The 2019 Giro d’Italia included a stage on Lake Como and a stage on the nearby Mortirolo climb. Hotel Il Perlo and ComoLagoBike hosted a cycling tour of these stages for a group of cyclists from Pittsburgh, Australia, and Canada.
Stage 15 was the first full Giro course to race over the famous Ghisallo, Sormano, and Civiglio climbs of Lake Como. It was a stage to honor the Race of the Falling Leaves, Il Lombardia, which has been challenging the best racers since 1908. The Giro tour group rode to the Sormano climb, and I had a fun time with the tifosi at the feed zone near the summit. Full photoset on my Flickr.
The next stage on the Mortirolo began with a drive to the Valtellina valley northeast of Lake Como. The group rode on the beautiful Sentiero Valtellina bike path to the base of the Mortirolo, then made the entire steep 13km climb dodging crowds and zigzagging fans on bikes. After the ride they sat down to an incredible meal of local specialties at a trattoria along the course and then watched the pros suffer up the climb before riding back at the end of the day. Full photoset on my Flickr.
