Do you fancy riding the Maratona sportive this year asks a friend who has ridden the event on numerous occasions. One of the main organisers has been in touch and has offered several tickets if you wanted to have a go. Khalid aka professor is a regular and is keen we also experience the delights of the Dolomites. Never ridden in Italy so without hesitation add my name to the spreadsheet he circulates via email. I see other names I recognise so it seems a large contingent is interested. With my name added and sent back to Khalid it’s time to look at the course profile to see exactly what ive signed up for! Lots of climbing in glorious sunshine on closed roads. Whats not to like. However, one of the requirements was to obtain a medical certificate from the GP stating I was fit and well enough to ride. A quick call to the GP surgery and I was on my way to the medical. The GP was also a cyclist and had never come across such a requirement. It seems its only mandatory for events in Europe. Anyway, after a brief discussion and checking of previous medical history I had the certificate required which was uploaded to the website and all was done.
Where were we going to stay? How were we going to get to the airport with 9 bike boxes and passengers? How were we going to get from the airport in Venice to the hotel which was a 3-hour drive. So many questions! Low and behold after much deliberation Dr Sheraz took responsibility for finding suitable accommodation and Shaf volunteered to look at car hire options to accommodate passengers and bike boxes. Ive found a guesthouse on booking.com but its still being built advises Sheraz. Will it be ready in time? are there any pictures? will we need to take sleeping bags in case it’s not ready? Lots of questions but we put full trust in the Dr and he completes the booking. Car hire and logistics of getting to the accommodation wasn’t as straightforward. We needed two vans, one for the passengers and one for the bike boxes. This was now getting expensive and needed to agree on who was going to drive. I was ok to drive so sent a copy of my licence to Shaf without hesitation. Next hurdle was the airport transfer to Manchester as that’s where we were flying from. I remember I have a friend who does airport transfers but is his van big enough. I call him and ask he comes round so I can check. Hes adamant it would be ok but for my piece of mind he pops round. That’s a big bike box and you have 8 of them! I wheel it out of the house and load it into the van. After a few variations we agree it will work and the van is big enough. I take a few pictures and share with the rest of the group
As we get closer to the event both Sheraz and Sham had to cancel for various reasons. I think sham spent so much time eating and putting on weight he was worried about getting round. Anyway not an easy decision given so much work has been put into organising but as they say the show must go on. We were now down to 8 confirmed riders from up and down the country. There was me from Bradford, Chris from Bingley, Akky & Mike from Huddersfield, Shazad from Scotland, Shaf & Intasar from Birmingham and Qasim from Slough.
The day of travel had arrived and I was frantically calling the driver to find out where he was. However, to my surprise he was outside ready to pick me up! He had already picked up Chris from Bingley and then it was a short journey to pick up Mike & Akky aka Beard on a Bike from Huddersfield. It was still very early and dark as we approached Akkys house who was waiting outside with excitement. It didn’t take long to load his bike box into the van and we were on our way to Manchester airport.
The airport was extremely busy as usual despite being a dawn flight. We queued and checked in as normal given we had all travelled with bike boxes previously so kind of knew what to expect. No issues with weights but was asked whether we had any C02 cannisters in the bike box to which we replied no! Its hit and miss with these as some airlines let them through and others ask for them to be removed. We were all checked in and on our way to passport control and ultimately the departure lounge.
We touch down in Venice and its time to collect the hire vehicles. One for the bike boxes and the other for the passengers. Not sure where we were going with the signage not being the best resulting in a lot of back and forth I made an executive decision for the group to wait in the cafeteria while myself, Shaf and Intasar dealt with the hire vehicles. After managing to locate the hire office it turned out they were closed due to it being siesta time so had to wait nearly 3 hours. Another added complication was the larger van couldnt be collected from the airport as it wouldnt get through the airport barrier!
With both vehicles collected and loaded with bikes it was time for the 7 hour journey to where we were staying in Surega. The journey was good and the views were amazing. We stopped a few times to admire the beauty as well as having comfort breaks given the distance involved. Once on the road we made good progress and finally reached the hotel just before 10pm. It was late, dark and everyone was tired. Our host was waiting in anticipation and it wasn’t long before we were settled and were ready to hit the sack. Due to checking in so late we couldn’t truly admire the beauty of the location and was looking forward to the morning Sun. The next morning arrived and I was truly blown away. The hotel was new and the rooms were surreal. It was decorated to a very high standard and had an amazing view overlooking the mountains with it being next to a ski resort. Breakfast was amazing overlooking the Mountain View. Only issue was the hill climb after every ride in order to get back to the hotel!
The plan for the day ahead was to build the bikes and undertake a bike test using a pre-defined route which went past the village where we could collect the race pack. Everything went to plan bar Chris Mdee having an issue with a missing headset spacer and fitting the rear derailer incorrectly resulting gear changes not being smooth. The headset spacer was specific to the Canyon branded bike so not as straight forward to fix. A quick google search for local bike shops popped up one 5km away from the hotel. With the bike loaded in the van we headed to the shop. The shop was busy but the owner was super helpful and managed to provide a temporary fix which would allow Chris to participate in the event. Chris being relieved paid for the work carried out and we headed back to the hotel. Once back Shaf advises us of a bike shop literally at the bottom of the road leading to the hotel! Oh well mutters Chris as we go to meet the rest of the group who are now waiting for the test ride. We roll down the hill being ever so cautious due to the steep switchbacks. Once at the bottom we regroup and follow the predefined route. It’s busy with other cyclists also riding the event as well motorbikes and sports car convoys. We make our way towards the first climb and regroup at the top. Lovely smooth roads, gentle inclines and stunning Mountain views. The weather was amazing, blue skies and not a cloud in sight. Once at the top we take pictures before heading back towards hotel and onto the second climb. We regroup at the bottom but it seems Qas has decided to continue as he’s no where to be seen. We wait a few minutes before continuing along the pre defined bike test route. We try and keep it together as we roll past the hotel but it soon splits as we approach the climb. I continue making progress and can now see Qas in the distance. Trying to keep it steady saving the legs for the main event I gradually close the gap. We ride together for a few minutes but it seems he’s taking it very steady so I continue to the top. I wait at the cafe and order refreshments while the rest of the team make their way to the top.
We make the most of the cafe stop ordering lunch as we enjoy the stunning Mountain views. It’s fairly cold at the top but manage to find seating inside the cafe. It’s super busy as it’s seems most riders have the same idea of a leg stretch before the main event. We put on our rain capes to keep warm and enjoy the descent. Lovely switchbacks, smooth tarmac and fairly traffic free make it such as enjoyable experience. We stop near the start/finish for more pictures before heading back to the hotel. We decide not to ride to collect the race pack but to drive to the village and enjoy what’s on offer. Parking close by was a nightmare due to the sheer volume of people but we managed to squeeze the van into a space. Collecting the race pack was a very slick process and we even had the option of swapping jerseys which I think we all did! A carnival type atmosphere with lots of stalls and events taking place. We spent a few hours admiring bikes and window shopping before heading back to the hotel for a much needed rest ahead of the big day.
The big day had arrived. Breakfast was put on by the host which we were super grateful for given it was 4am! A quick breakfast before making our way to the start which was 5 miles away and mostly downhill. As you can imagine it was a tad cold first thing and once we reached one of the many start pens other riders started to gather. We were early so at the very front but it didn’t take long for the area to fill up with riders. Lots of local Italians wearing decorator type overalls which I assume was to keep warm. They did look quite funky but served a purpose. Intsar forget to put on a warm layer or assumed it would be warm at the start so would have benefited from an overall. Luckily he managed to find one on the side of the road so quickly put it on. While this was taking place a rider next to him had a back spasm and fell over in pain and agony. His mates were making comments about him not wanting to ride the event because he hadn’t trained much hence making excuses. However, he genuinely looked in pain. I guess bad timing but he was soon ok.
Another 15 minute wait in the cold before we were on our way. So many cyclists despite lots of holding pens making it hard work. Lots of wheel touching and close passing. What really helped was the passo campolongo climb more or less straight away. Lots of gaps started to open up and I was able to weave my way towards the front. Akky and Shaf were together with the rest just behind. It was very difficult to stick together due to the sheer number of people and hilly terrain. I got into my rhythm and was soon cresting the first of many climbs. The weather was warming up nicely, smooth roads, lots of people cheering at the side of the road, fantastic atmosphere, what’s not to like?
My plan was to keep it steadyish up the climbs and stop at a feed station where absolutely necessary. This worked a treat as I was mainly topping up the water bottles given the heat was forcing me to consume lots of water. After the first few climbs I was feeling good and managed to find a group. We worked well together but had to put an effort up the climb as to stay together. Lots of recovery on the downhill given how long some of these were. I did on occasion have to stop and put on an extra layer due to the cold. About halfway into the ride now and I was still feeling good so decided to press on a bit before getting to the main passo Giau climb. 6 miles at 9.5% in 35degrees made it an interesting climb! Such a lovely climb with switchbacks made it more enjoyable. Heat was a major issue as I was running low on water with the next stop being a few miles away. Once at the top I decided to have some food, fill both water bottles and take a 10 minute breather as there was still a fair amount of climbing to do.
Refuelled and rearing to go I headed down the long descent before approaching the second last climb of the day Falzerego. This was a shorter climb but made tough due to the blistering heat. Again out of water and pedalling squares before reaching the final feed station at the foot of the final climb Valporole. I had ridden this climb a few days earlier as part of the inauguration ride as it was fairly close to the hotel. Tired, heat struck and just wanted to get to the finish so kept moving. Super happy once at the top as I knew it was a lovely long descent towards the start/finish. However, I didn’t expect the short but still climb right towards the end which i assumed was the finish! Turns out there was another 4 miles of undulating terrain before the finish line. As I approached the finish line I was supper happy and pleased to have finished the event in such a respectable time of 6 hours and 52. I took a moment to reflect on the achievement before heading to the area where food was being served. Lots of pasta and pizza was consumed as I waited for the rest of the group to arrive.
One of the best organised events outside of the UK. The organisation, route, terrain, atmosphere and roads were amazing not forgetting that weather. If you ever want to have a go I would highly recommend this ride over Mallorca 312
Altaf Hussain 
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