The hub for marathon mountain biking
2017 was the eighth edition of the Mongolia Bike Challenge which has now established itself as a ‘bucket list’ race for international mountain bike stage racers. What makes this race so epic? And why do athletes travel from far and wide to compete in such an obscure and remote part of the world? Having completed […]
To experience sublime natural beauty is to confront the total inadequacy of language to describe what you see. Words cannot convey the scale of a view that is so stunning it is felt. In such moments natural beauty becomes a kind of devastation – it is pure encounter, too compressed in time and space to […]
Like grief, or a long-term relationship, a marathon mountain bike race is a journey through a spectrum of emotions, from joy to despair. Here’s our take on the seven emotional stages of a marathon mountain bike race. 1. Anticipation You sign up. You call your mates and tell them to sign up. You’re all signed […]
Running since 1995, the Crocodile Trophy has a reputation as one of the toughest mountain bike stage races on the planet. But just how well do you know the route? The race’s distance and days have steadily dropped over the past years. And now the 8 day race tackles a compact route based primarily on […]
With less than 3 weeks to go until the beginning of the 2017 Mongolia Bike Challenge the 108 riders who have signed up will be starting to think seriously about how they have or have not prepared for this race. The profile for this year’s edition has taken on a different look to years past […]
If you live for coffee, tea, hot chocolate, chai – or any kind of hot drink, you’ll be interested in the Camelbak Forge. The 350mL insulated cup weighs 294 grams, stands 190mm high and fits neatly in a bottle cage (sort of), the side of your bag, your hand, or your car’s bottle holder. Numbers […]
Next month will mark the 7th occurrence of what is fast becoming a cornerstone of the international marathon mountain bike stage race calendar. The Mongolia Bike Challenge was first held in 2010 and spanned 10 days and over 1400km and was won by Italian’s Marzio Deho and Allania Vassechi. The race has since been shortened to […]
This weekend presents a tough challenge. Not only will the world’s best marathon mountain bike racers tackle the XCM World Championships, but perhaps the fight for the rainbow jerseys at the UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships have never been so difficult to predict. Amongst the 188 registered men are ten or more real candidates to grab […]
I have travelled with my own mountain bike to countless mountain bike races and riding destinations over the past 14 years. Bike hire is always an option, but if you’re going to compete, or do more than riding for a few days in one place – taking your own bike makes more sense. I’ve used a […]
While Alice Springs might be the closest town to every beach in Australia, it’s also prohibitively far from all the nation’s capital cities. For many of us, this means a longish flight or maybe two; it means a fair bit of holiday budget sunk into airfares and accommodation; and it means we might think twice […]
