Permanent EROICA route
The permanent route of the Eroica extends for 209 km in the heart of the Sienese territory, crossing Chianti, the Crete Senesi, the Municipality of Murlo, and the Val d'Orcia.
A journey into the heart of the legendary Tuscan landscape, where space and time expand.
The technical characteristics make this itinerary a great opportunity for those who practise cycling tourism. It has a total elevation gain of about 3,800 meters, with a continuously moving character on both paved and dirt roads.
The route can be completed throughout the year and with any type of bike.
A dream for all cyclists, those who want to discover still unspoiled places and those who seek technical paths for the pleasure of cycling in freedom.
Grand Tour of the Val di Merse
The Grand Tour of Val di Merse, a permanent cycle tourism route, was founded in 2011 from an idea of the Val di Merse Cycling Group to reveal more intimate and surprising part of Tuscany and the Sienese lands. The itinerary, completely signposted in an anti-clockwise direction, covers a distance of 173km with an elevation gain of 3100mt, with four gravel sectors totaling 12 km, two sections corresponding to the Strade Bianche professional race route, and one to the Eroica route.
The Grand Tour of Val di Merse, being a loop, can start from any point on the route and can be tackled with all types of bikes: Cycle tourism, Gravel, Mountain Bike, Road (for those who take it on with a Road bike see
NOTE), Ebike, the advice is to do it in several days to have time to enjoy the pleasure of the journey.
NOTE: "For those who use a Road bike, we recommend at Passo Incrociati not to turn right onto the Cetina/Poggio ai Legni gravel road as indicated by the road sign, but to continue downhill on asphalt until Pievescola where, at the roundabout with the statue "Il Fungo Innamorato", turn right to rejoin the signposted route in the locality of Scorgiano".
more info on the official website: https://www.grandtourvaldimerse.it/en/
Gravel Grand Tour of Val di Merse
The Val di Merse Cycling Group has also created a Gravel Grand Tour version of the Val di Merse, an invitation to slow tourism that allows you to discover the most secret beauty of the area. The 217km route with 4200mt d+ with about 100km of dirt road and the asphalt part using a secondary traffic-free road. We recommend riding the Gravel Grand Tour of Val di Merse with Gravel or Mountain Bike and to divide it into several stages to better enjoy this wonderful part of Tuscany.
The Etruscans in Val di Merse
Itinerary in the municipality of Murlo, which also allows a visit to the village of Buonconvento, interesting the section that runs along the old railway of the mines of Murlo along the Crevole stream where some passages are rather narrow, the dirt roads that allow you to sweep between the Val di Merse and the Crete Senesi as far as Montalcino
more info on the official website: https://www.grandtourvaldimerse.it/en/
Between Val di Merse and Crete
Route that develops in the municipality of Murlo straddling two different natural environments: to the west the lush forests of the Val di Merse to the east the sinuous hills of the Crete Senesi
more info on the official website: https://www.grandtourvaldimerse.it/en/
Murlo ready for the Tirreno/Adriatica 2022 caravan
The municipality of Murlo will be one of the territories crossed by the Tirreno/Adriatica historic bicycle race that has reached its 56th edition this year. The pedals and chains of the bikes will start turning on Wednesday, March 10, from Lido di Camaiore and then continue through five regions of central Italy, namely, Tuscany, Umbria, Lazio, Abruzzo and Marche. The serpentine of the "Race of the Two Seas" will pass through Murlo during the second stage on March 11 with arrival in Chiusdino and will be repeated the next day in the third stage departing from Monticiano continuing through Asciano to Gualdo Tadino (Umbria).
"In small steps we are trying to return to the normality of our communities, which is certainly also made up of events that excite young and old alike," says Murlo Mayor Davide Ricci, "in this case the occasion is given to us by the Tirreno/Adriatica a race that has made the history of cycling in our country. It will certainly be exciting to see some of the greatest Italian talents pass right on our roads and for this a big thank you can only go to the organization of the race for choosing our roads and to the Union of Boroughs of the Val di Merse that has been able to work in synergy obtaining a great result.
The passage of the competitors will certainly be a beautiful moment to experience and I am sure that the collaboration between the municipalities of our valley will lead to other important results for the benefit of the territory."
The Tirreno/Adriatica is a race included (since 2011) in the UCI World Tour circuit and is considered the ideal preparation for the Giro d'Italia as well. The Roll of Honor accordingly includes prestigious names: Dino Zandegù, Francesco Moser, Giuseppe Saronni, Tuscans Michele Bartoli and Paolo Bettini, Swiss Fabian Cancellara, Vincenzo Nibali twice, Alberto Contador and Primoz Roglic.
PH Alessandro Boletti
