Since Friday, May 29, they’re on the road again: 170 participants are fighting their way through the Balkans over 1,400 km and more than 30,000 meters of elevation gain. And I use the word fighting deliberately, because for me the Trans Balkan Race is one of the hardest and most demanding bikepacking ultras in Europe….
On Friday, the fourth edition of the Trans Balkan Race (TBR) started: 1,380km with around 30,000 metres of climbing await the participants. I have a bitter-sweet past with the TBR: I failed in the race itself and injured my hand nerve, which is still with me today. But I was also physically and mentally not…
Let’s be clear from the beginning: the Trans Balkan Race is a real challenge and cannot be overestimated. Bea and Luca have built a track through the Balkans that is second to none: very challenging trails and tracks, remote landscapes with long sections without catering and a weather/climate that constantly increases the level of difficulty….
Only a few more days and then I’ll once again be at the start of a bikepacking ultra race: this time it’s the Trans Balkan Race, which runs 1,380 km through Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro and starts on 31 May in Sežana, Slovenia. And I’m really looking forward to it, because it’s not “just”…