Sesto is looking forward to the 21st Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run

Published by Mountainblog on .

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In Sesto, everything is ready for the South Tyrolean mountain run spectacle par excellence: On Saturday, 15 September at 10:00 am the start gun for the 21st edition of the Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run will be fired. 1000 mountain runners will be at the start again when the Dolomites UNESCO World Heritage site once more becomes the scene for the run from Casa Sesto to the Rifugio Antonio Locatelli, covering a distance of 17.5 kilometres with an elevation of 1350 metres.

After the weather-related cancellation last year, Chair of the Organising Committee Gottfried Hofer and his team from the ALV Sextner Dolomiten are now studying the weather report even more closely than usual. And what they are currently being presented with should reassure the organisers of one of the most beautiful mountain runs in the world. Because today everything indicates that the weather conditions at the weekend will be good. “Saturday is settled and the cumulus usually remain harmless,” states the current weather forecast by the provincial weather service – with a reliability of 80 percent.

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As for the rest, the experienced organisers in Sesto are prepared for this renowned sporting event. “The intensive preparations of the past weeks and months have largely been completed. Now it’s all about the details. And of course there are also some minor problems that we try to solve as quickly as possible. We are really looking forward to this year’s race – on the original track and probably with dry weather. But we are prepared for all eventualities and have a plan B, i.e. an alternative route,” explained Chair of the Organising Committee Gottfried Hofer two days before the showdown.

This route is tough. The start of the Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run 2018 will be on Saturday, 15 September at 10:00 am at the car park at Casa Sesto. Afterwards, the 1000 registered participants from 23 different nations will through the centre of Sesto and then back to Moso. Through the rich green larch meadows of Val Fiscalina the athletes run to the Rifugio Piano Fiscalina and on to Rifugio Fondo Valle. Shortly after Rifugio Fondo Valle (at 8.2 km) at the crossroads Val Fiscalina Alta-Val Sasso Vecchio the route bends left towards Rifugio Comici.

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From there, hairpin turns take runners up to Rifugio Comici and on to Rifugio Pian di Cengia at 2575 m altitude. From here, the grand final of the Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run awaits the athletes: From Rifugio Pian di Cengia the route continues for the final three kilometres with the backdrop of Monte Paterno above the Laghi dei Piani to the finish at Rifugio Antonio Locatelli (2405 m). All in all the running distance is 17.5 kilometres with an altitude differential of 1350 m.

“The run towards the finish is unique. On the photos you can see the athletes in the foreground, behind them the Three Peaks. For the participants it is the reward for the exertions and of course a great memory of a wonderful day in the Sesto Dolomites. Down in the valley, celebrations of 20 years of the Drei Zinnen Alpine Run will start in the afternoon. The first edition took place in 1998”, explained Hofer.

Mini Drei Zinnen Alpine Run on Sunday. But the mountain running weekend in Sesto does not end here! On Sunday, 16 September it’s all about the young people. At the 14th Mini Drei Zinnen Alpine Run, the youngest race over 300 meters, Juniors A race a distance of 2800 metres. Fastest runner wins. The true aim of the run however, is to engender the joy of activity and to introduce children and young people to the sport of mountain running.

INFO: Südtirol Drei Zinnen Alpine Run