We want to replace the super cheap back tire that we bought with Damien. We are so pleased that it has gotten us this far, but we know that it is a matter of time before it is unable to manage the load. The man at the campground recommended Borghi Bikes which is located a bit out of town and is reachable by mostly bike paths.
Ferrara is dubbed the "Amsterdam of Italy". There are so many cyclists and it seems that cars don't seem to have priority. Riding to Borghi, we had to ride the last few km on a busy road without a shoulder, and the cars and big trucks were very considerate of our presence.
Borghi Bikes - a great Italian bike store with staff who are knowledgeable and passionate about bikes. We have come to the right place. There are many trophies celebrating the achievements of their sponsored racing team.
It takes two to handle our rear wheel - Rohloff, extra drag brake, disk brakes, etc require extra work and they took good care of getting everything just right.
We have been looking forward to visiting a good Italian bike shop since we know how much Italians love cycling. This store and its staff lived up to our expectations.
Bugnoli - the visit here was a highlight for us. But, we almost missed the shop as the address we had was for the front door of their home. We had no way of knowing that the business is down a few alleys behind their home. Luckily they heard us ring the bell.
We have not been able to find 16" tires for our trailer in Italy. All we could find were off road tires for kid's bikes. Borghi Bikes recommended we go to Bugnoli south of Ferrara. This place is a treasure trove of tires, bike accessories, bikes - it is like a warehouse full to the rafters with bike stuff. Great fun for us. The woman working here gave us excellent service and even gave us a gift each of Michelin tire shirts with the Bugnoli Bikes logo.
New tires on the trailer and ready to go. Bugnoli is not advertised as a bike shop - it is known by locals and by bike shops that they supply parts to - so our presence as foreigners created a bit of a stir. A man who was shopping insisted on taking our picture.
I know that I sound like a broken record, but it is so hot and humid here. So, after Bugnoli and our successful visit getting tires, we headed to an air conditioned McDonalds nearby and celebrated with an Italian beer and burger.
The balloon festival is happening right next to our campground and we saw many interesting balloons. Strangely, the room at the campground, that is below the balloon, was never unlocked while we were there. It was frustrating as the bugs and mosquitoes were relentless and we all would have appreciated having a place to go that was inside.
Fabio and Valentino came up to talk to us because they saw our Canadian flag. They had lived and worked for 9 months in Toronto and had loved Canada. They also love their Vespa and spent 4 months touring Europe - we recommend taking a look at their website: www.stradeinmovimento.com
