ePodismo online | U.S. edition | Issue 5 | October 2014
Siusi allo Sciliar is an Alpine village in South Tyrol, in the Province of Bolzano. The village lies in the Dolomites, in the shadow of the 2,563 meters Siusi mountain and is located in the Trentino Alto Adige region of northern Italy. The "Running Park Alpe di Siusi" features twenty running trails, well balanced and well marked with different distances and difficulty. The total length is 112 miles (180 kilometers). Eight of these courses are in excellent condition, surrounded by a magnificent landscape at an altitude between 1800 and 2300 meters above sea level on the Alpe di Siusi. Twelve of them are at an altitude between 900 and 1100 meters around the villages of Castelrotto, Siusi and Fič, at the foot of the Sciliar plateau. You can choose among several routes, such as the "Paul Tergat track" (11 miles / 18k) or the easy "Beginners Run". The Running Park offers the ideal course for every runner. In order to find the right individual path, the tracks have a measurement system for running, mountain running and Nordic walking. Blue, red and black pictograms indicate the degree of difficulty of the tracks. A booklet keeps you informed about the tracks, length and difficulty grade. And you will also get some information on how to start, together with a training diary (available in German and Italian). World champions, Olympic athletes and record holders have been using the running trails of the Running Park Alpe di Siusi, at the heart of the Unesco World Heritage Site. Accommodations for runners are also available: you can have breakfast from 6 am, with a varied menu for athletes focusing on proteins and carbohydrates, including muesli bars and fruit. You can also find up-to-date information on the weather, excursion ideas, and the possibility of booking a guide. A washing and tumble-drying service for your clothes and a room for warm-up-stretching is also available. www.alpedisiusi.info.
Reggio Calabria is located at the very bottom of Italy, in the Calabria region, right on the tip of the "boot", but it is not a very touristic city, thus is not provided with many hotels. If you are staying at the Grande Albergo Miramare, one of the few, you can easily workout by running along the promenade, facing the Mediterranean sea and the island of Sicily. This is a very panoramic route, where you can find most of the runners. The promenade is a long straight stretch of sidewalk, great for running especially on a Summer night. There is also a "lower promenade", closer to the beach, which offers a more winding course.
ADIDAS ADIOS BOOST 2 - The performance of racing shoes from Adidas has been aimed at the top tier of the podium, the Adios Boost worn by champions of several of the Marathon Majors, including the World Record effort. Round 2 of the Adios Boost returns to the fit of earlier versions of the Adios franchise. The upper is a similar open mesh, but the welded overlays of round one have been replaced by synthetic suede and the fit has been affected - some testers found the need to go up a half size or more. The midsole is the same composition, but the toe-spring is more pronounced, with a subtle adjustment to the feel, its strength still is its protection and rebound. The outersole is unchanged, thin rubber with a PU forefoot plate which combine for durability and excellent traction. The result, as with round one, is a responsive and protective shoe for mid- to longer races.
Testers: "Structurally, this shoe has changed little from last year. Protection and cushioning seem the same, the fit is a bit closer in the toes. I am glad to see it wasn't tinkered with too much."
Sizes: Men 6.5–13, 14, 15; Women 5–12
Weight: 7.9 oz. (men's size 11); 6.4 oz. (women's size 8)
Shape: semi-curved
Fit: Snug heel, curved forefoot
Recommended for: medium to high-arched feet with neutral biomechanics; efficient runners (up to marathon or beyond); heavy strikers (up to 30K or beyond)
 | The fun run La Marconiana will be held on Saturday October 4 in Pontecchio Marconi, in the province of Bologna, a town named after Guglielmo Marconi, the Italian 1909 Nobel Prize winner engineer, credited as the inventor of the radio. This is a great occasion to run the 3k or the 6.5k course, and then stop and visit the museum dedicated to Marconi. www2.csisassomarconi.it |
 | The Verona marathon will be held on Sunday October 5 in Verona, one of the main tourist destinations in northern Italy, renown for its piazza delle Erbe and the opera sessions held in the Arena, an ancient amphitheatre built by the Romans. The city has been awarded World Heritage Site status by Unesco because of its urban structure and architecture. The event features 10k, half and a full marathon distances. www.veronamarathon.it |
 | The sixth edition of the 100km delle Alpi will start on Saturday October 11 in Torino. It is a magnificent point-to-point course on the Alps, 100 kilometers (62 miles) long, ending in Saint-Vincent, a town in the Aosta Valley region of north-western Italy, popular as a holiday resort. www.giroitaliarun.it |
 | Between San Gimignano, in the Siena province, and Volterra, in the province of Pisa, a 30k race is held each year, alternating direction between the two places. This year the spectacular San Gimignano/Volterra will start on Sunday October 12 from San Gimignano, famous for its medieval architecture, unique in the preservation of about a dozen of its tower houses, which, with its hilltop setting and encircling walls form an unforgettable skyline, and will end in the Etruscan city of Volterra. www.comune.sangimignano.si.it |
 | Dubbed "the most panoramic course in Italy" the Lago Maggiore Marathon, scheduled on Sunday October 19 in Verbania Pallanza (Verbano-Cusio-Ossola), features a half and a full marathon course. The lake itself is worth a trip: it is the second largest lake in Italy and its shoreline are divided between the Italian regions of Piedmont and Lombardy and the Swiss canton of Ticino. Around the lake are many gardens growing rare and exotic plants, such as the Borromean and Brissago islands gardens, that of the Villa Taranto in Verbania, and the Alpinia botanical garden above Stresa. www.lagomaggioremarathon.com |
 | Are you a fan or roasted chestnuts? October is the right month to visit Italy, and the Maratonina delle castagne ("Chestnut marathon") in Rocca di Papa (Roma) on Sunday October 26 is the event to run. It is a competitive race, just a little under 10k in the center of the regional park known as the "Parco Regionale dei Castelli Romani". At the end, wine, roasted chestnuts and "polenta" (cornmeal) for all participants. www.atleticaroccadipapa.it |
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