After many cancellations due to Covid, on the 1st of October 2022 the second Atlas Mountain Race finally got underway. A fixed-route, unsupported, single-stage bike race that started in Marrakesh, crossed the Atlas and Anti-Atlas Mountains, before finishing in Agadir. The race was just under 1200km in length and 24,000m of climbing, over some challenging …
The Silk Road Mountain Race No 1 was not only a challenge for the body and mind, but also for my equipment choices. In the 14 days of racing, we endured temperatures of more than +40 Celsius in the day and as low as -12 Celsius at night.
Having just had to scratch from the Transatlantic Way Bike Race, I am currently working on ’dealing with my failure’ and how to not fear future failure.
So recently I had to make the decision whether to enter the Transcontinental (TCR) again in 2017, having failed to complete the race in both 2015 & 2016, or defer it for another year. There is no way this race can or will go unfinished, BUT I was questioning whether racing again in 2017 was the right decision. Of course we ride our bikes in races like the TCR to push ourselves physically and mentally, but ultimately we enter because we LOVE cycling! I was worried that if I go straight back into doing the TCR again, with the pressure I put myself under to succeed and do well, the race could become more of a chore rather than a passion, which is not what it is all about!