TC100K
(103 km 3240 D+)
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Saturday 18 april 2020 5.30 am
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hourly limit 23 hours 4 point itra
Gravel Running: the new frontier of off-road running
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Why are the Tuscany Crossing races the flagship events of this discipline?
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In recent years, we’ve been hearing more and more about gravel running, a new form of running that is winning over athletes and outdoor enthusiasts throughout Italy.
But what exactly is gravel running? And why has the Tuscany Crossing, in the heart of the Val d’Orcia, become the symbol of this new philosophy of movement?
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What is gravel running?
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The term ‘gravel’ – literally ‘gravel’ – originates from the world of cycling, where it refers to bikes designed to ride on unpaved roads, dirt tracks and natural trails.
Transferred to the world of running, the concept retains the same essence: running off the tarmac, on mixed terrain, where running meets adventure.
Gravel running is therefore about freedom and discovery, a way to reconnect with nature and rediscover the pleasure of moving along authentic routes, far from traffic and noise.
It is not just a new sporting discipline, but a philosophy of running: slower, more mindful, more connected to places and emotions.
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Dirt tracks: the heart of gravel
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The magic of gravel running lies entirely here: in the dirt tracks that wind through villages, hills and the countryside, offering that unique sensation of travelling through time and space.
These are routes that blend tradition and nature, ideal for those seeking a physical challenge as well as the pleasure of the experience.
In Italy, the most iconic dirt roads are found in Tuscany — a region that has always embodied the essence of gravel. And it is right here, amongst the hills and cypress trees of the Val d’Orcia, that the event which best represents this philosophy comes to life: the Tuscany Crossing.
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Tuscany Crossing: the race that tells the story of Tuscany
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Now in its 13th edition, the Tuscany Crossing has become a legend in the world of trail and ultrarunning.
But with the emergence of Gravel Running, the event has also become a benchmark for the gravel movement in Italy.
Its route winds through the most picturesque landscapes of the Val d’Orcia — from Castiglione d’Orcia to Pienza, from Montalcino to San Quirico — combining sport, nature and culture into a total experience.
Here, you don’t just run against the clock: you run to experience the real Tuscany, to breathe in the dust, to hear your own footsteps in the silence of the fields.
The Tuscany Crossing is not just any race.
It is a story written with your feet, a journey that is both personal and collective.
That is why it has become the iconic race of gravel running: because it embodies everything this discipline stands for — freedom, authenticity, discovery.
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The future of gravel running
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The success of gravel running is not a passing fad.
It is the answer to a new way of experiencing sport, one that is more sustainable and more human.
More and more runners are choosing natural routes – less competitive and more about the experience – where the value lies not in speed, but in the journey itself.
And the Tuscany Crossing is ready to lead this evolution.
Because on the dirt tracks of Tuscany and in the Siena region, every step conveys an emotion, every race becomes a story, and every athlete writes their own adventure.
Historic Roads of Siena
The Walls of Siena
15 / 11 / 2026
From the Siena City Walls Trail to the ‘SS42’
Historic Roads of Siena
The Siena City Walls Trail was established in 2017. After a few years’ hiatus, it was revived and relaunched with a new identity: the Siena City Walls City Trail.
A 12-kilometre run, with both competitive and non-competitive categories, taking place entirely within Siena: city walls, gates, alleyways, climbs, cobblestones and some of the city’s most evocative spots.
Now the time has come to venture beyond the city walls.
Not simply by extending the distance, but by seeking out those roads which, for centuries, have brought people, goods, pilgrims, armies and ideas to Siena.
And so SS42 – Strade Storiche di Siena was born.
A 42-kilometre journey that starts in Asciano, in the heart of the Crete Senesi, and heads towards Siena along a network of ancient roads and dirt tracks.
You’ll travel along sections linked to the Via Lauretana, an ancient route connecting to Siena; you’ll cross the extraordinary dirt tracks of the Crete Senesi; you’ll pass through Torre a Castello and reach Monteaperti, a place that evokes one of the most famous chapters in Sienese history.
Then Siena begins to appear on the horizon.
But reaching the city doesn’t mean the journey is over.
It is precisely there that the final chapter of the journey begins.
The final 7 kilometres are within Siena: you enter the city and run through it on its cobbled streets, along the walls, through gates, streets and places that tell of centuries of history, until you reach the Medici Fortress.
From Asciano to Siena.
From the dirt tracks to the city’s cobblestones.
From the Crete to the city walls.
42 kilometres not just to run, but to journey through history.
The project is organised by ASD Sienarunners and Associazione Le Mura, but it was conceived with a clear conviction: an event that traverses a territory cannot thrive without that territory itself.
For this reason, alongside the organisers, there will be collaboration from numerous voluntary organisations, which embody the social fabric that represents one of the most important resources of the communities along the route.
People and organisations who know these places, live them and help to keep them alive every day.
The project is also supported by the municipalities of Asciano, Castelnuovo Berardenga and Siena – the three areas linked by the route.
We do not simply want to organise a new race.
We want to create an event that brings together sport, history, the local area, the community and voluntary work, making the route itself the star of the show.
‘The Walls of Siena – 12 km’ tells the story of Siena from within.
‘SS42 – Historic Roads of Siena – 42 km’, on the other hand, recounts the journey towards Siena, along the roads that have shaped its history.
Two routes.
Three areas.
Many communities.
One destination: Siena.