Running an Ultra Marathon in the rolling Tuscan hills… ..a dream!

And what better territory than the Val d'Orcia to be the backdrop with its never the same landscapes, apparently sweet but deceptive for muscles and legs.

The roads that cross it are the great roads that, in Roman times, linked Rome to the other side of the Alps,  the Romea, the Cassia, the Francigena traveled by Sigerico Archbishop of Canterbury and by many illustrious travelers, warriors, saints and brigands; the fortifications, castles and medieval churches still present in the area bear witness to this.

At the foot of the Amiata, the highest extinct volcano in Italy, the Orcia river flows, apparently a trickle, but capable of making its strength felt if the rains are abundant; the valley is a succession of gentle hills whose vegetation and its colors vary according to the seasons, the sterile colors of the biancane clays, the golden tuffs and the fortresses that inspired artists such as the Sienese painters of the Renaissance.

Land of wind and desert that can arouse not only harmonious harmony, but also anxiety and loneliness but never indifference. If you stop here you will think "I've already been to this place",  you may have seen it in the numerous films made or in commercials or in millions of other images or even in a previous life, but being in it will surprise you, you will be in the long dream.

This is the Val d'Orcia, a land where agriculture has not yet surrendered to progress and still today offers the whole world delicious flavors such as the famous wines that deserve aristocratic names such as the "RE" Brunello and the "NOBILE" Montepulciano and the rising star Orcia Rosso, unique cheeses such as pecorino di Pienza and that "poor" cuisine that gave rise to the Mediterranean diet, and ... the people, the population, who continue to welcome  travelers and to make them  you participate in one  sincere conviviality.

The organizers  in designing the route they thought of the journey of wayfarers and pilgrims  who have walked this land for centuries;  why run here, in these lands,  it will be like being one of their "wayfarers of yesteryear" a daydream.  

You will pass through medieval villages rich in history, art and culture in a UNESCO World Heritage Park since 2004

It will be a 100 mile long dream that will start at 5.30 pm, will see the sunset, the night, the sunrise through woods, vineyards, white roads,  it will descend to the Orcia river and head towards the famous Cypresses of the Triboli valley (the most photographed in the world) and then head to Torrenieri , an ancient post station on the Via Francigena, it will go up to Montalcino, a medieval village famous for its wine "his Majesty the BRUNELLO ", to then head towards the Abbey of Sant'Antimo founded according to the legend by Charlemagne, will cross Castelnuovo dell'Abate and then return to cross the Orcia river again and return to Castiglione d'Orcia where there will be the first base life at the 60th km, then passing under the Rocca di Tentennano (your lighthouse for the whole race) you cross  Rocca d'Orcia and go down to the ancient Bagno Vignoni spa famous for its pool in the center of the village, go up to San Quirico d'Orcia, a town rich in history located on the Via Francigena where Federico Barbarossa was crowned Emperor of the Holy Empire, we will cross the lands made famous by the film " The gladiator " with its Elysian Fields and the church of the Madonna di Vitaleta , to reach Pienza , the ideal city wanted by Pope Pius II, now a UNESCO heritage site, still hills and arrive in Monticchiello , a town rich in history and recently famous for its "Teatro Povero" where all the inhabitants play, you go down the Via Agogna where you can enjoy a 360 ° view of the Valdorcia, you ford the river again and you get to Gallina and here it begins the real Tuscany Crossing .... you start to climb towards Campiglia d'Orcia (2nd life base), a town located around the Bell Tower that dominates the valley, then descend again to Bagni San Filippo , famous for its White Whale a magnificent limestone conformation formed thanks to the gushing of the thermal waters that make the landscape suggestive, go up for 7 km towards the Vivo d'Orcia the highest point of the race (1050 meters above sea level) begins the descent to get to the last refreshment point in Poggio Rosa up at the lowest point of the final phase at 207 meters above sea level but it's not over ... a series of ups and downs will take you to the final climb to get to " conquer the Rocca " and the deserved final prize.

There will also be shorter distances of 103 km and 53 km but they will always be Ultra Dreams ...

The event will award  6 ITRA points  at 100 miles, 4 points at 100 km,  2 points for the 50 km  to participate in the Mont Blanc Ultra Trail.

And the dream? At a certain point all that remains is to wake up, the competitors will have a maximum time of 34 hours to live, suffer, dream and then .... honor and glory to those who have completed this wonderful journey!

Val D'Orcia will be  still there, it will still resist in reality, intact over the centuries and there will still be a lot of time to fully enjoy its beauties ever!