Home > Clothing

Riding in the Dolomites with Castelli

Passo Sella
Passo Sella
The view from Passo Sella.

I was weaving all over the road. It wasn’t fatigue. The grades on the Passo Sella, which average 7.9 per cent throughout its 5.5 km, weren’t helping. The real cause of my zigs and zags was my smartphone. I was aiming it all around trying to capture the scenery of the Italian Dolomites. I felt every snap, save the ones with my finger in them, could launch a successful postcard business.

It was my second full day based in Corvara, the finish town of the Maratona dles Dolomites. The Maratona is a gran fondo that will run for the 29th time this Sunday. Its longest course is a mere 138 km. The kicker is the 4,230 m of elevation that feature in those kilometres. There are six passes, Campolongo, Pordoi—which has featured as the Giro d’Italia’s Cima Coppi, the race’s highest peak, at least 13 times—Sella, Gardena, Giau and Valparola, and the nasty Mür dl Giat, which is a little more than 1 km, but has sections of 19 per cent. That last bit comes just before the finish.

Sella Ronda profile
Sella Ronda profile.

I was riding the Sella Ronda route. At 55 km, It’s the shortest of the Maratona’s routes, yet it features the first four of the six climbs. My group was checking out the first 1,780 m of what we’d face on Sunday. I was with Jordan Behan of Vancouver, the winner of our Maratona getway, as well as representatives of Castelli—the Maratona contest sponsor—and friends of the company. One rider, who owns a shop about one hour away, told me that of the climbs, the views on Sella are the most stunning. The mountains seem to press down upon you. He was right.

Routes of the Maratona dles Dolomites
Routes of the Maratona dles Dolomites.

When I arrived in Corvara on Wednesday, I thought the alpine town was teaming with cyclists. Keeners had come to get some of the climbs in their legs in advance of the big day. Since then, more and more riders have come to town. The bike room in my hotel is jammed with bike boxes. It’s now hard to find a place to lean your rig. This morning, when we climbed out of town on the Passo Campolongo, the switchbacks were jammed with cyclists. On Sunday, 9,000 riders will be out. According to event organizers, more than 30,000 people applied to get in. I’m already impressed with the rush hour-like volume of cyclists on the road. I expect Sunday to be even more impressive. It will also be great to have the roads to ourselves: no hairy encounters with passing or overtaking cars, trucks or motorcycles.

Sella Ronda
The roads of the Sella Ronda were busy with all sorts of vehicular traffic.
Castelli Aero Race bib shorts
Castelli Aero Race bib shorts

The Sella Ronda ride wasn’t only a reconnaissance of part of the route and the climbs, and a test of the legs. I was also testing kit from Castelli. They had outfitted me with a Volata Jersey FZ, Free Aero Race bib shorts. Free 9 socks and Rosso Corsa Classic gloves. I was most intrigued by the bibs. They feature a dimpled pattern on the sides of the legs to make you aero like a golf ball. This design is supposed to save you 9 watts when compared with the previous generation of the Free Aero. The leg grippers are fierce; it’s best to roll them up before putting on the bibs. Get everything sorted, and then roll down the leg grippers. The fit will be locked. And it’s a great fit, especially at stomach, where designers minimized the amount of fabric above the waist. The jersey takes many cues from the Aero Race jersey, using similar construction and fabrics. The Volata is a little less racerly. I’m usually a size small. While the Volata fit me very well at the shoulders and arms, a slimmer, shorter chest section would have been better. I don’t have any hard numbers as to how much more aero the kit made me, but everything felt great on the screamingly fast descents. The gloves were essential as I might have gripped the bars a little too tightly after cresting Campolongo. But after exploring the range of the Cervelo R3 that Castelli lent me, building up my speed tolerance and getting into a groove on the switchbacks, my grip relaxed.

The day before the big Maratona, I have a have a one to two hour “recovery” ride. I’m skeptical about recovery rides in an area in which you can only go up or down. The night before the main event, I plan to go to bed as early as possible. I’ll be up in the dark to get to the 6:30 a.m. start. After the ride, there’s a pasta party in Corvara. I have no doubt the day will be just delicious.

Castelli Volata Jersey FZ
Castelli Volata Jersey FZ