The Cipressa, on the Ligurian Riviera, owes its fame to its role as the second-to-last trap of Milan-Sanremo: a climb with a modest profile on paper, but one that, added in 1982 to toughen up the finale, changed the face of cycling’s longest classic.
A climb that wears riders down more than it climbs
From San Lorenzo al Mare, at sea level, the road climbs 5.6 km for 231 m of elevation gain up to the village of Cipressa, at 241 m of altitude, averaging 4.1% and briefly touching 7-8% on the steepest kilometre, near the start. Race organiser Vincenzo Torriani added it to the route in 1982 to make the finale of Milan-Sanremo more selective; that same year, Frenchman Marc Gomez attacked on the Cipressa to win solo in Sanremo. Since then, the gradient itself has mattered less than the moment it strikes: coming after more than 250 km of racing and a relentless pace set at the front of the bunch, it mainly serves to drop the most fatigued sprinters before the final difficulty, the Poggio, just 13 km beyond the top of the Cipressa.
Getting the ride right
No special gearing is needed: the gradient, never extreme, is manageable with standard road bike gearing. The real appeal of the ride lies in stringing together the whole finale of Milan-Sanremo, linking the Cipressa to the Poggio along the Via Aurelia and the technical descent into Sanremo, to recreate the race’s mythical final twenty kilometres.
When to go
The Mediterranean climate of the Riviera dei Fiori allows riding almost year-round, with March to November preferable to avoid the peak summer heat. Milan-Sanremo usually passes through in mid-March, drawing cyclotourists every year who come to climb the Cipressa and the Poggio in the days around the race.
Good to know
San Lorenzo al Mare and the neighbouring villages of Costarainera and Cipressa offer a good choice of accommodation for cyclists, with direct access to Sanremo, about twenty kilometres away, to extend a stay along this Riviera dei Fiori, known for its mild climate and coastal roads popular with cyclosportive riders year-round.
