My favourite ride: The Fausto Coppi Loop near Genoa, Italy
Continuing our series on our translators’ favourite routes, today Giuseppe takes on a tour of the Fausto Coppi Loop (and his favourite cafes, bakeries and gelaterie…) near his hometown of Rossiglione.
Style: Road / Gravel / Touring bike
Distance: 104 km
Elevation: 1706 m
My favourite ride? It’s the one I train for all winter and spring so that I’m fit enough to get round!
The loop starts from Fausto Coppi’s villa in Novi Ligure and is the route he used (together with his Paris-Roubaix winning brother, Serse) to train for the Giro d’Italia, the Tour de France, and especially for Milan-Sanremo – one of cycling’s ‘Monuments’.
I was lucky enough to be born and grow up in Rossiglione, a village near Genoa, northwest Italy, right on the course of the one most prestigious races in the world: the Milan-Sanremo. The race always used to take place on 19 March, which was a public holiday in Italy back then, dedicated to San Giuseppe (Saint Joseph) and it is also Father’s Day in Italy. My first memory of the race was when I was on the road waiting for the peloton to pass through my hometown. Giuseppe Saronni was one of the favourites that year and my name is Giuseppe, too, so you can understand my special bond with the race!
Perhaps that’s why every year I love to follow the route of one of the cycling GOATs and ride one of the five Monuments (well, not all of it of course). My route is a 100 km loop, so when I feel fit enough and the weather is kind, this is the ride I plan. Follow me on my favourite ride!
I usually start from Rossiglione early in the morning. The road goes straight up and a very gentle 10 km climb takes me to the top of Turchino pass; there’s a monument here to remember another cycling great (also born in my area) – Costante Girardengo. He won the Milan-Sanremo five times, so he fully deserves to be celebrated at the summit of the race’s highest peak.
Winter behind you and spring in front: the Turchino Pass Tunnel
From the 532 m pass, it’s time to descend to the sea. Mark Cavendish once said he loves the Classicissima di primavera – Milan-Sanremo’s nickname – because when you pass through the tunnel on the top of Turchino pass, it’s like winter is behind you and spring is in front of you… and, well, he was right.
Views from the descent of the Turchino Pass
At the end of the descent, we reach Genoa, the capital of Liguria (my home region). I usually stop at Panificio Priano, a historic bakery where they make the best focaccia in town – Genoese focaccia is the best in the world, so there you have it.
Now we follow the SS1 Aurelia along the coast. Make sure you turn right towards France, since if you turn left you might find yourself in Rome, where the Aurelia road ends! Of course, in Italy every road literally leads to Rome and this road was named after the Emperor Marcus Aurelius, so you’re riding on one of the world’s most ancient roads.
We head straight to Albissola, a small coastal town famous for decorated pottery. In fact, maybe we won’t go straight there; there should be time for an iced espresso by the sea 😉.
Caffeine refuel stop!
Once we arrive in Albissola, we turn right towards the mountains. It’s time to climb now, with an amazing view of the Ligurian Sea behind you. Next stop: Sassello, a small town where we can have some delicious local amaretti biscuits – the perfect carbo load, even for coeliacs as they’re made from almond flour!
At Sassello we need to make a choice: do we want to complete our 104 km planned ride, or, if we’re feeling good enough, go for a 140 km ride towards Acqui Terme? Acqui Terme is a beautiful spa town founded by the Romans, where you can ride over a historic cobbled bridge along the monumental Roman aqueduct which brought hot water to the city. But today we choose to turn right and head towards Tiglieto.
In Tiglieto, we can take in the Roman bridge and visit the very first Cistercian abbey built in Italy (also the first outside of France) you can even admire it in a painting exhibited in the Prado Museum in Madrid.
Say your prayers at Tiglieto’s Cistercian abbey before the last climb of the day
It’s the perfect place to rest for a few minutes, contemplating the beauty and peace of this place.
It’s time to go and tackle the last climb, with coastal scenery all the way. Passo della Crocetta is our ride’s last peak – now we can enjoy the downhill to Rossiglione.
Pausing to enjoy the view on the Passo della Crocetta
Pay careful attention to the road, but also, make sure you make some stops – you’re in the UNESCO heritage Beigua natural park, after all!
Home again. Always a welcome sight after a long ride!
I hope you enjoyed the ride as much as I usually do!
The best time of the year to do the ride? Spring and Autumn.
Best bike? You can see the bikes I tend to use on this ride in the pictures – so road, gravel or touring bikes are perfect. See you in Rossiglione!
Now, time for a good gelato!
