image credit: PEdAL ED

Now that the Tour de France (TDF) is over, the ultra-endurance cycling world is getting going on a its second major event of the summer.  After the Trans American Bike Race earlier in June, a race, coast to coast across the USA, we’re ready for the next one. Touted as one of the toughest ultra-endurance races in the world, this year’s fifth annual Transcontinental Race (TCR for short), put on by PEdAL ED, just started from Geraardsbergen,  Belgium on Friday July 28th, 10pm, heading to Meteora in central Greece as fast as the riders can make it.  By the time this is published the riders will already be about halfway done with a 3,200 – 4,200km, multi-day time trial.  That’s right… time trial.

Many of you have heard of the the Tour de France and know it attracts some of the world top professional cycling talent.  For those who aren’t super familiar with le Tour it’s a 21 stage race held over 23 days and is regarded as the pinnacle of professional cycling.  Teams of nine riders work together to complete the stage courses throughout France and neighboring countries that include flat and mountainous stages, long and short, and time trials, competing for one or more of the main categories (general classification, mountain classification, points classification, and team classification).  The professional teams that make up the TDF, usually 20-22 teams in total, have loads of support staff, mechanics, extra bikes, gear, coaches, doctors, vehicles, sponsors, you name it.  All of these variables go together with the goal of getting one team member to wear one of the 3 most coveted jerseys.

Now take all that structure and support you just read in the last paragraph, turn it upside-down and erase it, and you have the TCR.  There are no stages, no route, no support, no domestiques, no peloton.  The TCR is a fully self-supported endurance race without a predetermined route.  Just a clock, a few checkpoints, and a whole bunch of kilometers in between the start and finish.  This effectively makes it a time trial all the way across Europe.

Since its first TCR in 2013 it was important for the organizers to make this race accessible to all riders willing and able to complete such a gruelling race in competitive fashion.  Big budgets, fancy equipment, political connections aren’t necessary.  Riders progress self supported, without any assistance from friends, family, or other racers, and must get all food, accommodation, and repairs from commercial sources en route.

image credit: Factory 5

The 2017 course sets out up the cobble stone climb famous from the Tour of Flanders in Belgium, riders then cycle some 480km to Germany, then Italy, back north to Slovakia, then Romania, and onward to the finish in Greece.  The founders and organizers (rest in peace Mike Hall) spent lots of time designing this year’s race to force riders to challenge themselves even further, making it impossible to avoid mountain passes as well as to get a rather thorough history lesson in road

image credit: PEdAL ED

This year’s field has 235 individual riders, both male and female, and riding 29 pairs.  Among them are two long time Natooke Chengdu friends, Jeff Liu #83 of Factory Five and Nelson Trees #80 of Boundproof, both on their 3rd TCR.  We wish you both the best of luck!

You can follow the riders and track their progress LIVE, here and here.