Bikeanalytics Atlas Mountain Race 2026

Since 2020, you can find a deep analysis of the bikes and equipment of the major ultra-bikepacking races like the Atlas or Silk Road Mountain Race in my Bikeanalytics.

The basis for these evaluations are the “Rigs of…” posts by Bikepacking.com. At this point, many thanks for your work on this and the careful gathering of relevant information from the participants.

And again this year, there is Bikeanalytics, and we start with the Atlas Mountain Race. Since February 6th at 5 PM, the participants have been on their way and will once again struggle more with weather, wind, and precipitation this year.

In addition, Nelson has made what I consider a urgently needed update to the route. He once said that if the scratch rate is lower than 50%, he would adjust the route.

But if we look at the AMR history, the scratch rate has never been above 50%:

Interestingly, despite ever-improving equipment and training/preparation of the participants, the scratch rate tends to rise: from 34% to 45%. Or at least it stays the same, as the number of participants has also increased: by 45% since 2020.

Let’s see how it will be this year on the new route: 1,400 km and around 25,500 vertical meters, according to Dotwatcher, with the start in Beni-Mellal. Originally, the first 350 km on a new route were supposed to lead directly into the Atlas and over the highest point of the race at 2,900m, before merging into the Anti-Atlas and following the classics of the AMR route.

However, due to weather conditions, there is now a new route that avoids several river crossings and snowfields. You can learn more about this in the AMR podcast.

It will remain challenging nonetheless, and it will be exciting to see how the weather, especially at higher altitudes, influences the race.

You can follow the race live here: https://amr26.maprogress.com/

Historically speaking, it is not an extraordinary year:

Either way: it is and remains a great adventure.

I am particularly pleased this year that the proportion of women, with 54 female participants, stands at 20%. This is encouraging and hopefully a significant signal that there will be even more next year.

Bikeanalytics History

Since I have been evaluating the bikes and equipment of participants for 6 years now, there is a new feature this year: Bikeanalytics History! Here, I take a look at the development of selected topics, also to explain how this race has changed, how bikepacking has changed, and how new technology and technologies are having an impact.

Bikeanalytics Atlas Mountain Race 2026

But now into the details. I evaluated 117 bicycles based on the Bikepacking.com article „Rigs of Atlas Mountain Race“ (Part 1 / Part 2). As always, I have prepared the data graphically.

Five developments that I find interesting:

The Carbon Age

Carbon has always been the material of choice for such demanding races and has convinced many skeptics in recent years. In 2020, 48% of participants were at the start with carbon frames; today it is an impressive 62%. That is even another +6 percentage points compared to last year. All other materials are in the low single or double-digit range.

And not only for the frame, but also for the rims, carbon is number 1. A whopping 93% have carbon rims this year – a big jump of 20 percentage points from last year.

Suspension is not a “nice to have,” but a “must have”

The proportion of bikes with suspension has increased impressively since 2020 and shows the character of the race. While only 22% were riding with a suspension fork in 2020, today it is 93%. Since 2024, the share has increased by another 8 percentage points.

And I find that this year and last year especially show that race-ready fullies are being used more and more: in 2025 it was 23%, and this year it is already 32%.

Wider is better

While the recommendation for races like the AMR has always been that 2.25-inch wide tires are optimal, it can be observed that more and more participants like it wider and are going for 2.35 to 2.4 and wider.

2.25 inches are still the most used, but the share of 2.35”+ is rising the most – alone +13 percentage points since last year.

Coros Dura is no longer a “hidden champion”

While the Coros was still considered an insider tip 2 years ago, it already showed an impressive share of 6% basically from a standstill last year. This year, it has moved to 2nd place behind Garmin, with an impressive 25% share.

Wahoo, on the other hand, seems to be on the retreat, but looking at the figures, you see a share of 19% this year – that is +5 percentage points compared to 2025. However, the data situation for navigation is still quite fresh.

2026 is the Tailfin Mountain Race

One must recognize without envy that the British brand Tailfin has done a very good job in recent years and obviously builds products that are preferred particularly under such stresses. 48% of participants rely on Tailfin bags and 39% ride with the rack system. Only Apidura can halfway keep up.

Looking at the development of Tailfin at the AMR, it is quite impressive: from 11% in 2022 to 48% in 2026 is a massive jump. Alone from 2025 to 2026, it is another +5 percentage points. Apidura had its peak in 2023 with a 37% share and has been continuously declining since then.

Now for the details:

A small note and „Analog Check“: All data in this analysis was gathered – as in previous years – with a lot of passion and by hand from the participant profiles. No AI was at work here, but genuine human curiosity (and perhaps one or two cups of coffee too many). Since a typo can slip in during the heat of the moment despite all care, please view the values for what they are: an exciting trend mirror and not a laboratory measurement set in stone. Have fun talking shop!

Let’s go!

I have only been tracking the bicycle type since last year. Naturally, MTBs are the weapon of choice for these races and are clearly in the majority at 87%. Nevertheless, this year there was also one trekking bike (good luck!) and six gravel bikes. Under “Monstergravel,” I group bikes like a Salsa Cutthroat or Chiru Kegeti, which are closer to an MTB than a gravel bike.

Historically speaking, it shows that more and more people are coming to Morocco with an MTB: +4 percentage points compared to last year. The gravel bike is predictably decreasing.

Regarding frame material, carbon remains the first choice, followed by steel. This year there was slightly less titanium in the field, while aluminum is making a comeback.

Historically speaking, the dominance of carbon is evident: +6 percentage points compared to 2025. Steel, however, has been continuously decreasing since 2020.

By now, it should have gotten around that suspension makes a lot of sense in Morocco. 93% also show up at the start with a suspension fork. And 32% with a fully right away.

I have only been tracking the fully since 2025, but historically it shows very nicely how the use of suspension forks has grown.

The majority relies on forks from Rockshox, followed by Fox.

Occasionally, I was also able to record the travel: the majority is riding with 100mm, followed by 120mm.

Just as the MTB has prevailed, so has the flat handlebar: flat bars dominate with 83%, even if some participants have fitted their MTB with a drop bar. 71% are riding with aero bars/extensions.

Historically, it shows that drop bars are represented less and less in the field. They have now settled at 17%. The use of aero bars also always depends on what terrain is expected. In the last three years, the share was over 70%.

The Atlas Mountain Race is also a dark race, because due to the time of year, it gets dark early and light late. Thus, one has to ride many hours in the dark and good light is needed.

44% therefore rely on a dynamo hub – 81% on the undisputed king, the SON.

But if we look at the development since 2020, we see that the dynamo is losing a bit and the battery is winning. Often a matter of taste and the energy required. Although on the tracks and mountains in Morocco, there is often not enough power left for charging.

Always interesting are the drivetrains used: Sram is clearly preferred in the field, followed by Shimano. Aside from that, truthfully, there is nothing else. I registered one Microshift and one Rohloff.

Historically, Sram has also always been in front. I would have expected a small change due to the new XTR and XT groupsets from Shimano, but that has yet to materialize.

It is interesting that the share of electronic shifting now stands at 38%, almost 100% of which are Sram systems. One can also nicely see the steady increase of these over time.

Among the drivetrain models, Sram GX is very popular, followed by Shimano XT. Sram’s Transmission groupsets are also very popular this year and account for a share of 30%.

How many cogs does your cassette have for Morocco: clearly 12.

And the development away from 11-speed toward 12-speed is truly impressive to see.

Regarding cassettes, the Sram majority is clearly evident with 10-52, followed by Shimano’s 10-51 cassettes. This year, I counted two single-speeders riding with gear ratios of 32×19 and 32×17.

At the front, essentially only one chainring is used now: 96% are at the start with 1x this year. Although this has always dominated, it has prevailed over 2x over the years.

Since Morocco is often steep and arduous, many prefer a small chainring: the majority relies on 32 teeth. And historically, this development is also impressively evident, especially the decline of chainrings larger than 34.

The dominance is also evident in rims and wheels: almost everyone is on 29” tires. All other sizes are merely a side note. I am curious if we will see a 32” next year.

Regarding rims, carbon has now absolutely prevailed and, according to my data, has a share of 93%.

Regarding tires, I was surprised that apparently nothing is changing regarding the dominance of Vittoria. With 44%, the Italians lead, followed by Maxxis and Continental.

Historically, the strong development of Vittoria is evident basically from the start.

Therefore, it is not surprising that the favorite tire of AMR participants is the Mezcal, which 42% of participants have mounted. Also pleasing is the strong start of the Conti Dubnital, which immediately reached 2nd place.

Regarding tire width, 2.25 inches seems to have established itself. However, if you look closer and also at the historical data, it shows that tire widths from 2.35 to 2.4 inches have increased significantly.

Since last year, I have also been tracking navigation devices. Garmin is predictably strongly represented, followed by the Coros Dura, which already had a strong debut last year and is now being used more and more.

The image of the bikepacking bags used has changed just as significantly: by now, one can speak of a Tailfin race, because 48% are riding with bags from the British brand and a full 39% are traveling in Morocco with the Aero Pack rack system.

Apidura follows with 30% – their bags were often combined with Tailfin. Currently, the bikepacking bag market for ultras is firmly in British hands. If you add Restrap, the picture is even more dominant.

History also shows the strong development of Tailfin.

Bikes from the American manufacturer Specialized are also strongly represented. 13% are traveling on these bikes. Behind them is Canyon with 9%, followed by Trek and Scott.

And finally, we take a look at the age of the participants this year: at 39, the average age is at the same level as in 2025.

Hungry for more Bikeanalytics?

Here you can find the Bikeanalytics of the past years for AMR, SRMR, HMR, and Tour Divide.