What's your favourite Giro climb?

[Cobblestoned]

Mortirolo - beautiful to ride but a beast anyway.

From outside, they are all epic and beautiful. But I loved the shadow, or all the trees along the Mortirolo.

 

[Lanark]

I voted Tre Cime di Lavaredo.

To be honest, the 2005 Finestre is the best climb I have ever seen, but that day was a perfect storm, everything worked to it's advantage that day (a great battle for pink, the stage, drama (Ardila/Van Huffel), but that was just once, too early to really give it the number one spot. Zoncolan is incredible of course, but it's a bit too straighforward (just incredible steep for a long time), tactics play too little a role, and it's not a pretty mountain either.

 

[benpounder]

part three, and if anyone has better details, please add.

Passo Di Gavia:

Passo Dello Stelvio:

Colle DelleAgnello:

 

[Eshnar]

The Passo Di Gavia you posted is the less hard side... this the classic one (harder)

 

[Magnus]

Colle DelleAgnello:

I'm really looking forward to this + Galibier this July

 

[benpounder]

One last image, one that shows why this is the greatest stage race around, from tappa 7 last year, found on Steephill.tv:

 

[Eshnar]

I'll put also Stelvio, Fauniera and Agnello

 

[Moondance]

Kronplatz is the most fun.

It would be legendary if the ever had a road stage finish up there.

 

[Eshnar]

Kronplatz is the most fun.

It would be legendary if the ever had a road stage finish up there.

Yeah, it's a shame that in 2006 they had to cancelled it due to snow

 

[benpounder]

I'll note that I voted for Manghen as my favorite. It is hard, but I don't think it is the hardest. They are finally approaching the foot of Finestre...

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Thing is, the poll's not 'hardest' but 'favourite'. Fedaia isn't the hardest, but it's plenty hard enough, and it's my favourite.

 

[IlCobraFan]

Plan de Corones...the steep gravel pitches are something to behold. That last km is horrible.

Plan de Corones for me too. It's unique.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

I refresh the thread after a few years of break Giro has so many epic climbs that it can be hard to decide but I have my favourites:

1. Stelvio

King of climbs in Europe. Icon for cyclists and motorcyclists. It has all: sky-high altitude, enormous elevation gain, unrelenting steepness, phenomenal road, stunning scenery and historically legendary status. When someone says 'classic mountain road' then many think 'Stelvio'. Giro organizers 'discovered' a few monster climbs (like Zoncolan and Finestre) in order to surpass Tour mountain stages. But Stelvio from Prato with its 48 hairpins easily eclipses all of TdF climbs. Organisers should use it from this side more often. Maybe some MTF or ITT with 1850 meters of climbing? Unfortunately my only Stelvio (from Prato) memory is from 2005 when my favourite rider Ivan Basso lost there almost half an hour...

2. Finestre

During the Tour de France commentators often describe 9-10% gradients as 'very hard sections'. How about 18.5 kilometers of such a 'section'? And nearly half of it is unpaved. This climb is a freak. It instantly became a classic in 2005 when Simoni, Di Luca and Rujano tried to crush Savoldelli. Some TV images of unpaved section were shown without colors and it resembled legendary Coppi - Bartali battles. It has potential to become the biggest cycling icon - especially if some day TdF decides to use it...

3. Gavia

Giro legend - beast and beauty. It's place in top3 is for similar reasons as Stelvio. Tough ascent, high mountains, narrow road, snow tunnels and historical moments. When I saw on TV Gavia stage for the first time the weather was good and I was stunned by its beauty.

There are obviously many other super-climbs. Very hard and beautiful climbs of Fedaia or Tre Cime di Lavaredo. But I'm actually not a big fan of that leg-breaking gradients of Zoncolan. Somehow I don't "feel" this mountain (at least so far) despite it's already becoming a legend.

And Stelvio...in July:

 

[fauniera]

1. Fauniera - surprise!
2. Mortirolo - great memories, great tifosi, great climb, almost impossible to place badly in a stage.
3. Finestre
4. Fedaia

Sampeyre missing in the list. And Crostis could beat them all if raced.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

Not a surprise given your nickname I also wanted to mention Fauniera with its narrow, beautiful mountain road but I simply didn't watch any race on it (and that was a condition). And Fauniera is a pass I want to see in the Giro most.

 

[Siriuscat]

Went for the Fedaia, Fedaia/Giau best day I ever had on a bike

 

[ILovecycling]

finestre is a really nice climb,everything about it is great

 

[aarnold517]

Always fedaia..

 

[fauniera]

Have to link this. Mr. INRNG lists 10 roads to ride, with Fauniera on top of the list. Good man.

 

[Alexandre B.]

Re:

Always fedaia..

I instantly fell in love with that climb when I saw it during 2008 Giro. Even if Sella was leading.

 

[Valv.Piti]

Passo Del Mortirolo
Colle Delle Finestre
Colle Della Fauniera
Colle Dell' Agnello
Passo Fedaia
Monte Zoncolan
Passo Dello Stelvio
Tre Cime Di Lavaredo
Plan De Corones
Passo Di Gavia

This would probably be my list out of the climbs listed. All great climbs. I absolutely love Mortirolo, ppl should know that by now.. same thing with Finestre, always great racing. Never seen Fauniera, but if I had it would probably rank above Finestre. Agnello is a monster as well. Fedaia cause LS and the views, Zonc is extremely hard. Stelvio from west (?) is awesome, Lavaredo after Giau and stuff like in 2007 is stuff for the legends (altho I like Giau better), I don't really have a relationship with Corones and I aint no fan of Gavia, really. Blockhaus would also rank higher than the last 3 climbs on this list.

 

[amih77]

Re:

Never seen it before but Finestre looks really great! Although my personal favourit would be Passo dello Stelvio since I have been skiing at the Stelvio glacier.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzPpXiNTvRs

The climb at 5:24, is that Stelvio?

I think not, it's the Giro 2005 stage 14, while Stelvio was stage 15. Unless eurosport doesn't count the prologue, it must not be the Stelvio (but it's similar...)
wait, there's no Basso in there... So it could actually be the Stelvio. Damn eurosport...

Looks like the Stelvio from Prad.

 

[Velolover2]

NOT Monte Zoncolan.

Stelvio is more mythical IMO.

 

[Gigs_98]

Finestre is clearly my favorite giro climb, but tbh I've simply not seen many of these climbs or at least never seen them when they were at a crucial point of the stage. I would surely rank gavia quite high if I had seen the blizzard battle of 1988, while I had definitely rated the Agnello (now one of my favorite climbs) lower before the giro 2016.

Anyway, I always find it a bit sad that all legendary giro climbs are in the alps. The giro should really visit climbs like Blockhaus more often.

 

[bassano]

I rode quite all of that climbs and for me definitelly finestre and Fauniera after that, pitty that fauniera is not used more often
and nice thread btw. thanks for that