This June (1st and 2nd) will see the second edition of GeoGravel Tuscany, an event created to promote a territory, that of the Tuscan geothermal area. As fascinating as it is mysterious, wild and dreamlike, but still not well known by the general public.
A portion of Tuscany, an area enclosed between the sea and the Colline Metallifere (Metal-bearing Hills), which has however, become a candidate to become a perfect destination for gravel lovers, with hundreds of kilometres of Strade Grigie (Grey Roads) winding through uncontaminated woods interrupted only by villages clinging to the hilltops.
The GeoGravel Tuscany was devised by two-time world champion Paolo Bettini, but it has grown thanks to the help of some local businesses that have been with the project right from the start, realising the great opportunities for promoting tourism.
Such as the A.S.D. Velo Etruria of Pomarance, who has already been at Bettini’s side for many years for the Paolo Bettini’s Green Fondo. As president Maurizio Maggi recounts:
“For us it is a pride and a responsibility to organise such important events, we do our utmost to ensure that the participants’ experience is the best possible, because we too are cyclists first and foremost. Our sports group was born around mountain biking, because thanks to Enel on our territory there are a lot of dirt and forestry roads serving the facilities, and it was natural for us to start exploring them with ‘fat wheels’. Then with the advent of gravel bikes we immediately felt at home, and when Paolo told us about this idea, about organising a gravel event on our Strade Grigie, we immediately followed him. After so many years of competitive cycling, it was nice to rediscover another way of cycling, one that allows for the slow discovery of our very special areas.”
The municipality of Pomarance also wanted to collaborate from the start with GeoGravel Tuscany, an event that last year alone brought more than 200 gravellers from all over Italy and over a thousand participants to the big party staged at the GeoVillage the evening before the start in the Tuscan municipality.
Nicola Fabiani, deputy mayor of Pomarance, recounts:
“On behalf of the administration I would like to welcome back GeoGravel Tuscany, an event that we are delighted to host for the second year in our municipality. Ours is a wild territory in which an energy pulses, all yet to be discovered, an area between the sea and the hinterland that invites slow discovery, in which participants can find wonderful villages and excellent food and wine. We can proudly say that Paolo Bettini is now our honorary citizen, because with his commitment he has put Pomarance on the map. The GeoGravel has a positive spin-off for the hosts and for the entire socio-economic fabric, for us an opportunity to promote the entire Val di Cecina, a celebration for the whole town. “Â
GeoGravel Tuscany is more than a two-day sporting event, it is a true gravel festival to discover the Colline Metallifere and the Tuscan Geothermia. The event will begin in the afternoon of Saturday 1 June with the opening of the GeoVillage at the ‘Piazzone’, a beautiful space close to the centre of Pomarance that will host the GeoFestival, the beating heart of the entire event. There you will enjoy the evening concerts and will find local food and wine stands as well as dedicated shops. The various rides scheduled for Saturday 1 June (Ultra route) and Sunday 2 June (Long, Medium and Short routes) will also start from there.
For the specifications of the four planned routes, the detailed programme and registration procedures visit GeoGravel Tuscany or the Endu web page of the event for direct registration.