. We slept in an old palace converted into a hotel, with a four-poster bed that allowed Benoit to dry his clothes.

Dinner, which for once wasn't in a tent, went on forever. I began to feel a great deal of weariness coming over me. We'd made friends with 4 young Italians, but I was losing the thread of the discussions. The time was getting longer, the late briefing was dragging on... I couldn't take it any more, so I ran off to bed, feeling an immense fatigue creeping over me.

This was to be the shortest but most technicalstage of the Transitalia. I'm brought back to reality by the GARMIN mounted on the bike. The track was more like 230 km. I should have been delighted, but I was feeling exhausted this morning. We joined the Italian group for the start. I was feverish and it showed immediately. I fell at a stop sign after 2 km. It was a fall at the stop that immediately dampened my spirits. I let Benoit express his talent with the Italians and went off on my own. I was angry and blamed my body for not keeping up. I couldn't ride the bike anymore. I had trouble getting my footing and giving the Africa Twin direction. The hairpins in the gravel became an ordeal. I met up with the Italians and Benoit mid-morning. We had a coffee, but deep down I knew it was going to be a complicated day. I set off again on my own and met Benoit at a service station. He accompanied me gently, playing the pendulum, all the way to the lunchbreak , where we had a picnic on the grass. I could play jacks with my skeleton.

What followed was not so glorious, as we set off downhill with big rocks and steps. I got off and let the Africa Twin's suspension do its job, and it did it well. Once again, we attacked all kinds of twists and turns on narrow trails that finished me off. On a faster section where I was feeling a little better, I lost the front end, landing miserably on my right flank. I lifted the bike with the help of an Italian competitor. The crash bars and hand guards protected the bike well. This is really important if you're off-roading.

A little further on, I took a rough trail uphill with hairpins. At the 2nd one, I laid the bike down. This was not my day. I then realized that I was no longer on the trail and that no one was coming to help me. Using my legs, I managed, somehow, to lift the bike and then, as I was on a slope, it started to turn and ended up on the ground again. I thought of Benoit again, always putting the bike in first gear. After several attempts, sweating all the sweat of my ordeal, I overcame and put the bike back in the right direction. I'd lost a life, as they say, but I was glad to be out of it.

I got to Nocera Umbra on my kneecaps, but took my time admiring the scenery. After the town of Asissi, which is the town of Saint Francis, we climbed up gravel tracks into the Monte Subasio park. The panorama is breathtaking, and we even came across horses grazing freely.

I met up with Benoit at Nocera Umbra. Simone from T.UR was waiting to take us back to Milan with a van to load the bikes. We had a 5-hour drive ahead of us. Benoit had a flat tire, finally tearing it on a last heavenly sprint at over 140 km in the gravel. He finished the last 10 km of the trail by road...

Thanks to T.UR for allowing me to experience this fabulous adventure in such privileged conditions. It was a wonderful back-to-school present.