In 17 editions of the Craft BIKE Transalp powered by Sigma, no team has managed to win the seven-day mountain bike stage race three times in a row. But that’s exactly what Markus Kaufmann and Jochen Kaess of Centurion Vaude are going for: the hatrick. The 2013 and 2014 winners have successfully overcome their early […]
Racing in the heart of the Alps – the Alta Valtellina Bike Marathon
At 86 km and with more than 3,000 metres of climbing, the Alta Valtellina Bike Marathon on July 26th sounds like a quality MTB adventure. Starting in Valdidentro, weaving through the Stelvio National Park around Bormio’s picturesque region with historical sites and azure blue lakes, the race is full of epic scenery. A shorter but still intense […]
Marathon elite head to Dolomiti Superbike – along with 5500 others
Earlier this week, the record for entries at the prestigious Dolomiti Superbike was broke, and 5509 riders will contest the classic marathon in the Sudtirol. Both routes, the long distance of 113 km with 3,357m climbing and the short distance of 60 km with 1,785m climbing are running clockwise through five villages in Alta Pusteria: Villabassa, Braies, Sesto, San Candido […]
Bulls show new Black Adder at XCM Worlds
While the Expo at the Sellaronda Hero was fun, the real interest was catching up with two of the most approachable guys on the marathon scene, Karl Platt and Stefan Sahm of Team Bulls. These guys have won more races together than just about any other racing duo. We had the opportunity to find out what’s […]
The Sellaronda Hero Tech Expo
A nice addition to the World Marathon Championships was a tech show laid on by the organisers in the centre of town. Quite a few big brands made the effort to represent, bringing with them a decent selection of tech old and new. Obviously, being Italy, the big Italian brands were there in force, notably […]
Getting it all mixed up at the Sellaronda Hero
Val Gardena played host to the very top of elite sport this weekend, but to focus entirely on this would be only to tell a small part of the story. For me, the real eponymous “Heroes” of the race can just as well be found in the ranks of the Hobbyfahrer (more on this […]
Lakata and Dahle-Flesja take 2015 XCM Championships
Photos by Wisthaler/Freddy Planinkschek/SellarondaHero FORGET THE WORDS – GIVE ME THE RESULTS LINK! On a crisp summer’s day in the beautiful Val Gardena, the world’s elite assembled. Cool air was puntuated by the whir of tyres on rollers, the smell of pine and alpine flowers was punctuated by the aroma of embrocation. June 27th was […]
Who can win the 2015 XCM World Championships?
The start lists for the 2015 XCM World Championships are out. The racing is barely 24 hours away. The climbs are big, the air is thing, and the Val Gardena is starting to throb with the low resting heart rates of some supremely fit individuals. For 2015, the UCI Cross Country Marathon (XCM) Mountain Bike World […]
A Journeyman’s Journey to XCM Worlds
“Journeyman: A worker or sports player who is reliable but not outstanding”. This sums me up to a T, I think. Find a small enough cycling-related pond and I can be a big fish, but in the very big pond that is the XCM Worlds, I have no illusions – I expect to be the smallest […]
Big hitters set for Marathon MTB World Championships
The 2015 UCI Marathon MTB World Championships are quickly becoming a clash of the titans. With many World, National and Olympic champions lining up to contest the men’s and women’s elite titles, the race this Saturday is set to be one of the best marathon races for spectators and racers alike. The HERO Bike Festival […]