The Appenninici – From Argentina to Italy: Sergio Coratolo in search of his roots

by | Jan 24, 2023 | Highlights, Press Releases (2023)

Many stories of sports and life can be found among the Appenninica MTB Stage Race riders. In 2022, Sergio Coratolo combined the stage race in the Emilia-Romagna Apennines with a trip to Sicily, discovering the places of his ancestors
Some people participate in Appenninica MTB Stage Race to experience something out of the ordinary, some to discover new places and some to win a challenge against themselves. And there are those who, like Sergio Coratolo, have extended their journey to Italy from Argentina after the mountain bike stage race to discover their roots.

Sergio Coratolo’s grandfather was a native of Castellammare del Golfo, Sicily. Having decided to cross the ocean for Appenninica, he went to discover the places where his family came from, albeit this wasn’t his first time in Italy.

“I had already been to Italy, I had visited the Alps and Riva del Garda, and before arriving in Bologna for Appenninica I was in Rome with my wife. After finishing the race last September, I spent a few days in Castellammare del Golfo, where my grandfather was born, to discover the places of his childhood. On occasion, I also made a video for my father, who was never lucky enough to be able to go there”, said Coratolo.

Embellished by this romantic appendix, the Appenninica MTB Stage Race experience will also remain in the Argentinean’s heart for giving him a chance to discover the beautiful scenery of the Emilia-Romagna Apennines.

“I learned about Appenninica MTB Stage Race on the web, and since I had already been to the Alps and the Pyrenees, I said this would be an opportunity to know the Apennines. With an Italian passport, I will gladly come to Italy when I can. I’m trying to visit as much as possible”, explained Coratolo.

The Italian stage race experience has been promoted with full marks by Sergio Coratolo, who promises to return.

“I think I will come back to Appenninica. I enjoyed the experience. It is physically demanding but enjoyable because it allows you to meet new people and have a fulfilling experience”, said the Argentinian rider.

There is still so much Italy to discover, after all.

6 Stages Enough?

by | Jan 14, 2023 | Founders Blog

If you ask us, an MTB stage race should have no fewer than 5 stages and no more than 8. Ideally, it should take place on a mountain range. Hey, it’s the name of the sport: mountain biking. Mountains represent the ultimate adventure challenge: you against the mountain. You against your limit.

If you are racing mostly others. and not your own demons, you are not racing our kind of race. We dreamed, thought, designed Appenninica to be the race in which you find that aspect.
It’s not about the clock, or at least not only, but it’s mostly about being under test. You test yourself in a deep way, physically and mentally.

A football match lasts 90 minutes; a marathon is 42.195 km long. Our sport is different: when it comes to UCI Marathon events, riders face racecourses between 60 and 160 km. Meanwhile, UCI states that stage races run for “four days or more and feature at least one long-distance stage covering the minimum length of an XCM event, i.e., 60km”.

Granted that UCI’s formats are arbitrary, yet widely accepted, MTB stage racing is and should be shaped by the vision of the organizers who are the ones who know the territory and trails best.

We have downsized from 7 to 6 stages for 2023. We have good reasons, but honestly there’s no perfect answer and for sure there’s no one right answer to the question “how many stages should Appenninica run?”. And the feedback was sometimes positive, sometimes doubtful. The decision was NOT taken lightly but we had our own vision to follow.

Appenninica is hard. If the weather does not cooperate, it can be brutal. 2019 – boiling hot – and 2021 – with a very wet Queen stage – put everyone to the test. There is no lack of climbing and long technical sections at Appenninica and that will be unchanged. We have so many alternatives to propose to riders, so many trails that we can ensure a race that is always different, but complete at the same time: tough, enjoyable, technical, fast, and of course panoramic. All those features will be in the race equally.

At the end of each stage, we see you, we talk to you, we gather feedback. We even notice the unsaid. We know that you want a tough race, and we keep it as such. When we had mercy and shortened a stage in the second part of the week, your bodies thanked us.

Logistics – another impacting aspect.
We have not hidden the fact that 6 is better than 7 logistically, because many of our riders make it to Italy from other continents. It makes sense to try to fit the race + some recovery + flights within a working week. If you have days to spare, you are in Italy!

These are some of the reasons why we say: six is enough and plenty.

Appenninica registrations start with a bang: 50 Early Bird spots already sold out

by | Dec 9, 2022 | Highlights, Press Releases (2022)

The first days of registrations for the 2023 edition (September 4-9) recorded an immediate success, selling out the whole early-bird contingent in just a week. The organizers offer another opportunity: 20 more early-bird slots to be claimed by December 18th

The crave for the Appenninica MTB Stage Race is sky-high. There are still ten months to go until the event scheduled from September 4th to 9th, 2023, but it took just one week to burn through the 50 spots made available by the organisation for the Early Bird Registration phase. After the first registration slot opened on December 1st, the race numbers available at a reduced price quickly vanished.

As per tradition, the A.S.D. Happy Trail MTB launch the registrations with a special offer to allow those who have already planned their 2023 season to claim their spot for the challenge on the Emilia-Romagna Apennines at the best possible price. An opportunity seized by fifty riders from all over the world (Netherlands and United States in first place), also highlighting the global appeal achieved by the Appenninica MTB Stage Race.

“We are thrilled to have reached the sell-out of the first registration phase in a short time. This result is the consequence of the constant growth in recent years, which has made the event known almost all over the world. To help those who were surprised by such quick progression, we have decided to offer additional slots at the Early Bird price for a limited period”, explained the organizers of Appenninica MTB Stage Race, Milena Bettocchi and Beppe Salerno.

The Early Bird Registration will be extended until Sunday 18 December, with additional 20 places at a special price. A unique opportunity for the many mountain bike fans who want to try an epic six-stage challenge along the Emilia-Romagna Apennines. Appenninica is a full-service race, and the entry fee includes not only the race number but also accommodations, meals, transfers between the stages, and other services.

After the 20 additional Early Bird slots at €1,090 have sold out, the Regular Registration phase will starts, at a fee of €1,290.

New format, same calendar spot: Appenninica looks forward to 2023

by | Nov 16, 2022 | Highlights, Press Releases

The great mountain bike stage race challenge in the Emilia-Romagna Apennines trims its race days to six. The 2023 edition will take place from September 4 to 9; registration opens on December 1

The organizers of the Appenninica MTB Stage Race don’t like standing still. Following a 2022 edition, which earned excellent feedback from the world at large, the stage race in the Emilia-Romagna Apennines has already set the dates to be circled in red by champions and fans alike. The fifth edition of Italy’s most important MTB stage race will take place from September 4-9, 2023.

The dates reveal the first significant new development for the 2023 edition. The ASD Happy Trail MTB organizers have opted for a new 6-day race format instead of the previous seven, while maintaining the usual calendar dates in the first half of September. This choice was made to favor athletes in terms of logistics, and for a smoother race execution. Even with this new format, the appeal of one of the most challenging international races – as recognized by athletes and insiders alike – remains untouched.

“The 2022 edition has consolidated our growth. For this reason, we wanted to introduce a new format that won’t change the nature of the Appenninica MTB Stage Race but will allow us to improve some aspects at the logistical level, and also meet the needs of athletes, as well as improve the race experience. For 2023 there will be six stages instead of seven, but the setting in the Emilia-Romagna Apennines will be unchanged, as will the difficulty and epic nature of the challenge conceived by Appenninica. We believe it can enhance the event’s value,” said Milena Bettocchi and Beppe Salerno, co-organizers of the stage race.

The countdown to registration kicks off with the announcement of the 2023 dates. The “Early Bird” phase will officially open on Thursday, December 1, and end on December 31. Only fifty slots will be available at a reduced price during this period. Appenninica is a full-service race, and the entry fee not only includes the race number but also accommodations, meals, transfers between the stages, and other services. The entry fee will then increase in subsequent steps from January 1.

As for the last four editions, the organizers have confirmed the solo racer format and the number of race participants set to a maximum of 150. This number is aimed at avoiding overcrowding on the trails and ensuring a high standard of quality support for all participants.

Arias and Diesner put their final stamp on the 2022 Appenninica MTB Stage Race

by | Sep 10, 2022 | Highlights, Press Releases (2022)

The two overall victors also took the last stage starting and finishing in Vidiciatico, in the municipality of Lizzano in Belvedere. There were ninety-six finishers in an exciting edition experienced by athletes from 28 nations who came to discover the Apennines of Emilia-Romagna

They were the strongest racers all week and they wanted to punctuate this fact in the final stage as well. The 37-kilometer stage featured 1550 meters of climbing with start and finish from Vidiciatico in the municipality of Lizzano in Belvedere. The fourth edition of 2022 Appenninica MTB Stage Race ended on Saturday, September 10. Diego Arias and Naima Diesner were the winners.

The Colombian racer from the Hubbers-Polimedical team started out as a race favorite and he proved to be the strongest each day. This was true in the seventh stage as well, which Arias finished in 1:56:13. The general classification leader wanted to make his mark from the start by forging a white-hot pace on the trails of Monte Pizzo. Miguel Munoz Moreno (DMT Racing Team) finished 3:57 behind the leader with Felix Fritzsch down by 5:50 from Arias.

Arias’ debut at Appenninica was crowned with five stage wins and the victory in the general classification. The Colombian racer finished all seven stages totaling almost 450 kilometers with 16,000 meters of climbing in 22:05:11. Behind him were the two DMT Racing Team riders, with Portugal’s Francisco Filipe in second at 34:42, and Spain’s Miguel Munoz Moreno in third at 1:08:05. Completing the top five spots at the 2022 Appenninica were Dutchman Gosse van der Meer (Euro Cycling) in fourth, and Federico Mandelli (Piraz Coaching MTB Academy) in fifth. Mandelli was also the first Italian in the GC.

“I came out of the 2022 Appenninica MTB Stage Race with good legs, I managed the race well during all seven stages. It was a very nice week in a fantastic area with a mixed course full of climbs. I’m happy to have had this experience and next year, I hope to come back and defend the title. Now I head to the MTB marathon world championships – I think there’s no better preparation for the rainbow challenge,” was Diego Arias’ final comment after winning.

NAIMA DIESNER TAKES THE TITLE

Having beaten the competition last year, Naima Diesner came back to prove herself in the 2022 edition. Diesner won the women’s general classification for the second consecutive year – this time leaving nothing to her rivals. Having won all seven stages like Esther Süss did in 2020, she finished her effort with a final time of 30:48:27.

Diesner also won the final stage in 2:45:42, with a margin of 12:31 over Debora Lana and 20:51 over Camilla Marinelli at the finish in Lizzano in Belvedere. The two Italians also finished second and third respectively in the general classification with more than an hour down from the German BUFF-Megamo racer. Completing the women’s top five were Elena Novikova in fourth place, and Rozanne Slik in fifth.

 

“It was a wonderful adventure again this year, I am delighted to have won. For me the Appenninica MTB Stage Race is like a family, I love the atmosphere of friendship after the hard work in the stages, it makes me feel at home. I can’t wait to come back again next year,” Naima Diesner said as she finished the week as the absolute star.

ALL CLASSIFICATIONS: MASTER, GRAND MASTER, GREAT GRAND MASTER

Not only was there a race for the men’s and women’s rankings in the GC, the Appenninica MTB Stage Race was also a week of battles in three other race categories: Master (over 40), Grand Master (over 50), and Great Grand Master (over 60).

In the Masters, the overall winner was the Russian Andrey Dianov ahead of Francesco Gaffuri and Thomas Jauner. Winning the Grand Master category was Slovenia’s Peter Vesel, while Italians Paolo Viglione and Federico Celeghini completed the podium in second and third place. There was another Slovenian victory in the Great Grand Master category, where Aleš Boben won ahead of Evžen Reitschläger and Raffaele Verzella.

96 FINISHERS AND A WORLD SPOTLIGHT FOR THE EMILIA-ROMAGNA APENNINES

With 28 nations represented at the start in Castelnovo ne’ Monti, Appenninica made a name for itself as the perfect promotional event for the Apennines of Emilia-Romagna. Participants will remember the picturesque landscapes and regional culinary delights worthy of a postcard that have become the winning formula to grow the event year after year.

“Once again this year, we’ve managed to satisfy the participants, which confirms the good work we’ve done over the past few years. The Appenninica MTB Stage Race is increasingly recognized and valued at an international level – this is also thanks to the experience as expressed by past participants. The goal is to continue along this path by offering a race that is increasingly a mix of competition and adventure – a tough and demanding challenge to be experienced immersed in the beauty of the Apennines of Emilia-Romagna,” was the final word from co-organizers of A.s.d. Happy Trail MTB, Beppe Salerno and Milena Bettocchi.