Epilogue

 Some general conclusions on a variety of subjects

Planning

• The route planning, scheduling and accommodation planning went well from my perspective.
• The overall riding distances allowed for plenty of time for sightseeing and to deal with minor misadventure and the need to provide R&R time.
• Not one of the daily routes was a disaster.
• I had chosen the route and accommodation to provide a mix of experiences and we got that!
• I did the research before selecting May and this could not have been better - not too many tourists, excellent weather and being able to experience the festival of Sant Efisio in Cagliari.

The overall experience

• Fantastic. Sardegna is as I expected with the laid-back feel of rural Italy, but without the crowds of much of the mainland.
• The parade in Cagliari was an unforgettable experience.
• Almost perfect weather until I got back to Milano.

Food and drink

• It is easy to get good food in Sardegna, either "generic" Italian, or those dishes and ingredients that are indigenous to the island.
• Wine is good - Vermentino and several red wine varieties were good. Bovale (Graciano) and Cannonau (Garnacha) both produce good wines, and remind me of the close links between Sardegna and Catalunya. There is also good Carignan and to a lesser extent Monica.
• Cheap - coffee and cornetto for €3-4, lunch and a beer for €6 or less, dinner for €20, bottle of wine for €20, about half the price of Milano! We didn't even look for bargains.

Traffic and road experience

• Similar to much of mainland Italy, although lighter traffic throughout.
• Just as courteous as mainland Italy, although a tendency to drive fast on country roads.
• Quite good road surfaces comparted to (say) Puglia.
• The Maremma sheep dogs (which some other visitors to Sardegna have found daunting) were all well behaved - warned us to leave the sheep alone and apart from that were just vigilant. Compared to the magpies of spring cycling in Australia it was trivial!

The hire bikes

• A very good price, but the city bikes were not really up to the task of climbing with loaded panniers. Next time I would spend more and get better. Certainly something mid drive.

Technology

• Faultless - the Garmin 1050 is a beast.
• Three weeks of travel with a data-only SIM was fine.

Health and Fitness

I went into this trip with some question marks over my durability:

• Would I have a reoccurrence of recent problems with tendons in my hands?
• Would I have a reoccurrence of knee problems from overuse?
• How would my feet go?

All came through with flying colours and my body felt great for the entire trip! It was Spring, so I had some hay fever. That's it!