ARABBA: THE KINGDOM OF CYCLING

The famous "Four Passes Tour" is certainly an attraction that has made famous the Venetian town of Arabba both to skiers and to mountain bikers.

The town has a “gate” on the east towards the eastern Dolomites, from Cortina to the Falzarego and the Giau pass, a prime location that puts this town in the heart of beautiful trails, both for mountain bike and road bike.

Who will choose Arabba to ride, will find excellent structures and paths that can meet the needs of everybody, from the family to the professional athlete.

Not for nothing Arabba is the only place to be always "open", even in the months of May and June and it is able to accommodate the bike-fans who want to try to face the classic Pordoi and the Fedaia, newly freed from the snow.

Arabba offers dozens of kilometers of roads and paths, qualified guides, downloadable Gpx paths, hiring stations well equipped, instructors and ski lifts that can bring the bike at high altitude without forcing you to do too hard efforts.

Everything starts from the Sellaronda MTB Tour, the tour around the Sella massif, absolutely the most panoramic because it winds along the most beautiful parts of the Dolomites, UNESCO World Heritage.

The tour need to be done with a guide - to take the lifts and get off road you need to be accompanied by an expert - and it can be done both clockwise (58 km, 3400 meters of elevation gain/700 using the facilities) or anticlockwise (53 km, 3,000 vertical meters/1,300 using the facilities). In addition to the main route you can then add endless variations.

On the territory of Arabba there are another spectacular tracks. In addition to Arabba Tour, which runs through the valley from south to north-east, in fact, the favorite by bikers are the Sass Becè Tour (from Pordoi pass to the Belvedere over the Val di Fassa), the route of the Incisa Pass (uphill on the hill that overlooks the Alta Badia, crossing the highlands of Cherz to Passo Campolongo and a up to Rifugio Bec de Roces by chairlift), not to mention the Tour of Passo Padon or the one that goes down in Pieve di Livinalongo .

All the paths require breath and technique, both for the climb and the descent, where there are many exposed sections to be done cautiously and scenic spots.

Two routes suitable to everyone: the best is the ascent from Arabba to Plan Boè, with a medium degree of difficulty, or the path that climbs from Renaz to Malga Cherz and Contrin, along ten kilometers with less aggressive slopes.

THE NEW SINGLE TRAIL "PORDOI FREERIDE"

In Arabba there are also two single trails recognized and certified. The first comes down from Bec de Roces, starting from an altitude of 2,160 meters and ending at 1,600 meters in Arabba, it’s 3,300 meters long and it has over 500 meters of difference in height.

The other one, realized this year, needs to be tried: the Freeride Pordoi Single Trail has a degree of difficulty classified as "medium-hard" and it starts from the Pass at 2,229 meters of altitude then it goes down in the meadows down to the Pont de Vauz (1,857 meters ), just above the village, with a total length of about 3,000 meters and 380 meters of negative difference in height.

The so-called "pedal assistance" Bike complete the best rentals in the Alps - including of course those of Arabba - and super technology MTB with the battery and the electric motor are chosen more often by off road for lovers for their excursions.

The E-Bike allows everyone to complete the climbs with a gradient otherwise impossible.

WITHOUT FORGETTING THE ULTRA-LIGHT FANATICS...

Do not forget the asphalt. There is only one road that goes through Arabba - the famous state road SS 48 of the Dolomites. Pordoi and Campolongo are a true monument to the Italian cycling, here there are exciting climbs of the Giro d’Italia as well as the Marathon of the Dolomites, the largest marathon in the world that this year has seen thousands of competitors at the start.

For this reason, each summer Arabba is crowded of cyclists from all over the world who come here on vacation just to be able to ride on these legendary roads. On top of the Pordoi, the monument to Fausto Coppi remembers his epic feats and it is a cult destination for fans.

The guides of Arabba, as well as rental points, are useful not only for the off-road lovers but also for those who prefer the road, there are accompanied tours and dedicated facilities.

TWO SPECIAL EVENTS

* SELLARONDA TRAILRUNNINGS

Saturday, September 12th. The tour of the mountain, running on foot independently along the paths at high altitude.

* SELLARONDA BIKE DAY

Sunday, September 13th. All Dolomite passes around the Sella will be closed to traffic and will be reserved for cyclists.

ALL INFORMATIONS:     www.arabba.it