On foot on the edge of the Po Valley: Monte Frioland

Finally the great day of the Frioland adventure arrived on Thursday 24-12-15. The mono-training technique allows all types of walking... Of course, many may think that on Christmas Eve there is better things to do, as very often happens nowadays, work leaves no way out and the free time to devote oneself to one's passions is to be seized in the only free moments. So after accurate analysis using cartographic technology directly from the home computer and various first-person steps on the spot, the time has come to 'put the puzzle together', prepare the ultratrail backpack with some clothing inside for the cold, a minimal reserve of water and food, with other little things... All in the name of lightness but attention, without ever giving up the indispensable. The mountain does not forgive!

A night of relaxation, even if it is never easy to remain calm knowing that from the next morning you will be out all day in the mountains, in complete solitude.
At 7.20 I left the Tempio del Fitness gym in Revello, then in the dark of that cloudy morning I went up the road to the bell tower, continuing towards the chapel of San Bernardo between Rifreddo and Envie. So step by step, now in the light of the just past dawn on this day among the shortest of the year. Some videos shot along the way but without ever stopping the pace I arrived in the Motetto area in the direction of the Po along the plain. Back up to Rocchetta I took the woods again to go downhill towards the Belloni plain at Paesana. Here I quickly crossed the town continuing from via Crissolo towards Ghisola. As soon as I entered the hamlet I started the climb which would never let me go until the end. I also met a four-legged 'travel companion': a cute little dog with one brown eye and one blue, already seen around Crissolo a few months earlier. A true globetrotter connoisseur of all corners of the Po Valley, apparently! A last paved stretch in the Pian Lavarino area and then take the dirt road for the rest of the way. Among a network of paths and abandoned villages I reached the ridge at Punta Selassa. The 2000m are always a 'pride marker', also because the right side of our valley is characterized by a sequence of peaks all above that altitude, for an 'up and down' between deserted pastures with a constant cold below zero. Apart from the dog that day, I didn't meet a living soul along the entire journey, which had a certain flavor of 'true nature'. It almost seemed not to be in Italy but in a remote place in who knows what part of the world. The kilometers flowed fast under my feet, even if energy decreased as I approached Frioland, but to compensate there was the apprehension of the imminent darkness that kept up the pace. The ridge that precedes the summit is really steep, a clear and narrow watershed between the Po valley, Infernotto and Pellice. The view is absolute By now I was near the 35th km mark on the verge of 2700m. Last steps, a first tip with a pylon, then a second later and here is the top of Frioland! There I shot a ritual video, with some photos. A 'drink' with the little snow that there was given the chronic lack of water on the route and off to the descent with sunset just around the corner...

 

It's amazing how when you get to the desired peak you think it's 'all done'. It hadn't been like this because the objective had been reached at 16.03, for a total distance from the start of 8 hours and 43 minutes. In fact, to return to the 'civilized world' it took me a lot of time to close the scarce 7km of descent that separated me from the car passage set in Borgo di Crissolo. There were countless mistakes on the road due to the darkness. Luckily I had the 'trusted gps' with me which always guided me, except those times, when due to fatigue, I forgot to monitor the route on the instrument. In reality, I realized several times that the dog that accompanied me from Ghisola knew the streets better than me despite the dark, so it was enough for me to follow him. Incredible!
After all the stress of the whole adventure and especially for those last kilometers of return, I arrived at 18.10 in Borgo for the now desired return by car. It all ended with a journey of about 42km over a timescale of 10 hours and 50 minutes.
There is also a LIVE video shot during the journey on youtube at this address:

 

All the preparation always refers to the mono-training strategy referred to the book published by Fusta Editore.

An article on TargatoCn follows: https://www.targatocn.it/2015/12/28/sommario/saluzzese/leggi-notizia/argomenti/saluzzese/articolo/da-revello-a-piedi-ai-confini-della-valle-po-il-monte-frioland-natalice-business-of-bartolomeo-dav.html

Thanks to the help of a friend, now the book 'Ultratrail with weekly Monotraining' is translated into English, I apologize for the approximation of the translation but it is a precious gift that was offered to me and I hope that the concepts are all understandable . All the material and EBOOK is available at this link: http://www.bertinettobartolomeodavide.it/ultratrail/index-ing.html

Hoping you enjoyed it, I thank everyone in advance for reading.
Davide

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CroMagnon 2014 with the weekly Monotraining - translated in English

Cromagnon 2014 map 130km

Direct link to the original article in Italian, here

The 2014 ultratrail du Cromagnon is also over(month of june). The new route, despite being very scenic, proved to be very hard, especially in the part following Breil. In fact, from the beginning up to the 80th km everything flowed quite well with a path suitable for the typical ultratrail pace. The last 50 km, on the other hand, were quite another thing, partly because the tiredness arrived there was already high, but more than anything else it was the development of the itinerary that made everything very hard. After all, we know that ultratrailers do not give up in the face of difficulties, on the contrary they seek them by overcoming them!

Of course, seeing 3 three races develop concurrently on the same route was psychologically very disorienting. In fact, observe some friends already calm for having finished the 74 km of the newly born Marguareis with just 34 members. Then with the new CRO relay we saw athletes stop and others leave fresh just when things got very hard for the starters from Limone! Without considering the entry of the 57 Neander competitors in the final 50km who whizzed fast for the last stretch with their legs still good. All these characteristics that made the psychological tension high, adding stress to the pure distance.
The queen, however, is always only one Cromagnon, and the only factor of being there made the 340 members feel privileged, even for those who tried but failed to complete it. In fact, there were only 197 finishers.

At 4.00 in the morning, after a sleep in the car or in a sleeping bag for those who have done like me arrived there since Friday, one of the pioneer races in Italy for ultratrail started: The Grand Raid International du Cromagnon 2014. All in a new guise that is even more attractive than in the past. This year several characteristic villages of the Roya Valley crossed each other.
The effort was unmatched in comparison with other competitions of the genre and for those who want to really test themselves the Cromagnon is just what it takes!
It is not so much to describe the race that I write these lines but to submit to the reader the latest tests that I am always carrying out using the technique of the weekly mono-training for the ultratrail. Of course if I wasn't happy with the results I wouldn't be writing. Monotraining is already widely tested since all my races from 2006 to today have always been prepared with this strategy. Work also done on many other athletes. With the Cromagnon, however, I wanted to put into practice the so-called 'decisive proof', so this year I wanted to take part in this new longer and more tiring version of 130km.

What to write ?! Achieved feat! So with 24 hours and 40 minutes of travel I arrived in Cap d'Ail on the finish line beach with the sea in front ... Nothing more beautiful. The satisfaction of the arrival and the pride of having proposed a method that works so well for the preparation of this adventurous sport gives me motivation to spread even more a sustainable training, aimed at extreme distances on foot ...

Reporting some data. This year I started training in March, with no more than 15 outings behind me, considering that on some occasions I had to skip training for various reasons.
Overdoing it in this specialty, as in many other extreme disciplines, is usually the norm that most of the time leads to a chronic state of over-training even before arriving at the day of the event. Just a detail that comes to mind right now is the image of a Cromagnon participant shown here, with his feet smashed even before the 30th km. Obviously this person had ruined himself in training to be in that state, with absurd excesses without giving any space to organic recovery. Exaggeration in sport has its price! Certainly the athlete injured due to his excesses and mistakes could not even taste what it means to finish 130km in the mountains because he had to stop much earlier ... A real shame.

Practicing long distances only once a week to give space for recovery will always allow a complete 'recovery' from any micro trauma due to the previous training, avoiding chronic pre-injury accumulations. This scheme allows you to manage colossal itineraries in a few months without damage and in a sustainable way. After all, the beauty of practicing a sport is to do it in respect of health for a period comparable to the length of the athlete's life. It is of little use to exaggerate for a few years by gaining time on the journey in a forced way, and then stop ruinously for reasons of physical ususra! The work of my book is oriented precisely towards this theme.

Thanks to the help of a friend, now the book 'Ultratrail with weekly Monotraining' is translated into English, I apologize for the approximation of the translation but it is a precious gift that was offered to me and I hope that the concepts are all understandable . All the material and EBOOK is available at this link: http://www.bertinettobartolomeodavide.it/ultratrail/index-ing.html

Hoping you enjoyed it, I thank everyone in advance for reading.
Davide

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Walking Francigena Ultramaraton by Stefano Ruspantini

Stefano upon arrival

 Beautiful walking adventure by Stefano Ruspantini 65km long and prepared only in six weeks with the Monotraining technique. The start was from Quirico d'Orcia (Siena), with the finishing line in Acquapendente (Viterbo). The event called Walking Francigena Ultramaraton took place on Saturday 8 October 2022 (yesterday), starting at 21.00, with a certain altitude difference and arriving at 9.00 on Sunday morning.

It was a great satisfaction for me to follow him at a distance with advice and tricks that he undertook with great determination ... Bravo Stefano!

PS. Although it was a non-competitive event, some 'adventurers' set off two hours before the start. If it weren't for this Stefano would have been the first to cross the finish line among the athletes starting at the correct time!

 

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Walking Francigena Ultramaraton per Stefano Ruspantini

Stefano all'arrivo

Bella avventura a piedi di Stefano Ruspantini lunga ben 65km e preparata solamente in sei settimane con la tecnica del Monoallenamento. La partenza è stata da Quirico d'Orcia(Siena), con traguardo Acquapendente(Viterbo). L'evento denominato Walking Francigena Ultramaraton ha avuto luogo sabato 8 ottobre 2022(ieri), con partenza alle ore 21.00, percorso con un certo dislivello ed arrivo alle ore 9.00 della domenica mattina.

E' stata una bella soddisfazione per me seguirlo a distanza con consigli ed accorgimenti che lui ha intrapreso con molta determinazione... Bravo Stefano!

PS. Anche se si trattava di un evento non competitivo, alcuni 'avventurieri' si sono avviati due ore prima della partenza. Se non fosse per questo Stefano sarebbe stato il primo a tagliare il traguardo tra gli atleti partenti all'orario corretto!

 

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Avventura ibrida Bici/Trail di 110km Envie-Colle Sellerie(o Sellière) e ritorno

E' incredibile come la tecnica del Monoallenamento settimanale funzioni bene per ogni branca dell'allenamento rivolto alla lunghissima resistenza! Vi propongo qui la nuova avventura ibrida Bici/Trail, svolta in Valle Pellice...

Rifugio Jervis

Panorama Pra

Cascata sul percorso

 In effetti non è da molto che sono arrivato ma ho deciso di sedermi per scrivere subito un pezzo riguardo all'avventura ibrida bici/trail di oggi, domenica 11 settembre 2022. Si avete letto bene, ho scritto anche la parola 'bici' dato che come alcuni anni fa ho ripetuto questa esperienza su un nuovo itinerario.

Lago Granero

Colle tra valle Po e Pellice

Rifugio Granero

Tanti anni fa, quando ero ancora piccolo, diciamo a 7 o 8 anni partivo con il mio amico Paolo per le delle 'scorribande' nelle campagne vigonesi e 'sparivo' con la mia biciclettina nel vero senso del termine. Inutile scrivere che la mia famiglia si allarmava in modo incredibile ma già allora ero probabilmente 'fatto male', le cose oggi che mi avvicino sempre di più ai 50 anni non sono cambiate! Ho pensato tutta la notte se fare o non fare questa 'peripezia' oggi. Alla fine ho deciso di NON uscire, tuttavia tanto per contraddirmi la testardaggine appena sceso dal letto ha preso il sopravvento e in men che non si dica ho preparato lo zaino, il cibo, la bicicletta e sono partito... Avrei avuto da andare avanti con la preparazione dell'esame molto imminente di odontoiatria ma niente, non voglio avere ripianti per le cose non fatte e dato che questa era l'ultima finestra per realizzare quello che mi frullava in testa, l'impuso è stato più forte di me e non sono riuscito a trattenermi. Circa alle 8 del mattino sono saltato sulla bicicletta con zaino in spalla, bastoncini legati al telaio e scarponcini ai piedi. Ho pedalato per 42 km fino a Villanova, dopo Bobbio Pellice partendo da Envie. Il tratto tra Bobbio e Villanova era abbastanza in salita e anche se nelle ultime settimane ho completato giri in bici da 100km ad uscita, si trattava tutte le volte di pianura. Comunque è andata bene e sono arrivato pedalando fino al parcheggio di Villanova, legando il mio 'veicolo' ad una griglia in ferro con la speranza di ritrovare la bici al ritorno. Erano circa le 11. Da quel punto ho iniziato a sgambettare a piedi, cosa che non avevo più fatto dal tour dell'Isola d'Elba. Quindi su per una salita continua verso il Pra, un luogo che mi affascina col suo rifugio Jervis, perché si tratta di una località completamente senza energia elettrica. Ogni casa ha il suo generatore o pannello solare, eppure ci sono margari che abitano lassù e vivono molto bene, credo meglio di noi nonostante tutte le comodità dell'urbanizzazione che abbiamo. Inutile scrivere che di domenica la gente non manca per tutto il tratto tra Villanova e Pra ma poi salendo oltre le cose cambiano molto! Infatti il pienone del rifugio Jervis è completamente diverso dal numero di persone presenti al rifugio Granero a quota 2380m.

42km mappa bici andata Envie-Villanova

Trail: Villanova-Colle Sellerie e ritorno 26km

Bici ritorno 42km Villanova-Envie

Dopo il Pra per raggiungere il Granero la salita è molto ripida e concentrata in pochi chilometri dove il passo si è fatto davvero lentissimo sotto il sole che picchiava, anche se le nuvole ad un certo punto hanno iniziato a comparire in modo preoccupante. Arrivato al rifugio poco dopo le 14, ho dovuto prendere un tanto desiderato caffè per soddisfare il mio solito rituale, aggiungo che il personale di questo locale è straordinario! Qui solo visitatori francesi. Proseguo verso il Colle Sellerie per altri 400 o 500m di dislivello, arrivando secondo le mie stime oltre i 2800m sullo spartiacque/confine tra Italia e Francia. Dal Granero il dislivello si 'impenna' decisamente. Le nuvole mi raggiungono e comincio ad essere pessimista sull'esito positivo dell'avventura dato che questo significa in mezzo alle montagne, essere avvolto dalla nebbia! Bé sono stato fortunato ed il cielo è rimasto limpido. Ho raggiunto il traguardo prefissato alle 15.20 e con sorpresa lassù c'erano una coppia di camosci(madre col suo cucciolo, credo) che non volevano saperne di andare via. Praticamente questi due animali sono rimasti a 10m metri da me per tutto il tempo mentre facevo il mio spuntino.

Camosci verso Colle Sellerie

Lago Granero

Sempre camoscio Colle Sellerie

Il panorama da quel punto era mozzafiato, c'ero già stato alcuni anni fa. Si vedeva il versante francese del Monviso, anche da lontano era ugualmente imponente. Poco sotto il rifugio Monvisò, molto distante. Guardando dal lato opposto tutti i colli più alti che contornano la Valle Pellice e le nuvole sotto di me. Di lato avevo la punta del Colle Sellerie, stupenda. Il tempo di girare un piccolo video, qualche foto e inizio la discesa ripidissima di quel tratto per il ritorno. I camosci non si curano più di me e stanno sempre lì. Il GPS indicava 13km di percorrenza partendo da Villanova. Vado giù spedito, la velocità è più che raddoppiata nella discesa e mi fermo solo quando vedo fontane per riempire la borraccia, dato ho bevuto molto per tutto il rientro per via dell'enorme sudata a salire. Superato il Granero continuo la discesa senza pause, arrivo in breve tempo al Jervis e inzio a pensare che se mi fermo di probabilmente cado nella notte. Per evitare il buio che avanza vado avanti spedito e sbaglio strada ad un bivio perdendo 10 preziosi minuti. Giunto nuovamente a Villanova decido di non fare lo spuntino previsto prima della bici e consumo al volo un secondo caffè nella Locanda, posto d'altri tempi, stupendo.

Monviso lato francese

Madre e cucciolo sullo spartiacque

Monviso lato posteriore panoramica

Preparo velocemente tutto e salto sulla bicicletta alle 18.30 per una 'folle' discesa fino alla rotonda di Bibbiana, al fine di 'combattere' il tempo che passa. Le auto iniziano ad avere gli anabbaglianti accesi e questo non è buon segno. Non smetto di pedalare e proseguo fino a Bagnolo, dove imbocco la ciclabile per la mia sicurezza. Il buio incombe e raggiungo Barge, così dopo sono obbligato a proseguire per un lungo tratto sullo stradone, è ancora giorno ma il sole non c'è più. Imbocco la mia solita strada 'via vecchia Barge' e mi avvicino a casa più tranquillo anche se non mollo con la velocità. Completo il ritorno in bici alle 20.09 per altri 42km. Una gran bella avventura che dimostra ancora una volta l'efficacia del Monoallenamento sia nei confronti della bicicletta e del trail/ultratrail.

Valle Pellice sopra le nuvole

Colle Sellerie

Il tutto è durato 12 ore esatte, composte da 42km di bici per l'andata, 13km trail con salita continua a piedi e altrettanti di discesa, quindi altri 42km di ritorno in bicicletta. Un totale di 110km. 

Bici con bastoncini legati al telaio

Partenza in bici da Villanova(ritorno)

Arrivo a casa, le feste di Lola

Ora mi riposo per i prossimi mesi, ho troppo da studiare e devo prendermi una pausa dallo sport per concludere il quinto ed ultimo anno di Osteopatia... Anche se sono in linea con gli esami devo dedicare tutto il mio tempo per raggiungere questo obbiettivo, consapevole che alla mia età l'apprendimento non è più così agile. Ripartirò sicuramente più avanti con tutte le mie chilometriche avventure!

Video Live dell'avventura:

 

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Hybrid Bike / Trail adventure of 110km Envie-Colle Sellerie (or Sellière) and back

Jervis refuge

Panorama Pra

Waterfall on the path

In fact it hasn't been long since they arrived but I decided to sit down and write a piece about today's hybrid bike / trail adventure, Sunday 11 September 2022. Yes, you read that right, I also wrote the word 'bike' since from a few years ago I carried out this experience on a new itinerary.

Granero Lake

Hill between the Po valley and Pellice

Refuge Granero

Many years ago, when I was still a child, let's say at 7 or 8 years old, I left with my friend Paolo for the 'escapes' in the Vigonese countryside to 'disappear' with my little bicycle in the true sense of the word. Needless to say, my family was incredibly alarmed, at that time I was probably already 'crazy', and today I'm getting closer and closer to 50 but I haven't changed! I've been thinking all night about whether or not to do this "adventure" today. In the end I decided NOT to go out, but only to contradict myself, the obstinacy just got out of bed took over and in no time at all and so I prepared the backpack, the food, the bicycle and I left ... I had to go ahead with my studies for the next university dentistry exam but nothing, I don't want to have regrets for things not done and since this was the last window to realize what I had in mind, the impulse was stronger than me. I couldn't help but hold you back. Around 8 in the morning I jumped on the bike with my backpack, sticks tied to the frame and boots on my feet. I cycled for 42 km to Villanova, after Bobbio Pellice starting from Envie. The stretch between Bobbio and Villanova was quite uphill and even if in the last few laps on the bike I covered 100 km per exit, I was always on level ground. However, it went well and they came pedaling to the Villanova parking lot, tying my 'vehicle' to an iron grate with the hope of finding the bike on the way back. It was about 11:00. From that moment on I started walking, which I hadn't done since the tour of the Island of Elba. Then continuously uphill towards the Pra, a place that fascinates me with its Jervis refuge, because it is a place completely without electricity. Each house has its own generator or solar panel, yet there are margari living up there and they are very well, I think better than us despite all the comforts of urbanization we have. It is useless to write that on Sunday all the stretch between Villanova and Pra there was a lot of people! In fact, the full house of the Jervis refuge is completely different from the number of people present at the Granero refuge at an altitude of 2380 m.

42km one way bike map Envie-Villanova

Trail: Villanova-Colle Sellerie and return 26km

 

Bike return 42km Villanova-Envie

After the Pra to reach the Granero the climb is very steep and concentrated in a few kilometers where the step became very slow under the scorching sun, even if the clouds at a certain point began to appear worryingly. Arriving at the refuge shortly after 2 pm, I had to have a much desired coffee to satisfy my usual ritual, I add that the staff of this place is extraordinary! Here only French visitors. I continue towards Colle Sellerie for another 400 or 500 m in altitude, arriving, according to my estimates, at over 2800 m on the watershed / border between Italy and France. From Granero the difference in height 'rises' decisively. The clouds reach me and I begin to be pessimistic about the positive outcome of the adventure since this means in the middle of the mountains, be being shrouded in fog! Well, I was lucky and the sky remained clear. I reached the goal at 3:20 pm and to my surprise there were a couple of chamois up there (mom with her cub, I think) that didn't want to leave. Basically these two animals stayed 10 meters away from me the whole time while I was having a snack.

Chamois towards Colle Sellerie

Lake Granero

Always Colle Sellerie suede

The view from that point was breathtaking, I had already been there a few years ago. You could see the French side of Monviso, even from a distance it was equally impressive. Just below the Monvisò refuge, very far away. Looking from the opposite side all the highest hills that surround the Pellice Valley and the clouds below me. On the side I had the tip of Colle Sellerie, wonderful. Time to shoot a small video, some photos and start the very steep descent of that stretch for the return. The chamois no longer care about me and are always there. The GPS indicated 13km of distance starting from Villanova. I go quickly, the speed is more than doubled in the descent and I stop only when I see fountains down to fill the bottle, since I drank a lot for the whole return because of the enormous sweat in going up. After passing the Granero I continue the descent without pause, I arrive in a short time at Jervis and I begin to think that if I not run stop in the night. To avoid the darkness that advances I go ahead quickly and take the wrong way to a crossroads, losing 10 precious minutes. Once back in Villanova I decide not to have the snack before the bike and I immediately consume a second coffee in the Locanda, a place of other times, wonderful.

Monviso French side

 

Mother and cub on the watershed

Monviso panoramic rear side

I quickly prepare everything and jump on the bicycle at 6.30 pm for a 'crazy' descent to the Bibiana roundabout, in order to 'fight' the passing of time. Cars start to have low beams on and this is not a good sign. I do not stop pedaling and continue to Bagnolo, where I take the cycle path for my safety. Darkness is looming and I reach Barge, so after I am forced to continue for a long stretch on the main road, it is still day but the sun is gone. I take my usual street 'via vecchia Barge' and I approach the house more calm even if I do not give up with the speed. Complete the return by bike at 20.09 for another 42km. A great adventure that once again demonstrates the effectiveness of Monotraining both for cycling and trail / ultratrail.

Pellice Valley above the clouds

Colle Sellerie

The whole thing lasted exactly 12 hours, consisting of 42km of bikes for the outward journey, 13km trail with continuous ascent on foot and the same number of descents, then another 42km of cycling back. A total of 110km. 

Bike with sticks tied to the frame

Departure by bike from Villanova (return)

 

I get home, Lola's parties

Now I rest for the next few months, I have too much to study and I have to take a break from sport to finish the fifth and final year of Osteopathy ... Even if I am in line with the exams I have to dedicate all my time to achieve this goal, aware that at my age learning is no longer so agile. I will definitely start again later with all my mileage adventures!

Live video of the adventure:

 

Below is the detail of the reference links related to my ultratrail and trail articles:

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