The Stelvio is something that goes far beyond the fact of having simply driven on a winding road, it is something that grapple with your soul and enriches your experience as a motorist and gentleman driver.
Words Andrea Balti / Photos Marco Capelli
And so, after a pretty amazing amount of driving tours, we have finally come to the showdown with the Italian giant, that road that more than any other represents in the common imagination the quintessence of a place in which to get away from the world and touch the clouds with your finger. Up there, at an altitude of 2,757 meters, everything has a different flavor and not even the most pessimistic weather forecasts can prevent us from grinding the kilometers that officially mark the approach to the season finale of a 2021 that has brought us to the highest peaks in Europe. Now it’s time for the most famous mountain pass of them all, the Stelvio.
This is the spirit raging the evening of Saturday 18 September, where almost all the crews had the opportunity to meet – more or less casually – at the Hotel Acquaseria in Ponte di Legno. Wandering around the garage late in the evening was a bit like attending an exclusive sports cars exhibition, with the difference that in a few hours these babies would certainly not have limited themselves lounging away from the elements, on the contrary they would have braved rain, fog and even snow, in the frenetic escape towards the roof of Italy, where the highest asphalted road in the beautiful Country is confirmed to be one of the most sought-after stages for a valid reason, 48 reasons actually, just like its legendary hairpin bends twisted one on top of the other and ready to write unique pages on the road trip journal of all the participating teams.
In the morning, as the cars take their places in the reserved area in Ponte di Legno, the sky seems to clear up for a bit, but after breakfast and briefing, as soon as the cars are ready to leave, the rain begins to fall again, wetting the asphalt and making treacherous even the first curves that lead the convoy towards Passo del Tonale, the first of the four passes scheduled for today’s event. The Stelvio Escape, the first event that Auto Class Magazine organizes between Lombardy and Trentino Alto Adige, incorporates the successful format of the 250 KM Rally, offering participants a full driving immersion along an itinerary that in addition to the panoramic factor of the second half of the tour, adds the fast curves of the aforementioned Tonale and Passo della Mendola. In fact, after the first hairpin bends, we head west for over 60 km towards Cles, passing Lake Santa Giustina, the numerous apple orchards and having the first real checkpoint on the Mendola.
For a few minutes the rain stops and allows a break outside the cars in full relax, so as to allow tourists and those passing by to admire the mighty convoy, among which we have sports cars of all kinds, including track ready Porsche GT3, but even grand tourers and hot-hatches. The staff confirms the precious collaboration with Ford Italy, once again deploying the exceptional Puma ST and placing one of the two Alpine A110 present at the end of the group, to be exact an A110 S ‘bout which you can read in detail on our pages. The desire to get back behind the wheel is huge and despite the fact that the eastern slope of the Mendola Pass is wonderful and capable of transforming itself from a large series of hairpin bends into a winding stretch between the rocks, everyone’s mind already points to what awaits later on.
Here comes the fog, the rain intensifies and some traffic slows down the group on the road to Merano. Once free, we pass Foresta, Silandro and then Prato allo Stelvio, so as to reach the Hotel Bellavista in Trafoi with a delay of just 30 minutes. A meteorological respite allows to arrange the cars and enjoy an aperitif in the beautiful garden of the location owned by ski champion Gustav Thöni, who also honors us with his presence for a souvenir photo, before settling inside and continuing the tasty lunch. Time for a quick coffee and it is finally the moment that we have all been looking forward to. It is still raining heavily, but the good news is that this means that the road will be basically free of traffic and above all of motorcycles and bicycles that would literally have invaded the pass with clear conditions.
We haven’t wasted a single hairpin and brushed every single curve to perfection, so as to enjoy a substantially deserted Stelvio Pass, a huge playground reserved for our 26 crews, which one curve after the other climbed along the most scenic rocks wall in Europe. Reached the top, the thermometer marks -4° and the snowflakes promised by the forecasts arrive on time and inexorable. We are now here and even those equipped with semi-slick tires allow themselves a good sigh of relief. The Stelvio is something that goes far beyond the fact of having simply driven on a winding road, it is something that grapple with your soul and that thanks to the incredible pedigree of this place makes venturing here a way to enrich your experience as a motorist and gentleman driver.
The snow and the strong wind suggest to get back on the road, also because it doesn’t end there. The western side of the Stelvio is undoubtedly faster and thanks to the absence of a living soul, we reach Bormio after a few minutes. In the meantime, as we descend in altitude, the snow becomes rain again and as we turn towards Santa Caterina di Valfurva it even seems to intensify. No intermediate checkpoint now, but straight for the Gavia Pass, which we have only appropriately considered for the north side, the wider one and the only suitable for a group drive.
Final stint, we hit the throttle and easily reach 2,621 meters in height, enjoying not only another road all for ourselves, but the first colors of an autumn that is just around the corner and ready to color the immense meadows around the Bonetta refuge in yellow and orange. Everything here will be covered with snow in just a few hours. Once again there are no words to describe an incredible adventure, made special thanks to a group of enthusiasts who represent the true love for sports cars driving, the one that involves kilometers, fun and the rediscovery of a wonderful territory. This incredible horsepower orchestra has been embellished by Maserati, Mustang, Alpine, Nissan GTR, Audi RS3, GR Yaris, Subaru BRZ, Clio RS, Golf GTI, Mazda MX-5 and the inevitable line-up of Porsches, including affectionate drivers with their 911, Cayman and a 964 Carrera 2, but also two splendid GT3s (both 991 and the brand new 992), without forgetting the honorable mention for the first electric car that has ever taken part in one of our tours, a Taycan 4S, which showed that thanks to the courage, integrity and stubbornness of its driver it is possible to cross the finish line even with zero emissions and just a quick stop during lunch. Again, when asked “How did it go?” we say “Epic”. And this thanks to all of you who made it possible.
We would like to thank all our partners and sponsors, with special mention for Ford Italia, Alpine Centre Italia, WrappingItaly, Auto & Moto d’Epoca Padua and Summer Marathon.