Cent Cols Challenge 2012
Over the last three years, the routes the Cents Cols Challenge has taken in the Alps and Pyrenees have been tested and approved by brave riders. High time, then, to respond to the increasing number of requests for a venture into the Dolomites. Having ridden the Gran Corsa Giro d’Italia event this summer and guided several other Italian trips in recent years, I knew the pleas were valid one. Was this because I was loathe to threaten my love affair with the French peaks, or worried that the Italian version would just be too hard?
Something has previously been holding me back but now I feel the time is right. I was aware as I designed the route that I would have to be sensible, since the Dolomites have a measure of difficulty about them that’s a notch above other mountain ranges. Italians got their taste for flamboyance and drama from somewhere; I like to think at least some of it comes from the topography of their homeland.
Taking inspiration for a route from the excellent work of the Club des Cent Cols (www.centcols.org), the choice to include 100 ‘passos’ in ten stages has meant extensive modifications. It has also relied on much good fortune to create stages of roughly 200kms, each with a satisfactory ride feel. It soon became apparent that the riding gods were with us as my wife Claire and I set to work in the sunbathed mountains of Northern Italy last October. Most stages fell into place relatively smoothly; others required rather more work to find the best overall route. But as we nailed each stage, my excitement about the event grew. In some places I was redefining what hard riding is but I think I have remained realistic, too.
I chose San Pellegrino Terme as the Start/ Finish town, not only for its cycling location but also for its fascinating mix of Italian architecture, past and present. The Grand Hotel and the lavishly ornate casino stand at the centre of the town, both impressive reminders of the popularity that spa, or thermal towns as they are known, once enjoyed before fashion took the crowds to beaches. In contrast, the ugly bottling factories that spread along the banks of the River Brembana give a sense of the town’s less glamorous future. These factories, together with the large bland secondary school, create a striking clash between past and present that is somehow very Italian.
From here, just north of Bergamo, the route heads as far east as Paularo, part of a leg-loosening loop that follows a lacerating ride on the slopes of the Zoncolan, almost enters Austria at its most northern point, then reaches down to the slopes just north of Verona in the bleak but impressive Lessini National Park. Perhaps inevitably, some great climbs are omitted. To pass the sign to the Stelvio as the route goes through Bormio is a slight tease but to make a round trip to climb this one almost requires a stage for itself. But after climbing 101 (yes, 101) passos on the route, I can’t see anyone is going to feel shortchanged.
The route explores the most remote parts of the Dolomites region as well as the more predictable sections, such as the Sella Ronda. Climbs feature 10-12% sections on a regular basis, but sections of graceful sweeping hairpins are just as common. Always a welcome source of enjoyment and relief, this is where it feels like the roads have been built for cyclists. The albergos and refugios that are present at most summits offer a vital haven in bad weather and make the perfect place to soak up the sun (not to mention the moment) over a quick coffee. Those memories shared that will last an forever are a cyclist’s greatest reward for his efforts.
The Cent Cols Challenge in the Dolomites is set to be a very special ten days.
Relentless gradients, tireless hairpins, the drama of the rocky skylines, not to mention the perfection of the coffee, all combined with the Italians’ love of cycling. And at 2,000 kilometres with 50,000 metres of climbing, they are guaranteed to be a pretty busy ten days, too.
