Pedaling side by side with the great champions of cycling while enjoying the beauty of the two coasts. This is what the Gran Fondo Sorrento promises to offer, the sports event that sees among the main promoters the municipal administration, led by Mayor Massimo Coppola, who has granted patronage to the event, and the Sorrento Foundation, with the CEO Alfonso Iaccarino.
The first edition will be held tomorrow after the general rehearsal of last March, with the initiative "Sorrento with the Champions". On that occasion, about 100 cycling enthusiasts had the opportunity to participate in a cycling tour to preview the route together with the greats of past cycling. The first edition of the Gran Fondo announces itself with 300 registered, three times as many as last year, registrations will be reopened for latecomers on Saturday afternoon (from 2pm to 7pm) directly at Villa Fiorentino, the residence of Corso Italia headquarters of the Sorrento Foundation, which will become the headquarters of the event.
Champions who will also start next Sunday. Alongside amateurs will pedal the winner of the Paris-Roubaix Sonny Colbrelli, to whom the event is named, two world champions like Gianni Bugno and Igor Astarloa, the technical commissioner of the Italian national team Daniele Bennati, the regulator of the Giro d'Italia Marco Velo and the former professional Enrico Zaina (winner of three stages of the Corsa Rosa).
The festival for two-wheel lovers is scheduled for Sunday, February 25th. Start and finish will be in Sorrento. Ready, set, go and proceed to the north part of the Sorrento peninsula up to Castellammare di Stabia, passing through Vico Equense. Continue to Gragnano and cross the Agerola tunnel. You then arrive in Furore to enter the Amalfi Coast.
At this point, once back on the sea, a great spectacle for the eyes pedaling again on the Amalfi Coast, this time from its southern side. You pass through Praiano and then Positano. Another climb, the one that leads to Picco Sant'Angelo. Descent towards Sant'Agata on the two Gulfs and then head towards Sorrento with deviation of the routes.
The short one continues straight and in a few hundred meters arrives at the finish, for a total of 87.7 kilometers. The long route turns left towards Massa Lubrense and completes the entire circuit of the tip of the peninsula, admiring the silhouette of Capri up close. At Marciano, you will start to climb again for the last timed stretch, which will bring you back to Sant'Agata on the two Gulfs to repeat the final descent. The total kilometers to be covered in this case are 110.9.
A varied route, therefore, characterized by many ups and downs. The ranking will be drawn up taking into account only the sum of the times marked on the timed climbs, so there will be the possibility to enjoy the panorama and then give everything in the stretches that point upwards.
The stopwatch will start at four points of the route: the Agerola climb from Gragnano to Agerola (Gragnano roundabout - start of the Tunnel), then from km 20 to km 34 approximately; the climb of the Coast from Positano (locality Tordigliano) to the San Pietro pass, then from km 70 to km 73 approximately; the Picco Sant'Angelo climb from Colli di San Pietro (Anas house) to Picco Sant'Angelo, then from km 73.6 to km 77.2; the Nastro d'Oro climb (only long route), then from the Nastro d'Oro to km 92 up to km 96 approximately.
The meeting of the participants is set for tomorrow at 7.30 am on the Corso Italia of Sorrento. The start is scheduled at 8.30 while the arrival, always in Sorrento, is expected at 12.
At the end of the event, but also during the refreshments, you can enjoy the delicacies offered by the renowned gastronomy of the Sorrento peninsula.
On the occasion of tomorrow's appointment thanks to the collaboration with Federalberghi the organization has also prepared special hotel packages to allow cyclists and families to stay at a discounted price. The Asd Brixia Team, chaired by former professional Stefano Guerrini, organizes it. The race packs will be picked up at Villa Fiorentino, headquarters of the Sorrento Foundation, an organization that organizes exhibitions, events and cultural initiatives promoting the image of Sorrento and its coast in Italy and in the world.