As in the 2022 season, this year too we have planned the last event of the year for mid-November, on a lucky sunny Saturday.
This year the program includes a traditional tour, once again in Piedmont, starting in the morning and an itinerary of approximately 150 km through the Biella valleys.

THE TOUR

The meeting is as always mid-morning. We chose the Bar del Toro in Masserano (BI) which offers a large car park, excellent for hosting the cars of all the participants. After the usual breakfast during which, with old and new friends, we chatted amiably in the light of the pale autumn sun , we are ready to leave and face the first part of this Tour.

We follow the SP142 towards Gattinara, a short transfer stretch, until the junction for Sostegno. The first part of this road, the SP64, can still be considered a transfer, but after Villa del Bosco the road begins to climb along the valley, gradually becoming more and more interesting until it descends on the opposite side.
The day is clear, and the sun is hot, but the temperatures are low and in many places the wet asphalt forces the participants to be very careful, in particular when we start to climb towards Ponzone where the road is often completely in the shade. We then continue up to Valle Mosso where we then take the SP200 to reach Località Romanina where we make the first stop of this Tour.
The stop in this place was chosen to be able to take those present on this day to visit the Rally Lana Since 1973 exhibition, an exhibition which tells the story and all the editions of the famous rally, and where participants can also warm up with a glass of hot tea and a slice of cake. This certainly interesting stop for rally enthusiasts was also possible thanks to the Autoriparazioni Gazzetta workshop (which we thank), which also exhibited some of its cars.

We then return to the cars to resume our tour and face the longest stage of the day and pass along some of those roads that made the Lana Rally famous. We continue on the SP200 until the junction for Callabiana. Here the road is a little narrower but well asphalted and very winding, an endless succession of curves, just like in a real rally up to Andorno Micca.

From here begins a transfer section with which we cross Biella and then head towards Pollone where the guided section resumes. The road surface is always in excellent condition, with a road surface wide enough to allow you to drive in complete safety along the many and continuous curves passing through the centers of Muzzano, Netro and up to Donato. We enter the SP419, a very wide and very fast road that runs along the Serra and takes us down the western side of it until the junction for the SP74 which takes us to Chiaverano.
We cross the narrow streets of the town to go down to the SP228 for a short transfer stretch up to Bollengo. We then enter the SP338, a road already traveled numerous times during the Special Stages events, a fantastic road, resurfaced quite recently, which offers a truly stupendous succession of curves and fast sections. Road often used by cyclists and motorcyclists but today, on this cold November day, they are absent. After the first succession of uphill hairpin bends with very fast accelerations, the most tortuous part takes us through Zubiena and Mongrando and then takes the direction again towards Biella through a transfer section.

In Biella we make a stop to regroup the entire group of cars which has split up a bit during this long stretch, and then leave for the last stage of this day.
This last stage will take us to reach one of the most characteristic places in the Biella area and above all to travel along the famous and beautiful Panoramica Zegna. We cross Biella again and then take the SP100 again but in the opposite direction towards Andorno Micca, continuing however on it going up the Valley. This stretch of road already offers some interesting guided stretches, interspersed with villages along the valley itself, until we reach Rosazza where we take the SP115, the - so dear to us - Panoramica Zegna. After the two hamlets of Forgnengo and Piaro the road is free up to Bielmonte. The road surface is quite wide with fast and slower sections offering a beautiful driving experience. The higher you go, the more you begin to admire a wonderful panorama with a view of the Po Valley.

Unfortunately in recent years the road surface has gotten a little worse, especially in the highest part of this climb there are some sections where you need to be a little careful on the bumpy asphalt, but it is still a fantastic road!
We then reach the large P2 square where we stop to admire a fantastic sunset and take some wonderful photos with the cars parked in a quite unique context.

With the sun having set behind the mountains and the sky starting to darken we get back in the car to continue along the Panoramica Zegna and reach the Argimonia inn where the usual final aperitif awaits us, as always with a menu based on typical products. Yes thus concludes the last Tour of the 2023 season, with another great success!

We thank all the participants but above all the Gazzetta family for offering us the opportunity to stop at the Rally Lana Since 1973 exhibition.
#DriveClimbFun#SpecialStages

Click HERE to see all the photos from the event!
Click HERE to see photos from past events.