Super trail collector's item by Ines Thoma: The Tutti Frutti MTB trail in the Dolomites

At the Enduro World Series race in Canazei, this trail was the absolute star of the event. More than 1000 metres of downhill, a spectacular route and a panoramic view of the Dolomites that constantly disturbed my concentration. I'm glad that now, a few years later, I have the opportunity to ride the Tutti Frutti Trail again. Without the stress of racing. With time to stop for a bite to eat and to enjoy this bombastic view:

We take the gondola from Campitello di Fassa towards the 2484 metre high Col Rodella. Outside the window, the towers of the famous Sella massif grow in fast motion. Down below, the typical white Dolomite gravel tracks glisten as they wind their way through the alpine meadows up to the pass. Of course, we could have taken them, but then we wouldn't have been allowed to eat the spinach dumplings down in the valley. With a full stomach, no one was in the mood for a long, steep Dolomite ramp.

Oh, how nice it can be at Col Rodella when everything is just right! Two years ago, I rushed up here to the stage in sweltering 30 degree temperatures because I had lost a lot of time due to a defect on the previous special stage and didn't want to lose third place. Today I'm standing here at a pleasant 20 degrees, turning round on my own axis and can't get enough of the view: Sella, Rosengarten, Langkofel, Marmolada - the Dolomites in all their splendour!

But now it's time for the wild ride that was so much fun back then: The Tutti-Frutti Trail initially runs along a wide ridge across open meadows. First fast and straight ahead, then narrow hairpin bends and washed-out gullies follow. They now seem deeper to me and much more difficult to ride. Shortly before the tree line, there are some interesting, rooty counter-climbs. In wet conditions, these could be a slippery affair. But even so, it's better to find the right gear in time to be able to give the necessary push over the short ramps and transverse roots at the last second. There are even more roots in the forest. They protrude from the loamy soil, which is, thankfully, hard and fast in dry conditions. In the rain, on the other hand, the tyres are likely to take quite a beating, especially on the steep sections.

A kind of halfway point with a place to stop for refreshments awaits us on the Sella Pass road: the Lupo Bianco restaurant is said to have good food. But unfortunately we've already eaten and the cable car ride hasn't exactly given us a hunger pang. So we head straight into section two of the trail:

A hiking trail branches off to the right of the tarmac road. Although it always runs close to the road, it also has plenty of tight hairpin bends, small stream crossings and the obligatory root passages. At the end, we shoot down a section of ski slope, then at some point the first houses of Canazei catch up with us. What a long, brilliant descent, when you can really enjoy every one of its 1000 metres of depth and every single key section! In the adrenaline rush during the race, with less than 15 minutes of riding time, I missed a lot.

We roll back the last three kilometres from Canazei to Campitello on the road and simply can't get the catchy tune out of our heads: "Tutti Frutti - aw rooty".

GPS data for the MTB Supertrail Tutti Frutti

The complete descent from Col Rodella via Canazei back to Campitello measures 9.9 kilometres and 1049 metres in depth. The trail section of 4.4 kilometres is 44 percent. If you take the cable car in Campitello, you only have to pedal 64 metres of ascent.

The GPS data for the Tutti-Frutti Supertrail in the Trentino Dolomites can be downloaded here free of charge.

Ines Thoma

The Allgäu native is one of the German enduro elite and has seen many super trails on races around the world.