Nepal- Canada- USA- Canada- Mexico- Guatemala The 2024 season started off strong with a few weeks of trekking in the high altitudes of the Annapurna Sanctuary of Nepal. Following this was as spectacular bike tour through West Nepal. It was suppose to be a one way, 1000 km journey from Pokhara to the Indian border along the mid hills highway. It was so good I opted to flip the bike around and explore a bit deeper into the Himalayas on the way back. Following this was a bike tour out to the Solkhumbu/Okhaldhunga region for some more training and the Okhaldhunga XCO. It was a great time exploring ..read more

It was great to be back in New Zealand for the first time since racing the Pioneer and 24HR World champs back here in 2016 . This year an invite from the Whaka 100, the Oceanias biggest mountain bike race brought me over to the town of Rotorua on the east side of the North Island. With 24 HR World Champs in Australia Nov 4-5th, the Whaka lined up great as a tune up race and the goal was to go hard and enjoy it to the max! I’ve always dreamt of a 100km BC Bike Race stage and the Whaka 100 is the closest that will likely ever come to reality . 107 km of flowing trails on hero ..read more

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Race morning in Tuxtla, Chiapas, Mexico started off at in the comfort of the Ramada hotel with a 4:15 am alarm to get ready for the 6am start. My supporter, Alfredo took off early to the start line while I ate a bowl of oatmeal, drank a dark Guatemalan coffee and then kitted up in my 7 Mesh skyline jersey and RK1 Bib Shorts. Next up I started searching for my Airpods to listen to some country music on the ride to the start-line , but soon realized they were MIA. I remembered I had forgot them at the pool the day before. Opening up the find my Airpods app on my Iphone, I realized someone had fo ..read more

The Annapurna Circuit is my favourite one day mountain bike ride in the World. The 3 previous editions of the the Annapurna Circuit FKT challenge were ridden in the normal counter clockwise direction. This year it was done in reverse to spice it up a little, making it steeper, adding a tougher finish, and offering a whole new experience. Setting off at 11:22 pm on Nov 29th I was in for one of the memorable rides of my life on this legendary 220 km trekking route in the heart of the Nepali Himalayas. Preparation the previous years doing this I’ve been much better acclimated, but my nutrition pl ..read more

The 2nd Edition of the Canadian Rockies took place this past weekend under near perfect sunny conditions in Canmore Alberta. Racers competed in both 24 and 4 hour races on a 13.2 km loop at the World class Canmore Nordic Center. This year the course was redesigned to provide a slightly shorter loop on some faster moving trails to provide a great riding experience for riders of all levels. Teams of 2-10 riders in different categories as well as the Solo warriors took on the challenge. Edna Gonzalez from Mexico claimed the Solo Female overall title while Nicholas Emsley from Ontario claimed it ..read more

Unbound Gravel has grown into one of the biggest one day gravel events in the World. Based out of the city of Emporia in the prairies of Kansas, this place is booming with over 4000 athletes early June each year. Having raced the signature 200 mile event 4 times, with 3 of them ending in flat tire misfortunes, and last year the engine was empty after winning the 24HR World Champs in Italy the weekend before, I needed a change. Thus I signed up for the 350 mile, self supported Unbound XL! The winning time is typically around 24 hours so it should fit right into my wheelhouse. Heading to Kansas ..read more

The alarm went off early at 12:45 am on May 20th in Lukla, Nepal, the gateway to Mount Everest (8848 M). After a few weeks training out of the Chiwong Monastery (2950 M) with the Monks in the Solukhumbu district, the mind and body were ready for the challenge on deck, an attempt to set a Fastest Known Time (FKT) cycling the traditional trekking route from Lukla to Everest Base Camp. 63 km, and around 4000 meters of vertical gain were on deck through this rugged trail to the biggest mountain in the World! This FKT had been on my mind for a while, getting a chance to go for it during the peak ..read more

Brasil Ride Espinhaco is a 5 day UCI stage race down in South America in a beautiful part of Brazil. It was nice to get the first stage under the hat after what was a pretty long 26 hour travel day, door to door, from the Guatemalan highlands to the Brazilian tropics. The travel was smooth with Michael Graczyk dropping me at the airport after a great 2 month homestay with his family in Xela. Once on the midnight flight, I slept to Colombia, switched planes, slept to Brazil, then it was a 2.5 hour drive to race site in Conceicao do Mato, a small Brazilian town approximately 700 km Nor ..read more

El Reto del Quetzal is a mountain bike stage race in the heart of Guatemala with the 4 stages spread out between the tourist hotspots of Lago Atitlan and Antigua. Stage 1 of El Reto del Quetzal kicked off in wild Central American fashion this morning with a 49 km loop around the rim of Lago Atitlan above Panajachel. The race started with some sweet views of the volcanos surrounding Lago Atitlan. Soon after was a typical Guatemalan 20% climb. Three riders from the Cermicas Castelli team took off with my buddy Cesar Reyes Hernández with me in the chase. Over the top the leader Cristian from Colo ..read more