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Soaring above the factories and farms of the Venetian Plain, the Monte Grappa casts its shadow over an entire region. As the local climb from our factory in Riese Po, we wanted to shine a light on the Ventoux of Veneto, and explore it from the perspective of one of it’s most famous sons – Alessandro Ballan.
Soaring above the factories and farms of the Venetian Plain, the Monte Grappa casts its shadow over an entire region. As the local climb from our Italian factory, we wanted to shine a light on the Ventoux of Veneto, and explore it from the perspective of one of its most famous sons – 2008 World Champion, Alessandro Ballan.
Words by Alessandro Ballan
For cyclists, the Monte Grappa is a test. It’s one of the highest mountains of the Pre-Alps at 1775 meters above sea level, and it’s not an easy one. From bottom to top, it’s around 1500 meters of altitude gain, so it takes a bit of preparation to make it.
I have many memories, with friends, in races, in training, but my fondest memory was the first time that I ever climbed it with a friend. I was only 14 years old – it took us more than two hours – so so long! We made it, even if I managed to fall off going uphill as I was so slow.
In winter, it’s really cold – especially to descend. From May when the season begins and the days begin to get warmer, that’s the best time. You’ve got to be careful with storms though – normally in the afternoon, a thundercloud will come along and it will rain heavily. That’s why I always take a proper jacket with me in my pocket.
There are many routes to climb the Grappa, nearly 9. 5 to the south from the Padana plain I know the best, but there are three main routes. From Romano d’Ezzelino the so called Cadorna is the longest at 27km – It’s not so scenic and has too much traffic..
The most beautiful is the Pederobba, and for climbers, I’d advise the Capra climb – which is formidable. If you want to really tire yourself out, go for the Via degli Alpini – which never drops below double digit gradients.
I advise you to take the turn to Semonzo with a coffee stop at around half distance in Campocroce, where you can see the gliding school. And of course, there’s an obligatory stop at the top for a deserved beer in the Rifugio Bassano on the summit.
The Grappa is a climb that I love – in a season I’ll go to the top only 2-3 times, but I’ll often go and do a section of the climb. Typically the early stretches I’ll do nearly every time I go out, like when I raced and trained. I would prefer to do three times 10km than to do once the full climb – that’s how tough it is.