The Sellaronda is a popular track in Italy that has its own event.
While it’s technically not a Granfondo – too short, no timing – I labeled it as one anyway.
It’s a tour around the Sella Group, which has four climbs / passes.
These are, clockwise from Corvara:
Passo Campolongo (1,875m)
Passo Pordoi (2,240m)
Passo Sella (2,244m)
Passo Gardena (2,121m)
Twice a year it is all but free of motorized traffic during the Sellaronda Bike Day.
You can start anywhere around the track, but course direction can change, i.e clock- or counterclockwise.
The villages at the foot of each of the four climbs are “designated” common starting areas.
These are: Canazei, Arraba, Corvara and Selva di Val Gardena.
Only the latter is “off track” a bit, see below.
There is no (official) rule stating that you cannot go against the “advised” direction, but I think it would be silly to do so.
At least during the event and as this is a course that’s open much of the year, you can ride in either direction on your own.
Sellaronda Course Details
Variations
Starting and finishing in the same location around the course doesn’t change the distance or the altimeter gain.
And it doesn’t matter if you cycle clock- or counterclockwise.
However, it does change which of the climbs are longer.
For example, starting in Canazei, you would cycle all the way up the Sella, if the course is clockwise.
You’ll also get the full length of the Campolongo (Corvara) and Pordoi (Arabba).
The Gardena is only the short final part from Plan de Gralba in this variation.
Starting in Canazei and going counterclockwise, you’ll cycle the Pordoi1 and Gardena (Corvara) in full.
The Sella (Plan de Gralba) and Campolongo (Arabba) are the short ends in this version.
1 The Sella and Pordoi have the first ~5.5 kilometers in common
Length(s) and D+
The location of your Sellaronda start does make a difference in total length and elevation gain.
But as stated above, this does not change whether you go clock- or counterclockwise.
If you start in Corvara, the Sellaronda is 51.6 kms clock- and counterclockwise, with a D+ of around 1,670 meters.
Starting in Arabba does not change those numbers.
But if you start and end in Selva di Val Gardena, the course is 61.5 kms long, with a D+ of 1,965 m in either direction.
This is because of the extra distance from Selva to the Gardena / Sella split in Plan de Gralba: ~5 kms with 295 m of D+.
And if you start and end in Canazei, your Sellaronda is 62.6 kms with a D+ of 2,030 m both clock- and counterclockwise.
Here, the difference is the shared distance from Canazei to the Sella / Pordoi split: ~5.5 kms with 350 m of D+ extra.
Maratona dles Dolomites
This Sellaronda is also part of the even more popular, but hard to enter, Maratona dles Dolomites.
That starts just north of Corvara, in La Villa and includes two ascents of the Campolongo.
Because of that, the course direction of the Sellaronda part for the Maratona is always clockwise.
It is free to enter the Sellaronda Bike Day and it does not require you to register, the Maratona is not free and impossible to register for 1.
The Rebel’s Sellaronda and Maratona
I have completed the counter-clockwise Sellaronda Bike Day on an official occasion in 2011 form Selva di Val Gardena and the Maratona dles Dolomites “on my own” in 2020 (Stage 6).
As stated above and mandatory for a Maratona, I cycled the Sella Ronda loop clockwise on that occasion.
1 Obviously not impossible, but it’s difficult – and expensive, if in a package deal – to get a ticket anyway…
Background picture of this page: H. Zell – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link
