DISTANCES AND DEGREES OF DIFFICULTY
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There are 64 individual rides described in this guide. The
shortest is 20 miles and the longest is 61 miles. The average length
is 38 miles. Because this is Tuscany, the length of the ride has less
to do with the degree of difficulty than the hills along the way.
Each daily tour stage is assigned a degree of difficulty rating.
The scale I use is based on movie ratings. I don’t know why or how
I came up with this particular ratings system except that while
researching this book I found myself referring to the climbs in these
terms. A “G” climb was fun for the whole family, no swearing or
violence involved. A “PG-13” climb could involve some profanity
and physical violence on the steeper sections. An “R” climb was
serious stuff likely to provoke gratuitous profanity, with wanton
violence, and some strictly adult situations. “X” climbs? Only for
the connoisseur of the truly steep. Adults only, and don’t bring your
mother. There are only two of these in the book.
