Photos: The Outdoor Lab
The Appenninica MTB Stage Race celebrated its 5th edition in September 2023, with many riders returning for another epic mountain bike experience in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy. From the outset I was attracted to this mountain bike stage race as it focussed not just on the riding experience, but on the whole stage race experience. To me, that takes in not just the racing, but also the organisation, the location, the accommodation options, event vibe and the food. Having read what Scott Cornish and Gordon Wadsworth had written from previous visits, I knew it was a race I wanted to get to. And for 2023, everything aligned so I could be in Italy for the 5th edition of the Appenninica MTB Stage Race.
As no stranger to mountain bike stage races, here are a few things I’d keep in mind if you’re looking to race a future edition.
The Appenninica MTB in 2023
A recap from our daily coverage!
Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Stage 3 | Stage 4 | Stage 5 | Stage 6
Our tips for racing the Apenninica MTB Stage Race
Arrive rested and healthy
This should be obvious, but it is worth having a couple of days up your sleeve if you’re travelling from outside of Europe for the Appenninica MTB Stage Race. I had done a 5 day bikepacking trip about a week earlier, so had no issues with jet lag. Any travel can still feel taxing, so when you’re booking your transfers and travel, be kind to yourself with an extra day or two. This will also be useful if you have picked up any minor health issues on long haul travel, or plan to pick up some race essentials like nutrition and spares once you’re on the ground in Italy.
Train for the specific demands of the race
While the Appenninica crew talk about the race family, the great food and the beautiful towns, don’t let that take away from the fact that this is still a 6-day mountain bike stage race, and quite a demanding one at that. Just because it isn’t in the main alpine chain of the European Alps doesn’t mean it’s a walk in the park.
You should expect to have long climbs each day, but not at the steady gradients you may expect from an alpine ski road climb. There will be steep pinches that require high power output before settling back to your rhythm, and often on climbing singletrack where many changes in tempo are required. The descents will not always allow for recovery, as you trace lines down ancient trails carved into hillsides by the passage of feet and hooves over centuries. Spectacular? Yes. Difficult? You bet. You will probably have 3-6 hours on the bike each day, depending on where you sit in the field.
I’d recommend working with a coach who understands the specific demands of mountain bike stage races. You could contact Ben Thomas Coaching, Justin Morris or Imogen Smith from Mind Matters Athlete Coaching, or see if Sally Bigham has an opening with Iron Sally Coaching. All four are highly attuned to mountain bike marathons and stage races, with decades of experience.
Read the Appenninica MTB Rider’s Guide
It goes without saying that you should familiarise yourself with the route when it’s made available. I only really took a closer look at the Rider’s Guide once I was already in Bologna. Having just done a bikepacking trip of 5 days with about 440km and 14500m climbing, it looked like I was about to do something similar, but without luggage and one day longer. I had underestimated the scale of the race!
But being across what is coming up on each day will help you not only get the most out of yourself on the bike, but also off it. When you know what the daily schedules are for luggage drop off, race starts, hotel shuttles and the like, you spend a lot less time asking questions and more time recovering – or eating gelato. Or both!
Take the right bike
I saw very few hardtails at the Appenninica MTB Stage Race. And yes, you can race one, probably quite well if you have the fitness and technique. But while there is a lot of climbing in the Emilia Romagna, there is also a lot of rock on the route. Yes, you will ride roads and fast forest trails. But you will also ride ancient roads reinforced with rock. You’ll descend steep singletrack with a lattice of tree roots holding trees to the side of the mountains, and surf fallen leaves through forests never knowing what lies beneath, until you hit it.
A modern cross-country full-suspension bike is ideal. Somewhere around 100-120mm of travel and lock out is very useful. A 29er is spot on, and that is now the one true wheel size for cross-country and marathon bikes anyway. I raced my Factor Lando XC, as did Imogen Smith – in this build.
You’ll want a fast rolling pair of tyres, and if it is dry like this year you can get away with something quite fast. I used a Maxxis Rekon Race 2.4″ front and Aspen 2.4″ rear, with a Tubolight EVO SL insert in the back. Neither tyre was new for the race. I did lack some braking traction, and Imogen used a Rekon 2.4″ front and Rekon Race 2.4″ rear, which really gave greater braking traction front and rear and more climbing grip and descending grip.
Gearing is everything. The climbs are steep, and there are very few moments where you will have a flat valley road to roll out the 10t sprocket – so gear for the climbs. I used a 34t and should have had a 32t with a Shimano 10-51t cassette.
Know your snack preferences
There’s plenty of food during the Appenninica MTB Stage Race. From Enervit race fuel at the start, finish and feedzones, plus sumptuous catering at the finish line and for the dinners. But, if you have any specific nutrition requirements, or just love to have snacks on hand, I’d suggest loading up while in Bologna. A lot of the small villages that the event passes through cater to local tastes and needs, not so much the dumpster diet of high carb food that many of us end up craving through a stage race. There is plenty of high quality meals and race fuel at the event, but for those who run on all the in-between meals – it pays to have a few things on hand.
Eat at the evening meals – and eat at your hotel
If you elect to stay in the hotels, it pays to understand the transfer time to and from the race village to your hotel – and what the menu may be at your hotel. While we ate at the race venue for all but one night, on one evening we did elect to have a meal with some friends at our race hotel. We ate well, enjoyed each other’s company and got the race briefing electronically. This is a holiday afterall, so you might as well keep some variety in your social time. The added benefit was we didn’t need to rely on a shuttle to get back to our hotel and to bed, which made a difference on this night where we were a longer distance from the village.
Trust and appreciate the Appenninica MTB staff
Just about any mountain bike event has an amazing crew working on it – but the event team at the Appenninica MTB Stage Race are incredible. They run on near zero sleep, with a huge amount of knowledge on how the whole event is running, no matter their role. So much of the information is always at hand via the race book and updates – but staff are always obliging. While a mountain bike event is always about the route – it runs on people. And all the people involved in the event truly deliver something special for all riders.
Stop to look around
Whether you go to race for a category place or the overall, or just for the experience and to push yourself – make time to look up and take in the environment you’re in. The Emilia Romagna is a stunningly beautiful landscape. The event traverses farmland and ancient villages, taking your through old forests, centuries old groves of chestnuts, down trails that tumble along cliff lines and into gullies, and alongside crystal clear waterways. You’ll pedal through stone villages, and climb beautifully tranquil mountain roads that you didn’t even know existed. At times, you’ll stare only at your stem, your data, the wheel ahead.
Bike racing can be a means to make a living for some, a reason to meet new people or a way to travel for others. Whatever it is for you, when it takes you to places you just may not visit otherwise, you owe it to yourself to make sure you immerse yourself in the experience and the environment.
Appenninica MTB in 2024
In 2024 the event runs from September 2-7, with a start in Bologna – making for very easy logistics for anyone travelling via plane or train for the event. As in other years, there is a cap on participants, so you won’t be crowded out of the trails or the event towns. Chances are, you’ll recognise everyone by the third stage.