I promised myself I’d be packed, I’d be packed, prepped, primed, preened and perfectly prepared! All by WAY before my flight leaves right? Then why am I looking at a bike that is in 500 pieces, have a deadline driving me crazy and a presentation with a disagreeable client looming like a vulture ALL the […]
Kaufmann and Käß will defend Transalp title
The 17th Craft BIKE Transalp powered by Sigma starts in about 10 days, and the attending field promises to show mountain biking at its best. Numerous top stars of the scene guarantee some exciting duels for the precious title. Especially as the last five editions of the race across the Alps produced different winners. In 2014 […]
The Best Stage Races for Amateurs
Updated August 2017! “What are the best stage races to do?” It’s a question that is often asked, and can be broken down many different ways. What makes a race ‘the best’ anyway? It’s a very personal criteria. While one may rate the quality of accommodation available, others might go purely on the amount of […]
2014 Craft BIKE Transalp powered by Sigma
With only two months remaining until the start of the 2014 Craft Bike Transalp powered by Sigma I though it time to start reviewing the 2014 course. This will be my third Transalp and I am pumped to be racing alongside team mate Stu Spies, a prominent member of our UK faction. Stu is currently […]
How to Prepare for Transalp, Mixed
When my Dad decided this parenting malarkey was best done more at arms length than in the trenches, I landed up with a little more feminine perspective than is probably healthy for a 9 year old boy. Thankfully Dad was always on hand to keep the scales balanced (albeit after an hour pedal to the […]
Hansen and Spies confirm for 2014 Craft Bike Transalp
With the 2014 Marathon and Stage Racing year well underway, Subaru-MarathonMTB.com racers Naomi Hansen and Stuart Spies have confirmed their partnership for the Craft Bike Transalp, from 20-26th July, one of the most prestigious mountain bike Stage Races in the world. In 2014 the race is 7 days long, starting in Oberammagau, Germany, and racing […]
Transalp. The Devil is in the Details
Racing Transalp was a race all the time, not just between the start gun and the finish line. We had a saying, the race isn’t over until you’re in the shower, and it’s fair to say that some of our most gruelling moments came when we tried to find hotels, or negotiate with Italian receptionists, […]
Kaufmann, Kaess, Bigham, Loevset winners at Transalp
Riva del Garda, Italy, July 20, 2013 – 2012 Transalp winners Alban Lakata (AUT) and Robert Mennen (GER) have wrapped up the 2013 Craft BIKE Transalp powered by Sigma with their first stage win at the eight-day stage race across the Alps. Team Topeak Ergon Racing, who finished as second in the overall ranking of […]
When Transalp becomes Italian
The Craft Bike Transalp follows a highly traditional route from southern Germany to Riva del Garda in Italy. Although the Stage 6 town of Crespano di Grappa was the 45th Stage Town in the races history, the differences each year are primarily between an easterly route like this year through the Dolomites, or westerly through […]
Centurion-Vaude and Topeak-Ergon secure leads at Transalp
Markus Kaufmann (GER) and Jochen Kaess (GER) of Centurion Vaude have underlined their claim on this year’s Craft BIKE Transalp powered by Sigma title by claiming their second consecutive stage win in 4:07:48.2 hours today. The overall leaders secured their 2013’s third on the sixth stage from San Martino di Castrozza to Crespano del Grappa […]