Training guide · Gran fondo · Cesenatico, Italy
How to train for Gran Fondo Nove Colli
23 May 2027. Italy's biggest gran fondo, from the coast at Cesenatico into nine short, sharp climbs in the hills of Romagna. Here is what the day asks of you, and when your plan has to start.
- Date
- Sun 23 May 2027
- Weeks to go
- —
- Start
- Cesenatico
- Routes
- 137 · 200 km
- Climbing
- 3,814 m
- Format
- Timed, mass start from Cesenatico
What this event asks of you
The Nove Colli is Italy's biggest gran fondo, a mass start from Cesenatico on the coast into the hills of Romagna, and the long route takes in nine named climbs. None of them is Alpine in length. The difficulty is their rhythm: short, steep climbs with sharp ramps, the Barbotto the steepest among them, followed by fast descents and only brief flat sections to recover. The Monte Pugliano is the biggest single climb of the day and comes in the second half. The last climbs arrive when the heat of a late-May afternoon is at its worst.
The start is fast and crowded, and the first climbs are ridden in a race-like surge that most riders cannot sustain. The capacity this event rewards is repeatability: hard climbing efforts of several minutes, recovered incompletely, repeated into the sixth and seventh hour. Build the base first, then train blocks of repeated climbs on tired legs. Pacing means letting the first two climbs go, not winning them. Fuelling and drinking matter more than usual because the heat builds through the day and the final climbs are where cramp arrives for riders who fell behind on both.
The day by rider level
| Route | Typical finish | What it needs |
|---|---|---|
| 200 km | 7 to 10 h | Nine repeated climbing efforts with incomplete recovery, heat in the afternoon, cramp prevention through fuelling and pacing |
| 137 km | — | The first group of climbs including the Barbotto, with a controlled start out of the crowd |
When your plan has to start
Counted back from the event date. If the organiser moves the date, these move with it.
Key climbs
- 1Polenta
- 2Pieve di Rivoschio
- 3Ciola
- 4Barbotto
- 5Monte Tiffi
- 6Perticara
- 7Monte Pugliano
- 8Passo delle Siepi
- 9Gorolo
The nine climbs of the long route in course order, as published by the organiser. Gradient, length and where each climb sits in the day will come from the route engine once the organiser's GPX is loaded. Until then this list is hand-written from the route, with no figures attached.