BRVR - Goats League - Climb 9 - Passo Di Costalunga, Italy

[Crook Town AFC]

Apologies, I hadn’t realised there were different rules for this league - I’ll take a look.. a link or pointing in the right direction would be helpful.

Always late to the party, me..

The only real difference is you can only post your time from rides completed after they have been announced on this board. I've been caught out a few times myself, notably the Madeleine, where I set a good time for the TdF challenge then had to do it again a week later when it was announced on this league. Trouble was I set a slower time and had to be content with it .

If you don't mind me asking how did you come across this forum? I "discovered" it when I was looking into a problem with Elite trainers using the BKool platform.

ETA

I see Smiljan @SmP-62 beat me to it (sounds familiar)

 

[BRVR_User]

Hi Dave - found the forum by complete accident a day or two ago. Some one suggested it might be good place to sell a couple of bikes I have .. ended up going completely off topic and started reading some stuff in the training section when I noticed this..

Pleased I did as I’ve thought for a while it would be good to chat about the climbs with other riders.

 

[Crook Town AFC]

Hi Dave - found the forum by complete accident a day or two ago. Some one suggested it might be good place to sell a couple of bikes I have .. ended up going completely off topic and started reading some stuff in the training section when I noticed this..

Pleased I did as I’ve thought for a while it would be good to chat about the climbs with other riders.

You've certainly come to the right place for a bit of banter Alan. As I mentioned to Smiljan, I've been off the bike for a few weeks and away from this forum for a while but there's loads of other FM's to chat with, Dave Kings, @djk for example is always up for @Aleman's challenges as well as the BRVR ones. @theboxers is a regular and is always up for a chat on here and in the main topics as well.

 

[SmP-62]

Alan, if you are interrested also about real life climbing chat, I live near Alps (and of course ride there), only few hours away from Dolomites, Stelvio, Grossglockner, Monte Zoncolan ...
I'm also familiar with french Pyrenees (met there and rode with Mike 'The ColCollective' Cotty), Andorra, Southern France Alps, Tenerife (El Teide, Masca, ...), ..., and with highest US climbs. I rode all 10 highest roads in US + some more, including the hardest climb on earth, Hilo to summit of Mauna Kea volcano on Hawaii.

 

[Aleman]

Have you done Hurzen and Wurzen pass in the Julian Alps Simljan?? I did them 30 years ago when I (and my new wife, at the time) were on our honeymoon tour.

 

[SmP-62]

Julian Alps are the nearest to me, on the clear day I can see the highest moutain there (Triglav).

Wurzenpass is short but one of the steeeeepest passes here (Austrian side, you are happy when you see 12% sign ... before that is worst).

Are you sure about the name Hurzen Pass ... it is not familiar to me ... the passes near the Wurzenpass are Vrsic, Loiblpass, Seeberg Sattel, Predel, Sella Nevea ...

EDIT: I have done it, the Wurzenpass, of course. Once (in younger years) also with the late Jure Robic, multiple RAAM winner (Race across America).

 

[Aleman]

You live in a beautiful part of the world.

Sorry I may have the name wrong, I blame the 'guide' I was with

We were following the B206 from Bovec to Kranjska Gora, and then up and over into Austria to Villach .. I guess Triglav would have been the highest point in the area..

The most memorable part was descending from the col heading toward Austria to discover that they had cobbled the hairpins!! I locked up both wheels, and got through to the canvas on the rear wheel! ... It was descending Wurzenpass that the tandem in our group had a blowout right in front of me, I swear that the stoker jumped so high she nearly sat on my handlebars!

Got to admit that that is one ride I would really love to do again ... Perhaps not on a steel bike with panniers and only 6 gears on the back though !

 

[SmP-62]

From Bovec you have first done the climb on Vrsic pass and then descent to Kranjska gora, from there is few kilometers to austrian border on Wurzenpass (Korensko sedlo in slovenian) and a short but steep descent to the flat before reaching Villach.

The climb Kranjska gora-Vrsic pass is the most known climb is Slovenia, famous also because of (as you mentioned) cobblestones on hairpins. It is most difficult climb for racing, as the only constant thing on that climb are constant changes in slope (and some parts are really hard, it gets harder near the top, not to mention those cobblestones ....)

 

[Aleman]

I think the cafe/hut at the col of Vrsic Pass doe a stupendous bowl of soup ... well it did in 1987 when I was there

I vividly remember the steepness, and the insides of the hairpins was crazy, you couldn't move to the outside, to take the easier gradient because of all the traffic! A great day out on the bike though.