Cyclopaat, an alter ego with a twist
My previous post was about the stages grasshopper Volkan and I will ride together, this one is dedicated to the rest of the “Bormio road book”.
I will have a maximum of 15 days / stages, if I don’t break myself beyond recovery during any of those.
I have Friday’s Prologue worked out and Sunday the 13th will be Stelvio Mapei Day; whether or not I cycle anything else that day remains to be seen.
When grasshopper Volkan asked about the stages I intend to ride with him, I figured it would be a good idea to write down what I have in mind for us to ride together.
Grasshopper will join us on Wednesday, cycling effectively starting on Thursday – that’s 4 stages, maybe 4½, if he cycles every day he’s in Bormio until Monday.
Meaning I need to create and “put aside” 5 stages we will cycle together…
Having ticked off 5 new passes from the “100 Greatest” – or so I hope – during the Dolomites Bike Days, I am aiming for more back in Bormio.
The “Italian Alps” part of the list consists of 37 climbs, and within reasonable distance of Bormio I should be able to pocket another 4, possibly 5.
Together with the 14 on the Dolomites list, I will have completed 25 of the 100 😅
I was looking for a hotel close to the Sella Ronda, as I have permission to pencil in a “Dolomites Bike Day”, when Paula asked me some details about the amenities in our Bormio apartment.
I navigated to the Italianway website for the page with the apartment’s info, but I couldn’t find it, so I emailed them and they got back to me the next day.
Turned out they were no longer renting out that apartment 😱
I’m very happy to confirm I have secured a spot in the 2025 edition of the Mapei Memorial Aldo Sassi, cycling a motorized traffic-free Stelvio 🥳
The Re Stelvio Mapei / Memorial Aldo Sassi is a classic, with some 3,000 enthusiasts, including runners and cyclists, both professionals and amateurs, like me.
It is a rare opportunity to climb this mighty pass stress free and I’ve enjoyed a “Mapei Day” before, back in 2011, on my birthday.
This year’s edition is on Sunday, July 13th. Given my Prologue on Friday, I’d better plan an easier stage on Saturday.
Maybe Bormio 2000 or another end of the breathtaking Torri di Fraele – the Turripiano ascent was in both the 2011 and the 2015 Giro d’Italia.
