Stage 28 - The Finale

Stage 28

Anguillara Sabazia - Rome

Distance travelled: 23 miles

Ethan (my brothers son), was driven out from Rome by Simon (his godfather), to spend the night with Grant and I at our villa in Anguillara Sabazia, where we had spent the day resting ahead of the final ride into Rome. 

When I say resting, I actually mean getting very excited. There was a huge sense of anticipation in the air. Once I had completed the previous days blog,  we all set out for dinner and a few drinks too many. It was great to have Ethan with us finally, we filled him in with the many non bloggable stories of the tour and we all talked excitedly about the day ahead.  

Spirits were very high as we hit the "Happy Days" ice cream shop just before bedtime. We invented a new crazy photo bombing ice cream game called "Splodging". Check out Grants face on a close up if you can. 

The staff at Happy Days kept giving us free ice creams and were openly encouraging us to "Splodge".

Funnily enough, all four of us fell into bed and slept incredibly well. We awoke at 7:30am to the sounds of the most horrendous thunder storm ever heard. 

It was forecast to rain heavily all day, but as we packed the last of our kit, the clouds parted and we lined up one more time for the customary pre ride shot in the dry. 

As you know, I have been blaming the poor tour weather on Clive, particularly since the incredibly difficult conditions around the Ardennes. It looked as though he was to have the final word today though, by miraculously parting the storm clouds and giving us a window to ride into Rome. 

The riding order was Grant out front leading the way, Simon 2nd, with Ethan safely tucked in behind Simon, whilst I bought up the rear looking out for Ethan as we were concerned about the greasy surface and heavy traffic which were making cycling difficult. 

9 miles in, 9 miles in.......yet again, we had an incident.  This time, it was very nearly serious.

I had the perfect view (almost in slow motion), as Simon took evasive action to avoid a large pot hole at the side of the road. Heroically, he attempted to point out the dangerous hazard to Ethan as he swerved around it himself. With only one hand on his handlebars and his back wheel giving way, Spong didn't stand a chance. He was flying through the air, detached from his bike for what seemed like an eternity before slamming into the road, cracking his helmet, and badly bruising his arm and back. Not one to a miss a photo opportunity or a story himself, Simon had a sleeve rolled up and was on the phone to tell everyone about it straight away. 

Thank goodness Simon was ok, his head was a bit sore for the rest of the day, but on the whole he seemed to have got away with it. 

With that whole incident behind us and the weather still improving, the next 14 miles went in a bit of a blur. It seemed strange, almost unreal, that the tour was about to come to its conclusion. 

As I rode behind Ethan, thinking of my Brother and everything the tour has meant, I let my emotions go once again. At least I was at the back, with shades on, so I could keep it from the others this time.

We stopped with just a mile to go, to warn all the family and friends waiting at the Collesium that we were nearly there. Whilst waiting in a holding pattern, we shared a bottle of Prosecco and tried to contain our excitement. 

This was it. The last mile.  Was this really happening?  It most certainly was. We all shared our final man hug, and final words with each other before heading straight for the Collesium.  

After a few moments of confusion, wondering where everyone had congregated, we spotted the makeshift finish line and cycled over, Ethan and I finishing together with Grant and Simon following behind.

As we finally came to a stop, I was immediately embraced by my children: Evelyn, Cecilia and Max and finally, (when she could get a look in), my wife Dominique. Special moments indeed, I have missed them so much. 

Here's more shots of everyone at the finish line, we'd done it! 

We set off into Rome to celebrate over a long lunch, which turned into a long dinner into the night. The champagne was flowing, the laughter was continuous as we enjoyed the moment for as long as possible. 

At about 10pm I hit a bit of a wall. Maybe It was one glass of champagne too many, maybe it was the beginnings of the bad cold that both Simon and I are now coming down with as I type this blog driving back through Switzerland, but as you can see from this shot, it was time for bed for me:-

What a day. And what a year. A very sad year, for the reasons you know only too well. But also, an important year. I have been fortunate enough not to have worked for the past 12 months, so have had time to focus on Clive's family, tie up many loose ends, whilst also taking out essential time to focus on the important things in life, like my wife, my children, my parents, my sister and coming to terms with losing my brother....my best friend. 

My next adventure starts this Friday, when I start my new job back in the City. Im really looking forward to the new challenges that lie ahead. 

I hope you have enjoyed reading the blog as much as I have enjoyed writing it. I may do a few celebratory drinks at some point in the next month to thank everyone for their support and generosity and to share a few of the non bloggable stories. I will let you know.   

Until then.....Brett x