Monte Erice is an isolated limestone mountain on the western coast of Sicily, rising to 751 metres above sea level. The historic town of Erice sits at its summit, perched above the coastal plain of Trapani. The mountain's steep gradients, tight hairpin bends, and dramatic elevation gain make it a natural venue for hillclimbing competition. The Cronoscalata has been held on its slopes since 1954 and has become a fixture of the Italian motorsport calendar, attracting the country's leading hill climb competitors over seven decades.
The inaugural edition was held on 5 September 1954. Pasquale Tacci won that first race driving an Alfa Romeo 1900 TI over an original course of 16.55 kilometres that started from Piazza Vittorio Emanuele in Trapani and climbed all the way to the town of Erice.
Over subsequent decades, the course underwent several revisions as safety standards and regulatory requirements evolved. The original route of more than 16 kilometres was progressively shortened — first to approximately 13.9 kilometres, then to around 7 kilometres, later to about 6.7 kilometres, and eventually to the current length of approximately 5.73 kilometres. Since 1988, the event has been run in a two-run timed format, with competitors taking two timed runs and the better time counting toward the final classification.
The race marked its 70th anniversary in 2024, celebrating seven unbroken decades of competition. Over that span it has formed part of several national and international motorsport championships, including the Campionato Italiano Velocità Montagna, the premier Italian hillclimbing series. Since 2024, the event has formed part of the Campionato Italiano Supersalita.
The current Cronoscalata Monte Erice course measures approximately 5.73 kilometres and features an elevation gain of around 410 metres. The finish line sits at roughly 700 metres above sea level. The climb begins near Valderice and ascends along public mountain roads toward Erice, combining steep gradients with tight hairpin bends typical of classic European hillclimb venues. Limited run-off areas and the technical nature of the corners demand high precision from competitors. The combination of altitude, ever-changing road surface, and concentrated corner sequences gives the event its character as a demanding test of driver skill and vehicle setup.
The Cronoscalata Monte Erice has attracted many of Italy's leading hillclimb specialists across its history. Driver Salvatore Spinelli holds a long-standing participation record, having competed in more than forty editions of the event since his debut in 1979 — a remarkable commitment spanning the better part of the race's entire existence.
The Cronoscalata Monte Erice stands as one of the enduring fixtures of Italian hillclimbing. Its longevity — running continuously since 1954 — places it among the oldest active hill climb competitions in Europe. The event's transition from a lengthy mountain road stage to a compact, technically demanding modern hillclimb course reflects the broader evolution of the discipline across the second half of the twentieth century. It continues to serve as a showcase for Italian hillclimbing talent and as a landmark event in the regional motorsport calendar of western Sicily.