Exciting finish to Silk Road Mountain Race

[pistonbroke]

Less than 10 miles after 1,100 miles òf racing between Sofiane Sehili and Jakub Sliacan with another 100 to go including the best part of 4,000m of ascent over Kalgety pass. Sehili won in 2021 and Sliacan in 2019. Interestingly Sehili has had 9 hours stopped in the 6 days and Siliacan 20 hours but is just behind, dot watching here
https://srmr2023.maprogress.com/#profile

[pistonbroke]

Getting near the top of the final climb at 3,800m there's now less than 5 miles gap but time wise, I suspect the margin has remained constant. Let's see who's the best descender. They must both be wrecked.

[redefined_cycles]

Wrecked is surely an understatement... Assume that James Hayden didn't ride it this year

Riding and racing at 3800m, can't imagine how the body would cope with such a thing

[fatbikephil]

Wrecked is surely an understatement... Assume that James Hayden didn't ride it this year

Riding and racing at 3800m, can't imagine how the body would cope with such a thing

Him, Josh Ibbet and Angus Young are all in. Looks like SS is smashing it as always but the pros seem to be able to go much faster and then sleep longer to recover.

In other racing news, I see Lael Wilcox is doing the Colorado trail - bit of a change for here as it's supposed to be quite tricky trail wise and she is more of a gravel basher.

[redefined_cycles]

Thanks Phil. James Hayden moved to Spain now, just off a national park or something (trail straight out his front garden). So hopefully look forward to the stories of a few of them. SS, with all that sleep deprivation, I think I've just become a little indifferent to it! Good for him, but can't be bothered with watching him kill himself (sorry SS).

[Bearlegged]

James had to scratch after a serious asthma attack.

[redefined_cycles]

James had to scratch after a serious asthma attack.

Aha... I see. Thanks for that. One year chased by highway robbers and this one asthma. One a side note (in case anyone knows someone with asthma, or manages it for themselves), it's one of those that is easily managed but can become life threatening really quickly. Hence it ends up killing more people than it should...

Hope that helps someone one day dial 999 earlier than they would normally

Anyway, back to the race

[fatbikephil]

Sofiane gets it....
I'd quite fancy this but the travel would be a hassle and quite a spendy holiday.

[Blackhound]

Wondered what had happened to Mark, he and Josh never seemed too far away from each other.
I have ridden a bit of the Colorado Trail from near Breckenridge to Denver and it is much slower going than the Tour Divide. Lovely, but very different.

[redefined_cycles]

Sofiane gets it....
I'd quite fancy this but the travel would be a hassle and quite a spendy holiday.

Phil, I bet it wouldn't be as expensive as you'd think. Bet it's one of the most beautiful scenic trails/routes most people would ever see... Such a famous route on which many of the islamic scholars (sorry) such as Imam Bukhari who travelled far and wide to get the knowledge.

Monumental route in fact. If I wasn't muslim (so risk being stripped naked and fingered, to humiliate the sub standard out of me at the various airports... open secrets ) and afraid of such a 'mad' route It's definitely one of those I'd be going for

Maybe one day when crossing borders isn't as difficult

[fatbikephil]

Sofiane gets it....
I'd quite fancy this but the travel would be a hassle and quite a spendy holiday.

Phil, I bet it wouldn't be as expensive as you'd think. Bet it's one of the most beautiful scenic trails/routes most people would ever see... Such a famous route on which many of the islamic scholars (sorry) such as Imam Bukhari who travelled far and wide to get the knowledge.

Monumental route in fact. If I wasn't muslim (so risk being stripped naked and fingered, to humiliate the sub standard out of me at the various airports... open secrets ) and afraid of such a 'mad' route It's definitely one of those I'd be going for

Maybe one day when crossing borders isn't as difficult

Aye it would be nice to travel overland to the start, do the route then ride back!
Mebbes when I retire things may have settled down between here and there...

[redefined_cycles]

Yup, defo.. Maybe I might see you there Phil as may have had a few more BAMs under my belt by then etc etc...

Heres one of the info sites. Imam Bukhari was from this village AFAIK and classed as one of the greatest (ie. with focus and attention to detail and a memory second to none) islamic scholars ever lived. A city 2000 years old

Bet it's beautiful (and simple).

[Boab]

Aye it would be nice to travel overland to the start, do the route then ride back!
Mebbes when I retire things may have settled down between here and there...

Always fancied buying a beat up old Land Rover, stripping it and then re-building it from chassis up, then driving to Old Silk Road*. Could combine to two, with various stop overs to ride routes of interest.






* Or at least some variant of it.