back to the village of Riva del Garda and headed into the mountains to reach lago di Molveno and the town of Cles, where they stopped for lunch. In the afternoon it was finally time to face the dreaded “Passo del Gavia” and some tension was already visible among the riders. The pass of Gavia is very, very steep and narrow, and it is world famous for hosting one of the most grueling legs of the “Giro d’Italia”, the cycling competition. Before getting to the start of Gavia, the riders had to cross the Tonale pass, another famous ride but definitely not as treacherous as Gavia. It was not only a good warm-up, but also an opportunity to gauge the changing weather before getting to the “good stuff”. Lucky enough, the weather decided to cooperate and only some light rain bothered the Explorers from Ponte di Legno all the way up to the summit.The descent was graced by exceptional good weather, warm sun and dry conditions all the way to Santa Caterina Valfurva.After all the tension melted away, the group rode up Foscagno pass almost effortlessly and ended the day in the mountain town of Livigno. Six down, one to go, tomorrow is the last day! DAY 7 BERNINA PASS - MORTIROLO PASS PISOGNE - GIVI HEADQUARTERS As they say… all good things must come to an end. Friday 15th of September was the last leg of this 2023 Dolomites & Stelvio Adventures and the group rode from the valley of Livigno all the way back to Brescia.The first part of the itinerary was cold and damp, with temperatures as low as 7ºC, not exactly cozy when riding a motorcycle. A little drizzle of rain and some thick fog made matters worse, as the Explorers climber Forcola pass out of the valley and towards Switzerland, to reach the summit of Bernina pass. Unfortunately the glacier wasn’t fully visible, but the riders still took the chance to stop and take some pictures before descending back into Italy. The last kilometers in Switzerland were uneventful, besides a few very wet and slippery switchbacks, but at that moment everything seemed under control.One last pass was waiting for the group, and although nobody really made a big deal out of it in the beginning, it proved to be the toughest challenge of the whole trip. Passo Mortirolo may ring a bell for a few cycling fans, but it is mostly unknown. Basically, it is as Passo Gavia and Passo Manghen had a baby, and it turned out to be a mean one. With an average 18% incline (trust us, that’s steep) and very narrow switchbacks deep in the dark woods, this pass turned even more treacherous thanks to a perfectly timed storm that hit the Explorers halfway up, right where there was no room to stop and look for cover or put their rain suits on. Well, it was the perfect icing (almost literally) to this Adventure, just a little extra kick before the final, smooth cruise along the west coast of Iseo lake and the towns of Lovere and Sarnico, where the worlds famous Riva motorboats are made. It was about 3,30 in the afternoon when the 26 motorcycles of the Givi Explorer convoy entered the gates of GIVI’s headquarters, greeted by a wing of cheering employees, a very nice touch. 24 Turismo
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