ARCH. The Arco Castle will host the departure of the GTT Extra on Friday 17 May. Just under a month from the 9th edition of Garda Trentino Trail yesterday, 22 April, an important new link was created between the historical and cultural heritage of Alto Garda Ledro and the event which year after year is increasingly gaining international attention in the Trial world.
A few years ago the first historic debut with the approval for the competition to move to the Ledro stilts area, given by Michele Lanzingher, director of the Muse and the staff of the Prehistoric Museum, who have so inextricably linked the prehistoric treasure now the image of the Ledro Valley to the Garda Trentino Trail. This time it was the turn of the Arco Castle thanks to the consent of the municipal administration. And so, what has always been defined as “the race of the three lakes of Garda, Ledro and Tenno”, is definitively transformed into a precious vehicle for promoting not only tourism – sports – the environment of the territory but also of its historical – cultural heritage.
The innovation was approved at the end of a detailed inspection carried out at the Castle by the delegation of the CO di Garda Trentino Trail with the president Matteo Paternostro, Giuliano Bombarda and Roberto Fedrizzi, and by a representative of the municipal administration with the deputy mayor Roberto Zampiccoli (who has expertise in the field of valorisation of the castle and the olive grove), councilor Dario Ioppi (Sport and Tourism) and Ignazio Pagano, municipal official of the Sport and Tourism Office. Words of praise came from everyone for the new opportunity resulting from concertation. It will then be up to the filming staff with Gianluca Poddighe and Andrea Vallauri to create empathetic television images.
The decisive start formula is also decidedly innovative: all the technical details will be carried out in the center of Arco, in the beating heart of the organisation; then there will be a transfer to altitude at a controlled pace similar to what happens in cycling competitions, with the aim of allowing a mini-excursion to the castle also by companions, the public and the curious. A sort of pre-race warm-up and finally the official start in the large green area (“Prato della Lizza”) below the majestic tower which has now become the symbol of Arco. The competitors will reach it and then go around the house of frescoes dating back to the 1300s where characters and court scenes are depicted with ladies and gentlemen engaged in the game of chess, Saint George intent on killing a dragon, the investiture of a knight and a lady engaged in the composition of rose garlands; the ascent will continue using the metal stairs built between the house and the rock, to continue towards the highest point of the fortress at the foot of the Renghera Tower and then head north where there is the Laghel tower inserted into the walls of the Castle.
The Arc symbol depicted in 1495 by Albrecht Durer in the watercolor now kept in the Louvre, it becomes one of the iconic images of the Garda Trentino Trail. And it also establishes an indissoluble bond: from the top of the cliff you can gaze across the ridges that envelop the Alto Garda Trentino to the east and west, in fact witnesses of a large part of the 150km route (obviously excluding the sections that insist on the Alpi Ledrensi) which represent the self-sufficiency race route.
Over the course of eight editions, Garda Trentino Trail has grown to become an irreplaceable point of reference in the nature running calendar, in Italy and also internationally, as demonstrated by the over 30 countries represented in the six 2023 races. And between May 17th and 19th, the ninth edition promises further interesting news, also in terms of foreign participation.
In less than a decade, the number of participants has more than quadrupled, going from 600 participants in the first edition of May 2016, to 2,500 starters last year, considering the five distances proposed by the Garda Trentino Trail in the spring version and the winter formula of Garda Trentino Xmas Trail. A numerical growth favored by the desire to innovate put in place by the organizing committee chaired by Matteo Paternostro to enrich each edition with innovations linked to the technical aspect and above all linked to the territory, its riches and peculiarities.
Vital contribution is then guaranteed by those beyond 400 volunteers drawn from the rich associational fabric of the area which work to support all competing athletes, in the context of an area naturally suited to outdoor sports.
The 2024 edition – Garda Trentino Trail 2024 will open at 12pm on Friday 17 May with the Extra and the athletes who will have 48 hours to return to Arco, taking advantage of the three life bases (Mori, Nago, Val Concei) and the various refreshment points set up on the 150km route with over 10,000 meters of altitude difference which embraces the entire Garda Trentino, passing over the surrounding peaks (Stivo, Altissimo, Punta Larici and the Ledrensi Alps).
On Saturday 18 May there will therefore be room for the traditional triptych of races, present since the first edition: the flagship Garda Trentino Trail (62Km), Ledro Trail (44Km) and Tenno Trail (30Km), all finishing in Arco, while Sunday is scheduled Garda Trentino Run, on the 11km route. There are 1,300 competitors who have completed registration so far. CL
