Ducati’s Second Annual Giro Alpino

Overlooked by Mount Mansfield, Stowe is a recreation haven in northern Vermont. The town is likely packed with more miles of hiking and skiing trails than it has residents, considering its population of only around 600 people.

An enormous fiery-red tractor trailer emblazoned with a huge white Ducati logo pulled into town on August 14. It was followed by the attendees of Ducati’s second annual Giro Alpino (Alpine Tour) event.

It was a large enough event to measurably increase Stowe’s  population for a few days.

Throngs of Ducatistas rolled their Italian machines around the twisty roads of Vermont and New Hampshire over the course of this three-day gathering. Beginning with an arrival and registration day, capped with an optional off-road training session, the following day was the main ride between Stowe and the famous Mount Washington in New Hampshire.

The final day involved a self-styled moto scavenger hunt for interesting and quirky sites around this corner of the U.S.

A Wet Start

Showerheads of the East Coast always seem to be a reminder that I’m no longer in the irrigated desert of southern California. Lacking the water worries that exist west of the Rockies, low-flow fixtures are replaced in many cases with what seem like fire hoses by comparison.

In the same vein, Vermont greeted us with pouring rain and a dubious forecast on our arrival. Fortunately, the weather changed drastically for the better the next morning.