We will have a defined time to meet our support vans at the Tirano, Italy train station for the 30 minute transfer to our hotel in Bormio. There are direct trains from the Milano Centrale station to Tirano once every hour during the day; the trip takes 2.5 hours. For those arriving Milan Malpensa airport, there are also hourly trains from the airport train station to Tirano; the trip takes 3 hrs 39 min, with one train change in Milano Centrale.

After check-in at our two hotels (which are adjacent to one another), we will meet for our bike fitting, and while the rental bikes should have been dialed into the measurements/specifications you will have provided in advance, some minor adjustments are typically needed. Please bring your computer mount, pedals and saddle (if you are particular about saddles and brought your own) to the fitting. Sometime thereafter we will gather in one of our hotel’s meeting rooms for introductions and to review the schedule for the week and other tour details.

At 7:00 PM we will meet for a welcome dinner.

Hotel La Genizanella: https://www.genzianella.com/en/

Olimipia Hotel Bormio: https://olimpiahotelbormio.it/en/home-inglese/

The Ride:
Bormio 2000 and the Torre di Fraele | 32 miles (50 km) | 5,800 ft ( 1,800 m) elevation

What to Expect:
Given that many in our group will be a bit jet-lagged, we will start our first cycling day an hour later than we will the rest of the week, and our optional inspirational morning devotions will begin at 8:30 AM. We are planning to ride a relatively modest distance, only 32 miles (50 km), but on a route that will introduce our group to the kind of climbing we can expect the rest of the week.

The first of our two planned climbs starts almost immediately after we depart our hotels, as we cycle to the ski resort of Bormio 2000. Only 6 miles (10 km) long, we will climb 2,500 feet (750 m) at an average 7.6% grade. At the summit we will enjoy a coffee before turning around and descending the way we came, then ride through Bormio to the northwest side of town.

We start ascending our second climb soon after we leave town and make our to the Torre di Fraele, a ruined medieval tower that is all that remains of the outermost military post of Bormio defensive system. It was originally built in 1391, fortified in the 15th century, but finally destroyed in 1510. The climb is a truly spectacular twisty road, with numerous hairpin turns, including a ladder of 18 tight switchbacks as we approach the Torre. The official climb is 5 miles (8.9 km) long, ascending 2,000 feet (625 m), an average grade of 7.0%.

After stopping for photos at the Torre (with great views of the switchbacks we ascended), we will continue another 2 miles (3 km) up the road to Lago di Cancano, where we will stop for a picnic lunch with a view. After lunch we will turn around and enjoy the twisty descent, then make our way back to our Bormio hotels via a slightly different route than we cycled on our way out.

Hotel La Genizanella: https://www.genzianella.com/en/

Olimipia Hotel Bormio: https://olimpiahotelbormio.it/en/home-inglese/

The Ride:
Stelvio Loop: Umbrail Pass from Bormio and Pass dello Stelvio from Prato | 62 miles (100 km) | 10,500 ft (3,200 m) elevation

What to Expect:
After our warm-up ride on Day 2, today is one that will test your climbing legs. And your lungs, as we ascend the second highest paved pass in the alps. At 2,758 meters, Passo dello Stelvio is only 12 m lower than the Col de l'Iseran in France.

Our day starts with a short ride through Bormio, and then we begin the Stelvio climb. The climb from this side (the south) is considered slightly easier than the opposite, classic side (from the east), and is officially 21.3 km and 1,560 m of ascent, an average 7.3% grade. But today we won’t be going all the way to top, instead turning left at the Umbrail Pass, 3 km and 260 m (850 ft) of elevation shy of the summit. [We will cycle the entire Stelvio climb from this side on Day 5.]

Almost immediately after the turn we will enter Switzerland, and our descent will take us down 1,125 m (3,700 ft) in only 13 km (an average 8.6% downhill grade) to the Swiss village of Santa Maria Val Müstair. From there we continue descending for another 20 km, although at a much lower grade, and make our way back into Italy. After a few kilometers more of relatively flat cycling we reach the town of Prad am Stilfserjoch/Prato allo Stelvio, and the climb up the classic side of Stelvio begins.

This is the climb of legends, officially 24.8 km long with 1,846 m of ascent, an average grade of 7.4%, which includes a 5 km section at an 8.9% grade. Canadian Jack Burke recently made news for setting the Strava segment KOM in 1:08:32 on 15-Oct-2024, about a minute faster than #2 Jai Hindley, and nearly four minutes faster than #3 Vincenzo Nibali. The lower part of the climb is in a forest, but about 10 km from the top of the climb the views open up, and you can see the famous “wall” with 48 numbered hairpin turns leading up to the summit. While cycling up you will likely see numerous high-end sports cars - in 2008 Jeremy Clarkson from Top Gear praised Stelvio as “the greatest driving road in the world”, and the road has been clogged with sports cars every summer since then.

After a short break at the summit, which on a beautiful summer day is one big party, we will don layers for the amazing 21 km descent to our hotels in Bormio. We think most in the group will call this one of their favorite metric centuries in the world.

Hotel La Genizanella: https://www.genzianella.com/en/

Olimipia Hotel Bormio: https://olimpiahotelbormio.it/en/home-inglese/

The Ride:
Mortirolo-Gavia Loop | 70 miles (115 km) | 10,500 ft (3,200 m) elevation

What to Expect:
Today’s loop will take us over two classic Giro climbs, and they are two of the three steepest climbs we will summit on this tour. Unlike our two previous days, when we started climbing almost immediately, today begins with an easy 20 mile (32 km) ride south from Bormio, a slight downhill grade that will warm up the legs nicely for the task ahead. When we arrive the town of Mazzo di Valtellina the fun begins, with an ascent of the Passo del Mortirolo, a climb that first appeared in the Giro in 1990, and has now been included 16 times, 11 of them on the same side we will cycle. Lance Armstrong once famously said of the Mortirolo, "It's a terrible climb...perfect for a mountain bike. On the hardest parts…I was hurting, really hurting…the hardest climb I've ever ridden.” Only 12.1 km long, it is 1,313 m to the summit, an average grade of 10.9%. [On the way up we will find a 5 km section at 12.8%.] The Strava segment KOM, like the Stelvio KOM, is owned by Canadian Jack Burke, who rode it in 43:31 on 16-Nov-2024. Vincenzo Nibali, #2 on the leaderboard, is one minute back.

After recovering at the summit, perhaps with a coffee or hot chocolate if the cafe at the top is open, we will don layers for the steep descent to the town of Monno, and then turn east to ride up the valley to Ponte di Legno, where the famous Passo di Gavia climb begins, which has appeared in the Giro ten times. The 15 km ride up the valley will not be as easy as it looks - it is actually at a 2.5% grade. After a stop for a light lunch in Ponte di Legno, we begin the climb made famous by Andy Hampsten in Stage 14 of the 1988 Giro, who rode the climb in a blizzard and, after starting the day in fifth place, earned the Maglia Rosa. The Gavia is officially 16.4 km long with 1,325 m of elevation gain, an average 8.1% grade, with the steepest 5 km at 9.2%. Joe Dombrowksi owns the Strava KOM with a time of 45:27.

We will stop at the top of Gavia for a hot drink and pastry at the summit restaurant, and then don layers for the 25 km descent to our hotels in Bormio.

Hotel La Genizanella: https://www.genzianella.com/en/

Olimipia Hotel Bormio: https://olimpiahotelbormio.it/en/home-inglese/

The Ride:
To Bolzano via Passo dello Stelvio | 65 miles (105 km) | 5,500 ft (1,650 m) elevation

What to Expect:
After two consecutive challenging days, we take a break with a rest day. As those who follow professional stage races know, a rest day doesn’t mean a day off the bike, it means a day without hard efforts. Today’s ride is a little over a metric century, and while it starts with the full ascent of Passo dello Stelvio from Bormio, the last 85 km are all downhill to our hotel between Merano and Bolzano, where we will spend one night on our way to Alta Badia.

As we did two days prior, we will start up the Stelvio almost immediately as leave Bormio, but this time instead of breaking off the climb at the Umbrailpass, we will cycle all the way to the summit, the full 21.3 km with 1,560 m of elevation, an average 7.3% grade. The last 3 km of the climb, which we did not cycle when we rode the loop through Switzerland, is actually the steepest 3 km section on this side, 8.8%. The Strava segment KOM from Bormio is 1:06:14.

[Since today is a rest day, and  we will have cycled most of this climb two days prior (when we turned and headed into Switzerland at Umbrialpass), riders will have the option of riding in the van to the top of Stelvio, after which they can enjoy the long descent to our hotel eight kilometers south of Merano on their bikes.]

Although we will have started the climb early on a Sunday, if the weather is nice, the party atmosphere at the summit may already be building by the time we arrive. After enjoying snacks and refilling our water bottles, we will don layers for the descent, which is on the classic side we ascended two days prior. The descent is quite technical right from the start, when we need to navigate the 48 steep hairpin turns with traffic. About 15 km from the summit the road straightens out, and we will roll into Prato Allo Stelvio (the start of the Stelvio climb on this classic side) for lunch. After lunch we ride 50 km with a gentle downhill grade to the small city of Merano, and then finally on the Adige bike path - through a wide valley with many vineyards - to our hotel in Burgstall on the way to Bolzano.

Hotel Muchele: https://www.muchele.com/en/

The Ride:
To Alta Badia via 3 Passes | 70 miles (110 km) | 9,000 ft (2,700 m) elevation

What to Expect:
Today we continue to make our way to Alta Badia, working our way over three mountain passes. From our hotel we get back on the Adige bike path and cycle a very flat 27 km through Bolzano. Our first climb of the day, Passo di Costalunga, starts as soon as we leave the bike path, and it begins with a challenge: 4 km of cycling in a tunnel, the first half at a 7.5% grade, the second half at a 5% grade. Riders who get claustrophobic may choose to ride in the van and meet the group after we exit the tunnel. There are a few more tunnels on the climb, but we will avoid them by cycling a bike path. The full climb averages a 5.7% grade that may feel modest after Stelvio, Mortirolo and Gavia, but at 25.6 km, it will be our longest climb of the tour, and we ascend 1,500 m.

At the top of Costalunga we will enjoy a feed/hydration stop, or maybe even lunch, then begin a modest descent - about 450 m over 9 km - before ascending again. We will ride about 10 km at a modest 1.5% grade to the town of Canazei, where we begin the ascent of the second climb of the day, Passo Pordoi, which tops out at an altitude of 2,239 m. In the winter Pordoi is connected to three other passes - Campolongo, Sella and Gardena - by ski trails, creating a loop called the Sella Ronda, which can be skied in either direction. In the summer the route is cycled, and on two days each year the roads are closed so thousands of cyclists can ride the loop counterclockwise with no traffic. From Canazei the Pordoi climb is 12 km long with 800 m of elevation, an average 6.7% grade.

From the summit we will descend 10 km to the town of Arabba to begin our third, final and easiest climb of the day, Passo di Campolongo. From this point, the climb is not particularly challenging, only 4 km at an average 7.2% grade.

From the top of Campolongo we enjoy a 6 km descent to the resort town of Covara, and the second half of that descent may be the sweetest of the trip, with sweeping turns and eye-popping mountain views. From Covara it is another 8 km of descending to Alta Badia, where a short, very steep ramp is required to get from the main road to our hotel.

Hotel Melodia del Bosco: https://www.melodiadelbosco.it/en/

The Ride:
Six Summit Loop: Gardena, Sella, Pordoi, Santa Lucia, Giau, Falzarego/Valparolo | 75 miles (120 km) | 12,300 ft (3,650 m) elevation

What to Expect:
Today will be a truly extraordinary day on the bike, with 6 passes and 3,650 meters of climbing on a counterclockwise loop route. We start climbing immediately, ascending the 8 km at a 2% grade to the town of Covara, which we descended the prior day. There we begin to cycle 3/4s of the Sella Ronda Loop, starting with Passo di Gardena, then Passo di Sella and finally Passo Pordoi, joining it about halfway up the full climb we did the prior day. The only climb in the Sella Ronda Loop that we will not cycle today is Campolongo, which we cycled the prior day.

After descending Pordoi to the town of Arabba, we will cycle 15 km southeast along a mountainside road overlooking a valley to the start of our shortest named climb of the trip, Colle Santa Lucia. The climb itself starts lower down the mountain, and we will join it only a little over 2 km from the summit. We will find a small village at the top of the climb, with a church in a breathtaking setting, likely causing many of us to stop for photos.

As we pass the village we enjoy a 2.5 km descent, then begins one of the highlights of our tour, Passo di Giau, which is also the second steepest climb (after Mortirolo) that we will cycle. This is how the organizers of the Giro describe this epic mountain: “When an enchanting scenery opens up at the top of a pass, with alpine meadows scattered with small wooden huts and the rocky cliffs of the Dolomites as a backdrop – and the peak of the Nuvolau as imperious guardian – then you know you have arrived at the 2305 metres of altitude of the Giau Pass. A snake of hairpin bends (29 to be exact) leading to what is almost unanimously described as ‘the most beautiful landscape in the Dolomites’. However, if your wish is to reach the summit by bike, you will have to work hard, especially if you climb from the more classic side, that of the Colle di Santa Lucia, which begins in Selva di Cadore. 9.9 km at 9.3% are the numbers of Giau, numbers that have written the history of the Giro d’Italia and made this climb legendary. The Giau has been climbed 9 times in the Corsa Rosa, the first in 1973, with the last kilometres, unpaved at the time, making it all even harder. The myth and legend of this Dolomite climb, however, has been established mainly in the last 15 years of the Giro, as it has been included in the route six times since 2007 (most recently in 2023). One of the most epic pages bears the signature of Colombian Egan Bernal.” In Stage 16 of the 2021 Giro Bernal attacked Simon Yates and Romain Bardet in brutally cold, wet weather (the earlier Pordoi and Fedaia climbs had been cancelled because of the freezing conditions). “The Colombian turns himself into a Dolomite hawk that day, he flies all the way to the summit of the Giau before setting off downhill. In Cortina, despite the rain and the cold, a large crowd is waiting for him: Egan does not disappoint, he takes off his cape and crosses the finish line with the shining Maglia Rosa in full view. The stage is his, and so is the Giro!”

Our sixth and final climb to end the loop back to our hotel is Passo di Valparola, but we get to check the box on one more pass, Passo di Falzarego, 1.2 km before the summit. [Falzarego is a destination summit in its own right, and we will likely stop at the summit restaurant for a coffee. No one will object if you could it our seventh summit of the day.] From the top of Valparola we have a fast 18 km descent to our hotel with stunning views - keep your eyes on the road and don’t overcook the turns!

The cycling data on the six climbs is summarized here - distance/climbing elevation/avg grade/summit elevation:

Passo di Gardena: 9.3 km/601 m/6.5%/2,121 m

Passo di Sella: 5.4 km/381 m/7.1%/ 2,244

Passo Pordoi: 6.5 km/439 m/6.8%/2,239 m

Colle Santa Lucia: 2.3 km/166 m/7.2%/1,471 m

Passo di Giau: 9.7 km/911 mt/9.4%/2,236 m

Passo di Valparola: 11.5 km/657 mt/5.7%/2,192 m

Hotel Melodia del Bosco: https://www.melodiadelbosco.it/en/

The Ride:
Tre Cime di Lavaredo | 75 miles (120 kms) | 11,000 ft (3,300 m) elevation

What to Expect:
On many tours in the Dolomites today’s route would be considered the Queen stage, with four climbs, the third one legendary. Our day starts by cycling in reverse the climb we ended our loop route with the prior day, Passo di Valparola. From this side the pass is 14.2 km with 770 m of climbing elevation, an average of 5.4%, but one that is perfect to warm up for a big day on the bike - the climb starts at a modest grade, and then steadily builds through the ride, with the steepest section as we approach the summit.

At the top of the pass we will enjoy a feed/hydration stop and put on layers for the long (17 km), fast descent to the famous ski resort of Cortina d'Ampezzo. While some of our group might want to stop to rub elbows with the beautiful people that frequent Cortina, or shop in its many luxury boutiques, there is no rest for the weary here, except perhaps a brief coffee stop and to remove layers.

We cycle out of Cortina on a counterclockwise loop, with Tre Cime di Lavaredo (the three peaks of Lavaredo) our destination: a summit used seven times as a stage finish in the Giro, considered one of the most beautiful locations in the Dolomites. First up as we leave town is Passo Tre Coci (Three Crosses), which was the middle "stair” in stage 19 of the 2023 Giro, when the pros cycled Giau, Tre Croci and Tre Cime in order, and organizers described the route as the "Holy Stairs" of the Dolomites. From Cortina we will ascend 579 mts over 7.9 kms, an average, and fairly steady, 7.3% grade. At the summit of Tre Coci we may not want to put on layers, because we will only descend 4 km before taking a branch road off our loop to begin the out-and-back climb to Tre Cime: 10 km with 715 m of elevation to the summit. Along the way we will bag another named climb, Col Sant’Angelo. But don’t be fooled by the average 7.1% grade - it is the last 4 km of the climb that make Tre Cime famous. While this section is known by most visitors for its stunning views of the three peaks, Cime Grande, Cima Ovest and Cima Piccola, “three fingers of rock pointing harmoniously towards the sky”, cyclists remember it for other reasons. Giro organizers describe it like this: “Arriving at Lake Antorno, the road flattens out for a couple of kilometres before climbing again to Malga Rin Bianco for the final, deadly 4 km.” The grade on those last 4 km averages 12.4%, with a 1 km section at 14.3%. “The climb exalts those who managed to save some energy earlier and annihilates, instead, those who by now have no more fuel in the tank.”

First cycled in the Giro in 1967, it is remembered for Eddie Merckx’ exploits on the climb in the 1968 Giro, when he attacked in the rain and won his first Giro, and then again in the 1974 Giro, when he was attacked on the climb but “managed to react with a burst of pride in the last few hundred metres, saving the symbol of supremacy by just 12 seconds, just enough to win his fifth Giro.” Then there was the 2013 Giro, when Vincenzo Nibali “emerged on the climb in the middle of a blizzard, arms raised and without gloves to celebrate his first triumph at the Giro d’Italia. Among the Shark’s opponents that day was a Colombian trio, Fabio Duarte, Rigoberto Uran and Carlos Bentancur, and also Cadel Evans, whose rear brake froze in the final kilometres. After all, in the Dolomites, at an altitude of 2300 metres, you just never know what to expect.”

After recovering with a summit lunch, we will descend back to the main road, then continue our counterclockwise loop to the north, then west, then south - 33 km of downhill joy back to Cortina. When we arrive the ski resort, riders will have an option. They can continue cycling the route back to Alta Badia, which is via the Passo di Valparola, 17.1 km at an average 5.8% grade. The first 5.6 km will be new, but the rest of the climb - and the route - will be the same as what we cycled at the end of the prior day. The alternative will be to call it a day, put the bikes on one of our support vans, and ride back to our hotel in comfort.

We will conclude our epic ride with a final dinner together, and celebrate our truly extraordinary week.

Hotel Melodia del Bosco: https://www.melodiadelbosco.it/en/

Sadly, our epic tour through the Dolomites will have come to an end, and we will need to wish one another Godspeed. We will have shuttles to Venice Marco Polo airport for those departing by air, or to the Venice Porte Marghera train station for those departing by rail.