The Como–Bellagio road taught me a lot. Back then, it was almost deserted, and it felt like a miniature TT course. But each of us has our own road. What’s the road of your heart? There must be a state or provincial road, in the hills or mountains, with a perfect mix of bends — one you’re tied to by a special memory. For me, that road exists. On Google Maps, it’s marked as SS583. It runs from Bellagio to Como, along the western branch of Lake Como — about 30 kilometers, weaving through narrow villages like Lezzeno, Nesso, Torno, Blevio. A hundred or so curves that, in my young imagination, were Italy’s answer to the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy. The lake was there, so were the mountains — and not by chance, this was once the site of a race known as the “Little TT.”
Today, you’ve got to be careful: traffic, potholes, obstacles, radar checks — both hidden and visible. And thankfully, there’s now awareness that the road is not the racetrack. Sadly, though, some riders still dangerously confuse the two. But back in the carefree Sixties, with little traffic and riding a 9-horsepower Morini Corsaro 125 — if you knew what you were doing — the odds of getting hurt didn’t seem that high. Of course, the traffic police were always around. Lean too far through a corner and bam — patrol car:
“Dangerous riding!”
“But I was going sixty…”
“Doesn’t matter, too fast for that bend!”
“Says who?”
“Says me, kid — now let me write the ticket.”
No appreciation for a nice lean angle, those officers.
There are many other roads I’m attached to: the SS62 Cisa Pass between Parma and Lunigiana, or the SP4 climbing from Lugagnano to Vernasca in Piacenza (once home to a famous hill climb); the SS243 Gardena Pass in the Dolomites. Roads I discovered later, and now revisit four or five times a year. But Bellagio–Como remains Number One. It’s The Road. So many years have passed, yet every frame is etched in my memory.
The story was always the same: the sun is out, we skip school, me and the usual two friends on their Aermacchis. Nothing noteworthy until Lecco, then the first warm-up leans along the lakeside near Mandello, and a stop at the Bellagio ferry dock. And then, pure joy: this famous 583, with the lake to the right and the mountains to the left, changing its character every kilometer. I see it all again: fast at first — but be careful, there are houses nearby. Then come a series of sweeping bends that quickly tighten into more technical curves. Watch out — this section is in the shade, and the humidity lingers. Between Lezzeno and Nesso, you can go full throttle for almost two kilometers — but you can’t make a single mistake. The green and blue Ala 250s have fallen behind. I can’t hear them anymore. A 125 is all you need — if you’ve got style and guts… After Carenno, my favorite part: two or three wide curves, knee to the ground. Past Blevio, half-throttle — almost in Como now, and triumphantly alone.
On that road, I discovered some of life’s most important lessons. That I was fast — which many of us take for granted. That I had good control, sharp reflexes. That I could improvise nearly perfect lines (modestly speaking), and that I had an ear for engine music. That motorcycles were my life — and it was a beautiful realization, because that’s exactly how it turned out.
How could I not be attached to the Bellagio–Como road? But I’m sure there’s a special road for you too — maybe because it gave you inspiration, the perfect motorcycle, the best restaurant in the world, or who knows — your dream home or even love.
