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Damian's DCS Blog Arrival Day: I'm a Celebrity?
The large assembled cast of the DCS gathers with some trepidation and we introduce ourselves in readiness for the week to come cycling Stage 1 of this expedition from Rome to Nice. Lawrence Dallaglio - our host and the mastermind behind this torturous month of cycling nearly 3000 km's in 27 days (Rome - Nice - Paris - London - Fishguard - Dublin, Belfast - Edinburgh) - for a core group of 8 lunatics, is on hand to greet his riders. There has been a lot of speculation as to which celebrity mates Lawrence has coerced into joining him. Rumour has it that the DCS organisers were hours away from confirming JEdward as the headline stars for this leg, but their contract rider was impossible to deliver - allegedly - so attention immediately switched to those other stellar crowd pleasers - The Cheeky Girls. After hours of protracted negotiation their management grew increasingly uncomfortable with the whole bike analogy - allegedly - so it was back to the drawing board.
The first celebrity cyclist inevitably emerged from the sports world and was none other than Lee Dixon - the rock of the Arsenal defence for 14 years - who turned up at the airport looking in magnificent shape. Expect either Dave Brailsford from UK Cycling or Sir Fabio Capello (surely only a matter of time?) to be taking a keen interest in Lee's form and fitness over the coming week. When I found out the identity of our next celebrity, I must confess to being blown away. Knowing Lawrence as well as I do, I am constantly astounded by the impact he made as a rugby player and continues to make as a person. However, for him to have pulled of this coup of Celebrity A list mega stardom left me awestruck, and slightly perplexed. When I heard the name 'Sir Les' being whispered, I could not for the life of me comprehend how we were going to get a 75 year old Australian comic genius to cycle nearly 700 km's through Italy for charity. My mind raced as I envisaged long evenings spent over languid Italian dinners sipping fine wines and listening to stories of the Court of St James from it's most eminent cultural attaché. Imagine my minor disappointment when I realised that the 'Sir Les' Lawrence has snared was not actually Australia's finest export, Sir Les Patterson aka Barry Humphries, but football's very own 'Sir'Les Ferdinand, who now I think of it, probably has his own tales to tell of St James (Park), so perhaps all was not lost.
Our arrival in Rome brings our first contact with key personnel for our 7 day stay; our liaison man and general fixer on the ground, Mario (who else?) whisks us off to our Dallaglio Cycle Slam double decker tour bus, and we meet Welsh Phil the driver (aka Drives) and his crew. After the result at Twickenham last week Phil gives Lawrence a traditional Welsh welcome, which should come out if Lol soaks his shirt in warm water overnight.
The itinerary states we will be spending our first night at the Ritz in Rome - good old Lol has always had that touch of Italian style about him, inherited from his father Vincenzo. I have even packed my DJ and some eau de toilette in anticipation, so that I can head do to the Roulette tables after dinner to try and ingratiate myself with the locals, but this Roman version of the Ritz is more High Street Barclay, than Barclay Brothers.
A hearty carbo loading dinner is followed by a welcome from Lawrence and Rob Mauchlen, the Event Director, who introduces a support team that would put most professional Tour De France teams to shame. Joining us we have our guide French Fred - star man in the Pyrenees - Doctor Simon Morris; Dave Roberts (Rooster) and his physiotherapists; Campo our one man editing, producing and filming guru; 2 bike technicians; 2 masseuses; a manicurist; a witch doctor and a rabbi. It's fair to say that no stone has been left unturned in making this event an unforgettable experience for us all. Unusually for some of us cycling veterans, the wine consumption is moderate, and we all head to bed keen to get on the road and get the DCS underway.
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