Complete Guide to Downhill: What it is and Where to Do it in Italy

What is downhill (or DH)

DH is short for "downhill," and it is a type of MTB sport in which you ride downhill along groomed trails in the mountains created especially narrow, with curves and various obstacles (including jumps) to make the descent challenging and fun. Literally translated from English, "down (down) the hill (hill)."

What differentiates DH from the rest of the mountain bike disciplines is precisely the (fast) downhill. In downhill, the climb is basically nonexistent: you go up to the top of the mountain by gondola or chairlift, loading your bike onto the lifts. With DH bikes, you couldn't even pedal your way to the top: they are purpose-built to make them great only on the downhill and maximize the fun side.

In fact, DH bikes have forks with wide travel, so that when you hit an obstacle, a pothole, land from a jump or make a fast turn going downhill, the forks can absorb the blow more-the handlebars "sink," like a spring that contracts.

This mechanism is indispensable on the downhill to provide stability (otherwise for every blow you take you would fly off the bike) but it makes pedaling uphill extremely tiring, because the forks absorb much of the effort exerted with each pedal stroke-you would struggle immensely to make even a little positive elevation gain.

Where to practice DH: what are bike parks

Since lifts are required to get up to the starts of DH trails, you can only practice downhill in those places where there are purpose-built facilities-that is, places where there is a bike park.

A bike park simply means the area that includes all the trails (the downhill slopes) and lifts in a certain location. As you might imagine, the first bike parks started in mountain places when the sport was not yet attracting as many people as it does now, because there were already lifts for skiers that could be used in the summer by bikers. There was just a need for someone to take care of the trails (draw the trails, put in the dirt, remove the boulders, etc.).

However, in order to go downhill by bike, there is no need to reach heights as high as those for skiing (needed instead to have snow presence in several months of the year). This fact has led, in recent years, to the opening of bike parks even in places with lower mountains, making downhill more popular and accessible to people in all regions of Italy.

"Natural" bike parks

There are areas even near the sea where DH is practiced, including very famous Finale Ligure, the "Mecca" of riders from all over Europe (and the world), and Massa Marittima. There are no real bike parks in these places. They are seaside locations but quite mountainous inland, making them perfect for hosting downhill trails.

Plus, they are in warm places! They are ideal for DH in March, April and May or after September, when the mountain bike parks still have snow. In DH locations such as Finale Ligure and Massa Marittima, which do not have chairlifts and lifts, the lifts are operated by shuttles (vans), which have tied behind a bike rack to transport up to 8-9 riders at a time to the starts of area trails.

Shuttle with bike rack for up to 8 bikers in Finale Ligure

Urban bike parks

Finally, traditional bike parks should not be confused with urban bike parks, which are instead facilities built in the city (and therefore on the flat)-a well-known example is the Monza Pizza Bike Park in Lombardy. These are circular trails with a succession of jumps to be done in sequence by bike(here is a video of Torquato Testa riding at the Monza Pizza Bike Park, of which he is founder). Urban bike parks are used to practice freeride MTB or other gravity disciplines (somewhat more "acrobatic" MTB sports).

For the rest of the article we focus on "traditional," mountain bike parks, which are the ones most frequented by riders in the summer.

Bike passes

As with ski resorts, bike park areas are also accessible via a pass (the "bike pass," the brother of the ski pass), which once purchased gives you the ability to use all of the lifts multiple times during the day (bike passes are often half-day or daily). The cost for a daily bike pass is around €35, and for a morning or afternoon around €25.

In the bike parks you find trails of various levels. Difficulty is marked in color, as is the case with ski trails: blue for low difficulty, red for medium difficulty, and black for more difficult trails. Below is an example with a map of the trails at the Mottolino Bike Park in Livigno (see right column).

We have previously published a list of what we think are the best bike parks in Italy.

We repost here our 3 favorites:

1. Dolomiti Paganella Bike Park - Andalo, Trentino

Perhaps the most beautiful for DH. The Dolomiti Paganella area is a biker's paradise, and every year it attracts many riders of all levels on their trails. The Paganella Dolomites bike area is very large, and there are lifts connecting trails between 3 neighboring towns-Andalo, Molveno, and Fai della Paganella.

From any of the three you can start and fully explore the area without ever getting off your bike (except to take the chairlifts) and without ever doing the same trail twice! Most famous and beautiful to ride are the Bear Trails, somewhat challenging in difficulty, for the creation of which we have several contributors to thank including the legendary Steve Ude (Stefano Udeschini).

Another great thing about the Paganella Dolomites bike park is the resources it provides you with online to learn about the area-you can explore it almost completely from home. They have a beautiful 3D map with all the trails shown-you can see it at this link-andalso all the trail maps that you can download as a pdf version.

2. Mottolino Bike Park - Livigno, Lombardy

In Livigno, Mottolino is the most famous of the 2 bike parks present (the second is Carosello Mountain Park). It is the best in Italy for what concerns fun (the mountain, not by chance, is also called Mottolino Fun Mountain because of the presence of the bike park in summer and the snow park in winter, both very famous), with steep and fun trails full of bends and a perfect jumps area for those who practice freeride MTB.

In fact, the Mottolino Bike Park is where MTB downhill and jump Gravity lessons are practiced. Holidoit works with Livigno 's official guides to give you the opportunity to book a course or downhill lesson during the summer. You can also start DH at Carosello, where the trails are smoother and a little less difficult.

3. Pila Bike Park - Pila, Aosta Valley

The one in Pila is the most famous bike park in the Aosta Valley. It is very large, and you can do a little bit of everything from pure downhill to riding trails in the surrounding mountains, more enduro MTB style (more on the enduro topic later).

In Pila, Aosta Valley Freeride organizes a course over two days to approach downhill, with lessons in the morning and riding independently in the afternoon. Everything is included (bike pass, transfer, downhill bike), except for the accommodation that you have to take in Aosta on your own. If interested, we recommend you check it out.

How to get started in downhill biking

Downhill is a fairly technical sport-and so you need to learn some basic techniques to get started. There are four ways to learn:

Lessons or individual courses
Bike Camp
By shadowing a friend who does downhill (and knows the technique)
Self-taught (by watching videos on Youtube)

Bike camp

All but the fourth are very effective methods; doing a camp is perhaps the most suitable way for younger people to learn (typically 12 to 18 year olds or younger participate in camps, but camps are often organized for older kids as well), because it provides a few days of full-immersion and allows you to learn basic techniques in a short time. It is definitely the most fun way, especially for boys or girls.

DH Lessons

One-on-one lessons or classes are perfect for those who are just starting out and want to improve and advance their technique from week to week. You are joined during the morning by an instructor who takes you around the bike park, giving you the tips and support you need. Support is the key word: you need to be followed and correct your technique mistakes through an iterative process; the instructor has an outside perspective on your MTB riding, notices your mistakes more easily, and can give you (the right) pointers to improve.

Side by side with a friend

Learning through a friend is perhaps the most effective way to get you out of the house and onto the slopes-it's a way we love. For you to learn well, however, your friend must also be able to tell you what to do and have the patience to follow you around a bit. Sometimes this can be difficult even for a professional. It's good to try this technique after a couple of lessons, where maybe you get to know some other local riders to go down with the next few times.

Self-taught

We don't particularly recommend the self-taught route; the risk is that you will waste a lot of time, make little progress, and not even have fun! Ask yourself this: is it better to take 2 lessons, learn the basic techniques well enough and then be able to descend independently (more or less well) from the third outing onwards, or to go 10 times alone and on the 11th still be more or less where you started? For us, the answer is the first option.

Lessons or a DH camp are a great initial investment (they save you money later and let you enjoy the money spent on bike passes and rentals).

Downhill bikes and DH equipment

Let's come to the equipment needed to practice DH. If you are a beginner or want to approach downhill, you don't need to worry about it much for the time being. Also, if you book a lesson or course, your guide can choose the bike and protectors for you and explain how to use them.

Downhill bike features

The main things to know about downhill bikes are these:

Frame: "V"-shaped, they have an oblique shape to provide better stability; it is the piece that costs the most in a DH bike, and also the most important; the price varies depending on the material it is made of (light and hard/durable materials such as carbon or aluminum are awarded);
Weight: these MTBs are usually lighter than others, weighing around 15-16kg for better downhill maneuverability;
Wheels: 27.5- or 29-inch, and the tires are the tapered MTB tires for the dirt terrain of bike park trails;
Damping: the most distinctive thing about DH bikes, which have forks and the rear shock absorber with long travel (i.e., they can contract a lot, like springs), around 200mm or more (about a span);
Brakes: discs front and rear, necessarily, and best if the disc is wide-those kinds of brakes are much better than traditional drum brakes and provide more safety;
Cost: from about 1200€ upwards, up to 7000€+ for super-top-of-the-line bikes and with the highest quality materials and individual parts;

There are other features to pay attention to, but in general these are the ones above the "deal-breakers," i.e., the most decisive ones that can make people choose one bike over another.

If you are you are choosing a DH bike and need some inspiration, maybe this article can help. In general, we suggest you get advice from two or three professional riders you trust (this can also be guides from bike parks you've been to, or Youtubers who aren't sponsoring products-we recommend a few to follow below). You can then choose the one you like best (even aesthetically!).

Protections and helmet

The rest of the DH equipment is as follows:

Coveralls (DH shorts and sweater)
Helmet
Knee pads
Elbow pads
Gloves
Shoes

Usually, downhill bike rentals give you the option of reserving all the kit at a moderate cost (around 20€ per day or so, even less if you rent them together with the bike).

Who to follow on Youtube to get passionate about DH

Here are some Italian Youtubers that we really like and recommend following:

DieMTB - Diego Caverzasi, he's an athlete from Livigno, he cracks up laughing and he's cool. He is the most on topic for DH.
Torquato Testa - great videos, lots of jumping with dirt bikes (and in minimoto sometimes 😄). He is a pro at jumping. His specialty is gravity but of course he also does downhill and bike park videos (he also has a dedicated playlist). Follow him, he is the top in Italy.
Andrea Ziliani - Great reviewer of MTBs and E-bikes. If you have to choose a bike, listen to him: he knows everything about all parts of all brands, and he explains it to you until you know it too.
Erwin Ronzon - Strong Enduro MTB pro rider, races and rides like lightning. Perfect for those who are also interested in Enduro, a discipline similar to DH (we briefly explain the difference below).

Downhill or Enduro MTB?

Enduro is a somewhat different way of riding MTB than DH because it combines of uphill and downhill sections. This makes the MTB experience a little more complete. Having an enduro bike is much less limiting than having a downhill bike: with the latter you can only go to bike parks; with the enduro bike you can go...pretty much anywhere (even bike parks).

The latest evolution is the enduro E-MTB, done with the electric bike. It is the top because pedaled climbs become enjoyable and not exhausting, and are accessible to many more people. What's more, you can ride much longer trails with the electric than with the regular enduro bike (called a "muscle" bike because there is no electric motor to do the hard work for you, and you can only use your muscles to keep going 😄).

To recap: if with the downhill bike you can only move "vertically" in the mountains, moreover only downhill, with the enduro bike you can move both vertically (but both downhill and uphill) and horizontally, riding more or less long trails in the surrounding mountains. Enduro E-MTB is even better because you can move farther, in less time and faster.

Enduro MTB and E-MTB are topics worth tackling separately. Stay tuned for suggestions of beautiful trails to do that we will post on the blog 🌟.

Happy riding!