Passo Baraccone

Overview

Passo Baraccone is a long, honest category-2 climb that stretches 14.7 km from a near-sea-level start at 25 m up to a summit of 774 m. The headline average is 5.1%, which reads as steady rather than savage, but the 749 m of net elevation gain means you are climbing for the better part of an hour. That combination — real length, moderate mean gradient, a genuine 749 m to swallow — is what earns it a category-2 label: harder than the short category-3 and category-4 walls, but a rung below the category-1 and hors catégorie monsters.

The number that changes how you ride it is the 10.81% maximum. A climb averaging 5.1% with pitches more than double that is not uniform; it hides steeper teeth inside gentler stretches, and those ramps are where poorly paced riders come undone.

How the Gradient Unfolds

Treat the 5.1% average as a blend, not a promise. With a maximum of 10.81%, the road clearly stiffens well beyond the mean in places, and to average out at 5.1% those pitches must be offset by shallower, recovery-friendly sections elsewhere. So expect the gradient to breathe: settle into a rhythm on the easier grades, then brace as the road tilts toward double digits.

Across 14.7 km the profile has room to deliver several of these surges rather than one lone wall. The total ascent of 735 m sits just under the 749 m net gain, telling you this is a climb that goes up and mostly keeps going up — very little descending mixed in to give the legs a free break. Ride it as one sustained effort with sharp punctuations, not a series of separate climbs.

Pacing Notes

The right pace is anchored to your threshold. Because the climb is long enough to last roughly 45 to 60 minutes for many riders, hold the shallower sections at or just below your FTP and save headroom for the 10.81% pitches, where power naturally spikes. Blowing your matches on an early ramp is the classic Baraccone mistake.

If you do not know your threshold, estimate it first with the FTP estimator, then translate that into a target you can actually sustain. On the steep teeth, let cadence fall and effort rise briefly — but keep the surge short. On the 5.1%-and-below stretches, breathe, drink, and pull the average effort back toward threshold so the climb balances out over the full 14.7 km.

Gearing

Gear for the 10.81% ramps, not the 5.1% average — the steep pitches decide whether you spin or grind. A compact 34-tooth inner paired with a wide cassette is the sensible baseline. A 34×32 will get most trained riders over the maximum gradient with a workable cadence, while a 34×34 buys extra insurance for tired legs or a fatigue-heavy day, keeping you turning the pedals instead of lurching. Given the 749 m of climbing and the length, err toward the easier option if you are unsure; spare gear on a 14.7 km ascent is never wasted.

Summary

Passo Baraccone rewards patience: pace the 5.1% average, respect the 10.81% ramps, and gear low enough to spin the 749 m to the top.

Length: 14.7 km
Average gradient: 5.1%
Max gradient: 10.81%
Start: 25 m
Summit: 774 m
Net gain: 749 m
Total ascent: 735 m
Category: 2