I’ve had enough. I’m dropping it.

A lurid title, I know. I occasionally mention that my home route, the road I prefer to ride on my motorcycles, is the famous Stelvio Pass. I feel very good about it, others probably don’t after a crash. The fact that people make fun of it goes against the grain. It’s enough!

Before you read, please note: this post was translated with the help of Deepl.
If you find any errors – please have fun first and then give me a hint.

The Stelvio Pass is first and foremost simply an Alpine pass that emerged from an ancient mule track and grew for economic, political, military and, at some point, tourist reasons. It is the highest pass in Italy. If you insist on a paved road and a pass in the literal sense of the word, only the Col de l’Iseran is a handful of meters higher in the entire Alpine arc.

48 hairpin bends wind their way up the mountain on the east ramp. Variety is guaranteed: there are narrow and confusing, wide and clearly visible, in the shade of the forest or in the heat of the blazing sun, linked by short or long, straight or winding sections. 1800 vertical meters are spread over 20 kilometers. Conclusion:

THE perfect road
 for compressed motorcycling.

I emphasize: MY conclusion.

For cyclists, the Stelvio is “Her Majesty”. There are nastier climbs, there are longer ramps, there are more challenging passes – but conquering the Stelvio Pass by bike is undeniably the highlight. Many motorcyclists feel the same way. Travel reports, tour suggestions, social media – everyone talks about the Stelvio Pass as the pass that “must” be ridden once in a lifetime. You can see and hear it: More than half of all vehicles that make their way up to the Cima Coppi are motorcycles.

However, not everyone reaches the top unscathed. Petrol stains from overturned motorcycles are as much a part of the Stelvio Pass as the fumes from the sausage shops. Fragments of brake and clutch levers, decorated with splinters of blinker lenses, are scattered around the dark patches. The South Tyrolean road service will take care of it.

A road with a steep gradient
 .. and many falls

Why is that the case? Objectively speaking, the road is nothing special. It is asphalted from top to bottom, has two lanes, the hairpin bends are flat and the gradient is moderate. Actually, anyone who can get around a narrow traffic circle without falling over should be able to drive the Stelvio serpentines without any problems. But:

There is a lack of clarity. Retaining walls protruding into the apex prevent you from seeing around the corner. It takes a long and flexible neck to recognize oncoming traffic before turning in. It is not always possible to see how the road will continue out of the hairpin bend – everything approaching from above appears in your field of vision at fairly short notice.

This can be stressful and inhibit your flow. All it takes is two or three seconds of shock and your shoulders tense up, your gaze moves closer to the front wheel. You quickly lose control of your gaze. What’s more:

The road slopes inwards in most bends, which may feel a little strange at low speeds. This also means that the leg on the inside of the bend is suddenly a few centimetres further away from the ground than usual.

I’m
 dropping.

So we have a conglomerate of conditions that motorcyclists unaccustomed to the route are unlikely to recognize in combination:

• A slightly stressful overall situation
• Lack of overview
• Motorcycle becoming more unstable
• Possibly unsuitable gear selected
• Short view close to the front wheel, or: view to the opposite rock face
• Suddenly much more ground clearance

If oncoming traffic also comes into play and is not completely in its own lane, the startled twitching of the brake finger is a common reaction. The motorcycle comes to a jerky halt, pushes inwards, the leg fumbles into the void and the fall is unavoidable.

Big
 Brother ..

Nobody falls on the Stelvio Pass without a spectator. Action cams on three-meter-long sticks film in all directions, dash cams document in HD, several corner photographers covet the best spots. No wonder that social media is a grateful recipient of these fall shots. “Best of Stelvio” videos get tens of thousands of views and bring the super-guys out of their holes, to whom ‘something like this’ could never happen.

Reactions
 of the Super-Guys

What do I
 think of that?

There have always been falls on the Stelvio Pass. I can’t count how many times I’ve helped to lift an overturned motorcycle into a vertical position – including the one in the lead image. But in no case was there any reason to make fun of it. On the contrary: there was always a comprehensible explanation for falling over. Some of them are listed above – the list is far from complete.

The direction in which the mood in the digital motorcycle scene is currently moving is a curious one. Of course, social media is NOT real life – Facebook, TikTok and YouTube are all about click and run entertainment. In real life, nobody chants “Hand in your license!” in the direction of a fallen colleague on the Stelvio Pass. At least I hope so …

People have time to make fun of drops and make crazy comments. This post is aimed at these superheroes and driving experts:

Colleagues – I hardly think you fell from the sky as hairpin specialists. And I bet you’re also relieved when someone helps you onto your bikes when you’ve had a motorcycle drop. Without making fun of you …

I salute you!

Perfectly matching: