Trails & Travel

Travel | Andiamo, ragazzi! – Kicking off the season in Finale Ligure

17.03.2015
by

Finale Ligure does not really need an introduction. Having evolved over the last decade into a biking hotspot, this location on the Ligurian coast is recognised all over the world for enduro riding. Fabrizio D’Aloisio is a guide at the Bike School Engadin and the start of March marked the beginning of his season in Finale. His black-and-white images document this stop-off of the Enduro World Series from a unique perspective.

finale-ligure-photostory-2015-fabrizio-d-aloisio-18

Early March 2015. It’s snowing in Switzerland. The winter shows no sign of abating. My new enduro bike is in the garage, impatient to be ridden. I long to escape, flee to the sea.
Four and a half hours later, Finale Ligure welcomes us with its balmy 16 degrees and endless trails. But there’s more than just trails on offer here. As cyclists are one of the region’s biggest year-round sources of income, opportunities and offers for riders abound. Benvenuti!

Einfach mit dem Bike ins Restaurant reinspaziert – in Finale gehört das zum guten Ton.
Simply bring your bike into the restaurant with you – part of the great vibes in Finale.

Finale Ligure is a picture-book Italian town: stunning old town, beach, sea, gelati, wonderful little shops, friendly and fun-loving people, olive groves, incredible wine, pesto alla Genovese and ravioli. What more can you want?

Hauptstadt Liguriens ist Genua. Andere bekannte Städte der Region sind San Remo, La Spezia, Ventimiglia.
Liguria’s capital is Genoa. Other known cities in the region are San Remo, La Spezia and Ventimigla.

Amazing trails, of course. And there are more than enough of those here. But as a newbie to Finale they’re not always easy to find. That’s why it’s definitely wise to book a guide for your first visit to Finale.

Unser Bike-Guide heute: Lorenzo. Einheimisch, technisch versiert, sympathisch. Volltreffer!
Our bike guide for today: Lorenzo. Local, technically adept, friendly. Perfect match!

On the first climb we meet Marco and Sergio, two not-quite-so-young freeriders and proof that even as a 60-year-old you don’t have to resort to cross-country.

Ageless Freeriders: Die einheimischen Pensionierten Marco und Sergio fahren nur noch bergab – für die Aufwärts-Höhenmeter nehmen sie lieber ihre Autos zu Hilfe.
Ageless freeriders: Local pensioners Marco and Sergio only ride downhill these days – preferring to do the climbs with the aid of their cars.
Bravi, ragazzi!
Bravi, ragazzi!

Once you reach the top the freedom is endless – and that cliché finally make sense to us. But now we’ve got some incredible trails to go down. Action!

Kill Bill, Rollercoaster. Ein paar Trail-Leckerbissen warten auf uns.
Kill Bill, Rollercoaster. A few trail treats await.
Je nach Gebiet und geschichtlichem Hintergrund sind die Trails in Finale Ligure von unterschiedlichem Charakter. In höheren Lagen um die 1.000 m ü. M. wird es auch mal waldbodig.
Depending on the area and its local history, the character of the trails in Finale Ligure can be really varied. Higher up, around 1,000 metres, it can be really forest-like.
Speziell für Biker vorbereitete Wege sind flowig. Viele davon sind aber etwas ausgefahren und damit nicht ganz einfach zu meistern.
The trails designed with riders in mind are super flowy. But quite a lot of them are rutty and therefore not the easiest to ride.
Historische Wege sind meist grobschottrig und verblockt.
The historical trails are usually pretty boulder-strewn and partially blocked.
Insgesamt ist Finale Ligure deshalb eher etwas für den fortgeschrittenen Enduro-Biker und nicht für den Anfänger geeignet.
Perhaps because of the technical nature of the trails, Finale Ligure is more suited to advanced enduro riders rather than beginners.
Viele Trails bieten ein fantastisches Panorama mit Meersicht.
Many of the trails have incredible panoramic seaviews.
Die schroffen Ausläufer der bis zu 1.300 m hohen Berge, die Finale Ligure umgeben, stürzen sich beidseitig der Bucht von Finale ins Mittelmeer.
Surrounding the bay of Finale Ligure are the rugged foothills of the 1,300 metre-high mountains, which head straight down to the sea.
Panoramareiche Trails, die direkt am einladenden Meer enden. Eine Kombination, die viele Biker aus Mitteleuropa das ganze Jahr nach Finale zieht.
Stunning trails with panoramic views that lead all the way down to the inviting sea. A combination that draws riders from central Europe to Finale no matter what time of the year.
Zusammen mit dem einzigartige Klima an Liguriens Küste natürlich. Das lässt auch in den Wintermonaten das Thermometer selten unter 10 °C fallen.
That – and the unique climate of the Ligurian coast, of course. Even in winter the thermometer rarely drops below 10 degrees.
Ein Klassiker: Die Abfahrt nach Varigotti eröffnet dem wintergeplagten Biker neue Perspektiven.
A classic: the descent to Varigotti gives a new perspective to riders suffering from those winter blues.
In Finale sollte man sich mindestens einmal shutteln lassen – das Leben ist schliesslich sonst schon hart genug. Oben angekommen: Naja, Ihr wisst schon: Yahoooooooo!
You should definitely give shuttling a go at least once in Finale – life’s hard enough after all. And once you hit the top, well, you know the drill: let’s go!
Enduro-Bikes mit 160 mm Federweg und 27,5”-Rädern sind meist die beste Wahl für die ligurischen Trails.
Enduro bikes with 160mm travel and 27.5″ wheels are often the best choice for Liguria’s trails.
Wer nur per Shuttle Aufwärtshöhenmeter meistert, kann auch den Freerider oder Downhiller mitnehmen.
If you choose to shuttle for the climbs then you can take your freeride or downhill bike instead.
Auf jeden Fall kann man hier die „dicken Dinger“ aufziehen. Spitze Steine hat’s genug.
In any case, fat is good here as there are plenty of technical sections and pointy rocks.
Auf dem Abstieg Richtung Meer empfiehlt sich die eine oder andere Abkürzung durch die malerischen Dörfer. Was uns am meisten Eindruck gemacht hat: Die Einheimischen sagen einem sogar wo es die coolsten Treppen hat, die man runterfahren kann. Genial.
Take a detour through one of the picture-perfect villages on your descent towards the sea. What impressed us most was that the locals even told us where the coolest steps were to ride down! Amazing.
Für alle, die im Winter in der städtischen Nebelsuppe rumstochern: Die Bäume im Hintergrund sind Zitronenbäume – und sie tragen mindestens eine Million gelbe, vitaminreiche Zitronen. Wirken schon beim Anblick gesundheitsfördernd.
For those who spend winter surrounded by concrete: the trees in the background are lemon trees, and they’ve got at least a million yellow, vitamin-rich lemons on them. Even looking at them makes you feel healthy and detoxed.
Unten angekommen geht’s direkt an den Strand oder in die Gelateria.
Straight to the beach or the gelateria once you hit sea level.
Vom Trail direkt auf die Piazza – typisch Finale.
Directly from the trail to the piazza – typical Liguria!

Besides all the Mediterranean (trail) beauty that Finale Ligure offers, it’s the locals that we met during our 48 hours that made all the difference. From the hotel staff to the other riders on the trail, and even the gelato sellers in the old town; for once, the words passion, openness and a genuine friendliness to riders are not just empty phrases. Grazie Finale!

Guiding: www.mtbguidefinale.com

Hotel-Tip: www.medusahotel.it

More photos can be found here: fabri00.exposure.co/escape

Words & Pictures:: Fabrizio D’Aloisio www.bikeschool-engadin.ch

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