Sportful Dolomiti Race
A demanding day in the mountains for those who like a tough challenge. As the organiser says, Only Real Cyclists.
Billed as the hardest one-day Gran Fondo in Europe, entrants in the Sportful Dolomiti Race face over 200 grueling kilometres across five legendary passes to gain over 5000 metres of elevation. First run in 1995 as the Gran Fondo Campagnolo, the event now goes by the name of the Sportful Dolomiti Race and it's geared towards the more serious cyclist.
Starting and finishing in Feltre, both the medio and Gran Fondo courses have been significantly updated for 2024. Gone is the ferocious Passo Manghen, added are the Passo Duran and Passo Staulanza for the Gran Fondo. Both options still retain the legendary Croce d’ Aune as the final uphill. With its memorial to Tullio Campagnolo at the summit, this pass is holy ground to cyclists but by then all riders who have completed the full distance will be praying for the finish in Feltre’s Piazza Maggiore at the end of a truly epic day on two wheels.
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The Route
Although this event is most famous for the longer Gran Fondo route, the Medio Fondo with it's 120 kilometres and 2800 metres of climbing is no slouch, either. After a brief flat section leaving Feltre, both routes tackle the first obstacle, the 990m Forcella Franche.
After a descent back down to Agordo, the two routes split, and the Medio circles back and heads up the Forcella Aurine. The Gran Fondo continues on up the vicious Passo Duran, with its 12 km at over 8% average. This is followed by the less grueling but no less scenic Passo Staulanza, before a long descent back to Agordo and the medio fondo for the Forcella Aurine and Passo Cereda before another huge descent to the base of the Croce d’Aune. If you have paced it right, by the time you reach the memorial to Tullio Campagnolo at the summit you should be on your last legs, and all that is left is to roll down to the finish.
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