The fourth edition of the Transpyr ride was technically not classified as a “race”, but an adventure. From the moment the gun went off on the first day however, the race was most definitely on!! From the race numbers on the front of our bikes, the ultra competitive riding, the “results” posted at the end of each day, to the leaders being announced each night, there was no difference to any other race. The only notable absence was the prize-giving ceremony – quite refreshing really.
The ride is a GPS ride, meaning each rider was responsible for downloading the 8 day route on to their own GPS system. Some reassuring ground arrows at strategic points also marked the track. On paper, the ride did not look all that difficult, but after the first day, some riders realised they had bitten off more than they could chew and chose to not continue. Following a lot of old walking tracks, as well as unused forest tracks and small roads, the going was often steep, rocky and very tough going. Fantastic alpine views and steep descents were the rewards for long climbs.
We were lucky enough to have booked for us the “hotel package”. Each night a beautiful hotel was an oasis after our long days in the saddle. At a very reasonable price, I would highly recommend this option as a way to better recover, recuperate and sleep well. Those that chose the camp package commented that it provided adequate accommodation in the usual Euro stage race fashion of school halls.
As a relatively new event, the Transpyr organisers face the problems created by the financial “crises” in this part of Europe. Unlike some other big stage races, they receive no funding from outside sources, and also have the added challenge of passing through completely separate provinces. Despite these setbacks, the race organisation was faultless. With a relatively small number of participants (300) they have tried to grow slowly to maintain a high level of rider services. This year, for the first time, a road edition was run concurrently with the mountain bike event. A completely different course took the riders over a challenging, but apparently amazing tour. Eventually the plan is to run the rides separately, but this year it was interesting to hear the roadies tales at the end of their days. With some shared feed stations, we often crossed paths along the way. Each stage there was a timed section (between 20 and 40kms) which counted towards their final classification. By all accounts it was a very competitive event.
In 2014, the Transpy will become a classified race. If you love technical riding and have a high level of endurance as well as a sense of adventure, grab a mate and get yourself to Spain in July.