Training guide · Gran fondo · Südtirol, Italy
How to train for Maratona dles Dolomites
4 July 2027. Pass after pass through the Dolomites, with the Giau waiting on the long route. Here is what the day asks of you, and when your plan has to start.
- Date
- Sun 4 Jul 2027
- Weeks to go
- —
- Start
- Südtirol
- Routes
- 55 · 106 · 138 km
- Climbing
- 4,230 m
- Format
- Timed, dawn mass start, time checks on course
What this event asks of you
The Maratona is dense climbing. There is almost no flat road between La Villa and Corvara, and the passes come one after another: Campolongo, Pordoi, Sella and Gardena make up the Sella Ronda loop that every route rides, the medium route repeats Campolongo and adds Falzarego and Valparola, and the long route adds the Giau before those two. The Giau is the climb that decides the day. It is steep and steady for its whole length and it comes after the Sella Ronda is already in your legs. The organiser enforces time checks, so pacing is not only about comfort, it is about being allowed to continue.
A dawn start and a very large field mean the first pass is ridden in a crowd and often too fast. The physiology the long route asks for is a strong climbing tempo you can repeat, with descents that are short enough to offer little real recovery. Build the aerobic base, then train back-to-back climbing efforts with brief recoveries, so the sixth climb feels like a continuation of the first rather than a separate crisis. Fuel from the first descent, because on this course the only easy moments to eat are the ones you plan.
The day by rider level
| Route | Typical finish | What it needs |
|---|---|---|
| 138 km | 6 to 9 h | Repeatable climbing tempo across seven passes, the Giau ridden on tired legs, time checks made with margin |
| 106 km | — | The Sella Ronda plus Falzarego and Valparola, with pacing on the second Campolongo |
| 55 km | — | Four passes back to back with little flat to recover |
When your plan has to start
Counted back from the event date. If the organiser moves the date, these move with it.
Key climbs
- 1Passo Campolongo
- 2Passo Pordoi
- 3Passo Sella
- 4Passo Gardena
- 5Passo Giau
- 6Passo Falzarego
- 7Passo Valparola
The long route rides all of these, with Campolongo twice; the medium route skips the Giau and the short route is the Sella Ronda. 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.
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