Roadside St.14: After freezing his way through Milan San Remo earlier in the year our roadside expert Alessandro thought he'd seen the last of snowy bike races for the year - was he ever wrong! We sent him out again into the snow and rain today and he'll be out there again tomorrow for the shortened stage into France - It's a springtime snowy roadside special!

ROADSIDE St.9: Sunday's difficult stage in the rain was time for our two Italian roadside photographers to part ways until next time but before they did there was a stage to cover -and what a stage it was! Hills, rain, GC changes and a superb solo break.

ROADSIDE St.9: As a follower of pro races for some 20 years now, our Italian reporter Alessandro Federico has seen a lot of racing all over the world. Nothing quite feels the same though as when his favorite GrandTour of the year comes right through his home region! It's time for a special backyard edition of Alessandro's Giro di Pez.

ROADSIDE St. 8: My guide for an in-race tour of the 55km TT corsa to Saltarra was Garmin-Sharp’s Nathan Haas. And while the number of riders he passed enroute said he was laying down the watts, he claimed at he finish he was “just having fun”.

ROADSIDE St. 7: What a day! It’s pouring rain as we look for an exit from the race course behind the end of the convoy. Official’s horns are blasting and the guy who collects the race course markers seems irked that we’re in this procession – unless all his horn blasting just means he’s happy to see us.

ROADSIDE St. 4: It’s one of my favorite race day strategies – going fly-on-the-wall and watching the fans watch the action. The clouds parted at just the right time to bathe the start in Policastro Bussentini with warm southern Italian sun, and smiles were ordered all around.

ROADSIDE St. 3: Yesterday’s scenic boat ride to the even more scenic island of Ischia, served as the perfect appertivo for today’s 222km haul from Sorrento to Marina di Ascea (say a-shay-ah). This is possibly the most scenic corsa I’ve seen. Ever.

ROADSIDE St.2: How fast fortunes change when chasing a Grand Tour: one minute you’ve missed the boat to the TTT start, and the next minute you’re in the cockpit of the high speed ferry with il Capitano’s blessing. It’s day 2 and we’re just getting started.

ROADSIDE St.1: “The ONLY story is to have that big Canuck unload a heap of whoop ass on the Paul Weller clone and the shark! Disappointed he shaved the beard....it looked good with the aviator glasses, very euro chic / lumberjack hardman. Proper cycling role model.”