← All eventsItaly Divide
~1,250km self-supported point-to-point bikepacking race the length of Italy, Pompei/Naples -> Verona (Classic route). ~23,000m climbing over fast gravel, Tuscan strade bianche, and real Apennine mountains. Late-Apr/1-May date is approximate for 2027.
A self-supported bikepacking race down the entire length of Italy. Around 1,250km solo from Pompei, near Naples, north to Verona: no support crew, no feed stations, no course markings.
It runs south to north across the Gran Sasso massif and the Apennines, through Tuscany and Bologna, then out onto the flat Po plain to Verona. A cross-section of the whole country.
You carry everything, navigate by GPX, and manage your own sleep. The fastest riders reach Verona in two and a half to three and a half days. Most take a good deal longer.
Is Italy Divide for you?
- Experienced gravel riders ready for a first multi-day ultra. The dominant surface is fast rolling gravel, so it rewards gravel legs over pure mountain-bike skills.
- Riders who pace for durability, not peak power. FTP barely predicts your finish here. Staying efficient for days on tired legs is what gets you to the line.
- Self-sufficient problem-solvers. You navigate by GPX, fix your own mechanicals, and plan resupply around Italian afternoon closures with no one to bail you out.
- Anyone happy to climb in bad weather. The mountain vertical is real, and a wet spring turns the fast gravel to sticky clay that grinds everything to a crawl.
Training plan for Italy Divide
A training plan for Italy Divide isn't a generic base build. Beina reads the event's exact demands, looks at your specific profile and the time you actually have, and maps a highly adapted plan to the start line.
- Fast rolling gravel that rewards a sustainable pace, not one-hour power
- Real mountain climbing over the Gran Sasso massif and the Apennines
- Days of riding on minimal sleep, self-navigating by GPX with no markers
- Spring weather that swings from cold mountain rain to warm valleys, plus mud that can clog a bike
- Long gravel endurance rides, building from 5 up to 9 hours at an easy aerobic pace
- Hilly gravel rides stacking 2,000 to 3,500m of ascent for climbing durability
- Back-to-back weekends, then a full 3 to 4 day loaded bikepacking trip in the specialise block
- Night rides and deliberate wet, muddy sessions to test your kit and mud clearance
- Built from your current fitness and the time you actually have
- Adapts every week as Beina learns how you respond
- Syncs your sessions straight to Garmin and Wahoo
- One clear next session, never a wall of spreadsheet
