Italian passion is on full display at Stelvio Pass, riding the fine line between risk and reward
The Ducati 900 SuperSport was getting away from me. He’d snuck past at a roadwork traffic light and was now showing me the way up the twisty, tight and 48-hairpin-packed Stelvio Pass, a road so famous that Moto Guzzi has a series of adventure bikes named after it.
He either knew the road well or was simply faster than me, which was a little sobering given I was on a new 115hp Multistrada V2 S and he was on an ageing 80hp air-cooled 900… but I’d rather be slow than on my ear.
He certainly had me in the hairpins, but when he took a little longer to overtake a car than I did and I’d returned to his tail, I realised it was because he started wider, sweeping through the turns faster than I was game to… and then it came unstuck.
He went wide but had to change his line at just the wrong time to avoid a head-on, so he ended up too tight with too much speed to sweep through the turn. He made it around but had lost so much momentum that on the steep highside of the turn the bike just slowed so much and he, his pillion and the big luggage roll on the back of the bike toppled onto the ground.
Turns out people screwing up the hairpins of the Stelvio is so common that a couple of photographers were set up at the prime spots to capture the action – and of course there’s no shortage of onboard footage on YouTube, too – but seeing it live in front of me? That was a touch sobering.
We helped them back onto their bike and (I presume) father and daughter were fine beyond a scratched fairing and dented pride.
That experience strengthened my resolve not to play racer on this road, for while the masses visiting in the European summer had gone home, the numbers of bikes was still huge when we were there in early autumn, and there were more campers and cars than I’d have really liked, too.
Up high with amazing views
The second-highest paved pass in Europe (7m lower than the Col de l’Iseran in France), Stelvio Pass lies at the northern edge of Italy, a stone’s throw from Switzerland.
There are actually three ascents: Strada Statale 38 from Bormio to Prato allo Stelvio (which is what we rode and represents two ascents); and the Umbrail Pass to Switzerland (another legendary road I’ll have to ride next time).
Being so high, it offers incredible scenery of the high mountains, which are quite barren in summer and snow-covered in winter.
You can’t ride up here in the cooler months as it all turns into ski fields. Generally it’s closed from November to June, although unseasonal weather can shut it down at any time. Besides that it would be treacherous and very, very cold away from summer and the shoulder seasons. On the day we went, Bormio had a top temperature in the low 20s while the top of the pass had a forecast of 11°C (but I think it was warmer).
At the top of pass are numerous restaurants and shops selling expensive food, bad coffee and overpriced memorabilia, but it’s definitely worth a stop to check out the view of the road and mountains – plus, if you’re like us, you might spot an alpine marmot. Kirrily, my partner and pillion, spotted one grazing on the plants just below the wall where many motorcyclists sat to enjoy the view. The marmot obviously didn’t feel threatened by people.
Up and back
Our ride over the Stelvio was a there-and-back affair, leaving most of the luggage in our room at Bormio to be able to ride in both directions without heaps of gear hanging off the back of the bike – but the panniers were still attached, and I wasn’t leaving the camera, drone or GoPro behind.
Bormio lies southeast of the Stelvio, and you’ll quickly be in the tight twisties after leaving town. Most of the road there and back has a 60km/h speed limit, so it’s a fun touring road rather than an outright scratcher’s road, but there are plenty of challenges along the way.
There are 88 switchbacks on the route we took, so that’s 176 for the day; so despite it being less than 100km for the journey there and back, it’s pretty intense, even if you’re taking it easy.
The Stelvio Pass is acclaimed as one of the world’s great riding roads – its views and sinuous tarmac make it an unforgettable place to visit, although it’s really too tight for what I’d call motorcycle sporting fun. While there are relatively few fast turns and high-speed sweepers it’s primarily hairpin bends.
That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t visit, of course. It’s an amazing place – just practise some U-turns first, so you’re ready for the tight turns you’ll need to make again and again and again…
