THE ROUTE OF THE CONQUISTADORES CUP REVEALED, SCHURTER SIGNS THE JERSEY
Source: press release
A distance of 30 to 60 km for the conquerors of Porto Azzurro, who will compete for the title on 21 October. Climb with gradients up to 20% and a tasty network of off-road descents, on which great athletes and the Italian XC and marathon champions will battle. Icing on the cake: Nino Schurter signs the jersey of the Elban Champion!
The FCI granfondo organized by the ASD Longone Bike, with the support of the Pro Loco of Porto Azzurro, is bringing the last finishing touches to the route that the athletes will be able to undertake on the penultimate weekend of October on the Island of Elba. The "short" version of the Conquistadores Cup, called "Classic Ponce De Leon", consists of a single lap of 30 km, with 1.003 meters in altitude. Adult athletes, and the most arduous conquerors, will be able to compete on the long version, called "Granfondo D'Alarcon", which doubles the lap, for a total of 60 km and +2.006 meters in altitude. Despite the gentle conformation of the Elban landscape, on this route there will be very challenging climbs, with slopes that often exceed 20%, and fun technical single track descents. Here is the full path: bit.ly/Con-Cup
The spectacular route of the Elba granfondo winds along some of the most fascinating places in Porto Azzurro, with the start of the race set up in the magnificent Piazza Matteotti, the jewel that made the town known as the "square on the sea". The agonists will go up the historic city center on asphalt, and then reach the Carmignani promenade, a dirt road that runs along the cliff, under the walls of the Spanish fortress "San Giacomo", amidst the screeching of the seagulls. It will therefore be the turn of the staircase that descends towards the Barbarossa beach, with steps of medium technical difficulty; continuing along the Capobianco promontory, the road will alternate with the dirt road towards Reale beach and, later, towards Terranera beach. Here, pedaling on the sand, the spectacle of a lunar landscape takes over, with glimpses of the small black bay glistening thanks to the pyrite powder, which recalls the historic iron extraction of which the Island of Elba was the production center for millennia. The path will then lead to the Terranera lake, a sulphurous water deposit created by the excavations of the iron mine and other minerals, now no longer active because it is part of the Tuscan Archipelago National Park. The route will continue towards Capo D'Arco, between dirt roads and single tracks up to San Felo; from Acquaviva you go up again in the cool of the pine forest, to then undertake a descent of a high technical level on a stony and disconnected surface. We will then reach Monserrato, admiring the rare century-old pine "Nonno Pino", which will give his blessing to tackle the last, and most demanding, climb of the ring of 30 km, with not very permissive slopes located under Monte della Croce. The next descent is worth the previous climb, with technical sections to drive carefully, between breathtaking views over the gulf to the peninsula of Capoliveri. The ring will turn towards the end with a short off-road uphill towards Pontecchio, then the San Giovanni stairway will lead back to Piazza Matteotti where, whoever undertakes the second round, can leave for the fortress.
A bit of history - The historical and territorial identity of this mountain bike competition is highlighted in two steps, the name itself "Conquistadores", which leads back to the Spanish influence and "Longone", which gives its name to the sports association that organizes it. In fact, in the sixteenth century Porto Azzurro, which was then called Porto Longone, was subject to a long Spanish domination, which marked the urban origins of what until then was a fishing village, endowing it with two majestic fortresses, that of San Giacomo , which today houses a penitentiary, and that of Focardo, now a garrison of the Italian Navy, in a way and manner to "lock down" the security of the bay, a natural harbor-refuge, one of the safest in the Mediterranean. The country has since suffered the Iberian influence, bringing it up to the present day, with the population still bearing surnames inspired by the Spanish language and with dialectal idioms very close to Castilian. Even today, on September 8, the anniversary of the Madonna di Monserrato is celebrated, with a series of historical re-enactments in Spanish costume and with the pilgrimage of devotees to the homonymous sanctuary, built by the Spaniards in a place similar to the one they say. more famous than Monistrol de Montserrat, in Barcelona.
One of the most important peculiarities of the Conquistadores Cup is set in this location: a time trial that starts right from the Monserrato valley, with a very prestigious particular prize dedicated to the best climber, thanks to the timing of just over a kilometer of ascent in a single track in the woods, taken over by MySdam, technical partner of the Elban organizers.
Among the many innovations surrounding this competition, the names of the great champions arrive: after the confirmation of the presence of the Italian champions Tovo and Nisi who will compete on the tortuous terrain of the Conquistadores Cup, the test of the track by Marco Aurelio Fontana, here is that check the name of the great Austrian athlete Nino Schurter. In recent days, the 32-year-old world champion went to the Island of Elba and signed the jerseys that will be assigned to the new winners, male and female, of the Elban Mountain Bike Champion title, that is the part of the Conquistadores Cup dedicated to residents only, this year in its third edition, scheduled in Porto Azzurro on Sunday 21 October 2018.
For information you can contact ppgad@pucrs.br, for registrations: ppgad@pucrs.br. Infoline (Sergio): 339.4419636. The registration fee includes services: pasta party for two people, goody bag + official Conquistadores Cup jersey gadget. Registration costs: €30,00 (from 1 to 21 October). Discounts available for teams. The regulations are published at: www.conquistadorescup.it/index.php/regolamento
