Axel likes to get high. It’s a long love story since 2015, which began as he cycled across South America, aiming at tackling along the way all the highest passes of the Andes mountains. He has never stopped searching ever since, the highest roads on Earth. Meeting Rodney, born and raised in the sacred valley of Cusco at 3,400m, didn’t help at all.

The Peruvian Great Divide is definitely one of the highest road segments on the planet. Still relatively undefined, the track stretches from central Peru at the doors of the White Cordillera, down south to Cusco region over a 1,500km distance, around 35,000m of elevation gain and countless +4,000m passes.

We decided to start with the first stretch of 473km and 11,000m of the Divide, with a planning of 150km per day, starting in Conococha lake where athletes of IncaDivide 2017 and 2018 cycled along. Let’s see below why this never happened !

When the team you ride with, cumulate such an extensive knowledge of what Peru’s potential is in terms of exploration cycling, you just expect to find something similar to what you have experienced so far. Big mistake!

This is by far the most spectacular and scenic ride we all had experienced in our lives, so far. Everyday felt like riding in another world, a whole different country. Colors were mind-blowing, we cycled along gigantic lakes, cornice trails with not a single soul around. Peru’s Divide proved to be so remote and beautiful that every member of the team fell in love with the experience.

Tackling Peru’s divide is not given to everyone though. Most of the stretch we explored had literally almost no accommodations and very few places to eat. Distance-wise, the effort you have to put in to cycle 75km, feels like 2,5 times the distance with the high altitude factor. Most of the ride has to be completed above 4,000m which turns the experience into a virtual cycling strangulation if you happen to develop altitude sickness of if you’re just not acclimatized enough.

Abra Rapaz at 4,961m is the highest point of this segment as you cycle along one of the biggest Peruvian copper mine. This is a glimpse of how challenging this area is. The trail conditions are just random and can evolve in a dramatic way if the weather conditions during the rain season in Peru were bad. From battling the rockiest terrain our Open gravel bikes had known so far to ridiculously steep shepherd trails, it is very hard to put words on the actual road conditions we cycled on. It is just a very challenging terrain to ride on, especially with a super-light bikepacking gravel bike configuration and Schwalbe Bites 40mm tires.

But folks, what an exploration! If we had to do it again, Axel would try to acclimatize himself instead of starting riding straight at 4,000m. Nico would ride faster with a lighter bike, Rodney would bring a group of riders to share the experience.

Let’s see what we’ll come up with in 2019. This won’t be for everyone. Sign up to our stories notifications below to receive more details about 2019 explorations.

Note: if you plan to take the Divide on your own or explore the White Cordillera, you can visit the following websites ran by Harriet and Niel Pike, two avid cyclists and writers of biking guides:

• Blanca Huayhuash.com : you can buy printed guides to explore the White Mountain Range
• Andesbybike.com: get accurate info about route planning, accommodations and preparation on the whole Andes mountains

A thin rain was with us at race start in Trujillo center city. The athletes had then to battle heavy rain on the PanAmerican highway up to Pacasmayo city where they would finally start climbing in the Peruvian Andes…A surprising pace was put from the start to the actual beginning of the climb with numerous athletes pushed into the hurt locker with the race start group effect.

At noon, the weather and terrain had changed in a blink of an eye. From the coastal flat desert “No Man’s Land” to the green rice field and canyon views of the massive Andes, everyone battled sub 36° temperatures and a burning sun. The Gavilen pass before Cajamarca, stood at 3,200m. A heavy fog and dropping temperatures awaited the adventurous athletes who attempted it in the end of the afternoon. Nico Valsesia (Italy) was the first to reach CP1 after 13hours non stop on his bike. He took the luxury to go for a detour up to 3,800m!

Athletes kept coming through CP1through the night with epic stories to tell to their fellow competitors…14 managed to reach the checkpoint on day 1.

#rideUltra

While most of the athletes were either battling to nightrider their way through CP1/Cajamarca, 14 crazies were packed in the hotel Casona del Inca hosting the checkpoint to have a well deserved rest…

The Italian duo Nico Valsesia and Michelangelo Pacifico took the non stop night ride option and made the unpredictable choice to head back to the coast, catching almost every athlete by surprise. As sun started rising above Cajamarca city (2,800m asl), two main strategies were undisclosed:

1) The hilly Andes option: a group of 23 athletes headed straight to the Andes, following the recommended route we had provided. It was a hilly choice which took them on one of the most stunning climbs of the countryside of Peru…Breathtaking landscapes, +30°C temperatures, and super long steady climbs!

2) The rolling coastal desert option: a group of 5 athletes (Italian riders + 2017 Inca winners Rodney and Felipe) dared to take the call of riding their way back to Trujillo following a less hilly road but nonetheless challenging with a potential strong headwind to battle. They would also have to climb from the coast up to 4,736m non stop to reach Punta Olimpica picture checkpoint…A daring option with the high altitude factor!

By the end of the day, all athletes finally managed to stamp CP1 (320km from race start) which closed officially the checkpoint of Cajamarca…

The day started with 2 confirmed scratches: Nico Valsesia (Italy) due to a knee injury and Franco Cravero (Chile) due to a bike fall close from a gas station in the Andes.

27 athletes were racing in the morning with a new rising italian leader: Michelangelo Pacifico who strategically chose the coastal desert option following Nico Valsesia’s intuition. Followed by F.Borja (Ecuador), R.Sonnco (Peru), L.Masini (Italy), and an Ecuadorean unofficial duo (Jose Mera and Diego Herrera).

In the meantime all the other athletes took the shot of following the recommended route of the Andes, cycling above 3,000m asl all day with constant rolling hills. The main challenge of the day was definitely the start of the gravel segments in the mountains. It proved to be very challenging for most athletes with punctures, dehydration and fueling challenges to overcome. The fastest lead group (N.Copeland / UK, Marco Beligni / Italy) managed to surprisingly reach before the end of the day the entrance of Cañon del Pato (known for its 37 tunnels through the Cordillera Negra).

At dawn, while most of the athletes had stopped, some dots were still persistently moving. M.Pacifico made the spectacular effort to reach Carhuaz city at 10pm. R.Soncco pushed very hard on the coast to close the gap and reached Carhaz just before midnight. They were followed closely by the hunting group N.Copeland, L.Masini, M.Beligni, only 50km behind (status at 5am July 4th)…

An enormous challenge awaits all of them with the Punta Olimpica climb which rise at 4,736m in the heartland of the Huascaran National Park. It will unveil the highest paved tunnel in the world located next to Huascaran North summits (6768m asl), the highest mountain of the Peruvian Andes…

#rideultra

“Little by little, one walks rides” Peruvian proverb.

This quote represents the tremendous effort that the lead athletes: Michelangelo (Italy), Rodney (Peru), Niel (UK) and Marco (Italy), have managed to push to reach the Huascaran National Park. The fastest reached the top of Punta Olimpica climb (4,736m asl) before 11am! The unknown zone of high altitude cycling brought the power output of Michelangelo, Niel and Marco to a 100watts max. It turned out that the highest paved tunnel on the planet would be a brain challenge rather than just a physical one.

In the back of the race, the Andes were trying to swallow every bit of motivation of our athletes. The gravel managed to take out Jair Jojoa (Colombia) enduring an unbearable knee injury next to Cachicadan. Axel’s media car, after Pallasca village, managed to drive to sea level on a mixed dirt/corrugated road to catch up with F.Borja (Ecuador) who was suffering unfortunately from a heavy food poisoning which considerably hindered his motivation. F.Sevilla (Ecuador) was just ahead of Felipe, smiling like on his first day of racing…R.Mcgrath (UK) had a blast cycling across Cañon del Pato which made him forget yesterday’s pain on the gravel. 37 tunnels located at the meeting point between the Black and White Cordillera were built through a huge canyon with incredibly steep rocky walls. A very scenic area, highlight of 2017 and 2018 editions…

The highlight of the show was to unveil the spectacular White Cordillera. It stands out from everything, dominating the whole area, as a natural barrier between the coastal desert and the Amazonian regions of Peru. A spectacle that one can witness only by going there and figuring by himself what gigantic scenery does mean. L.Masini (Italy) was the last of the day to reach the top at 6pm. He had a very emotional arrival where he seized the opportunity, once arrived on top, to share the love for his wife through this cycling achievement…

More adventures to come tomorrow…

#explore

Tears, climbs, altitude…What a day!

The leading group is unbelievably fast and unpredictable. R.Soncco (Peru) has definitely entered the “beast” winning mode. He stamped first all checkpoints (Huaraz, Yanashalla pass and finally Casma) and took the risk, despite multiple punctures and a damaged front rim, to cross the Pastoruri gravel (100km without a single soul). Followed closely by M.Pacifico (Italy), N.Copeland (UK) and L.Masini (Italy), he surprised everyone with the craziest route planning options. Fully acclimatized he took the bet to tackle a last 4,200m pass above Huaraz city to fly down to CP3 – Casma on the coast…Copeland and Masini tackled the gravel up to Pastoruri and managed to stamp their checkpoint at Yanashalla pass (4,720m) before taking a rest in the downhill to Conococha lake.

In the meantime, M.Beligni (Italy), decided to follow the whole recommended route, enjoying the best of his time in Peru and climbing up to Kawish Tunnel before Chavin de Huantar on the eastern side of the Huascaran Park.

The mid pack riders (R.McGrath, F.Sevilla, B.Bizinoto, R.Ferri, C.Reis, F.Burry, V.Martins, N.Meunier) battled all day the monstrous Punta Olimpica climb which takes for an average athlete around 6 hours of constant climbing to 4,736m…The crown of the most relentless athlete goes to F.Borja (Ecuador) who walked the last 8km of the pass, as he was completely drained and out of energy due to food poisoning.

In the back of the race, South American riders managed to finish the gravel section and cross the Cañon del Pato (D.Herrera, J.Mera from Ecuador, E.Marquez and Y.Hernandez, D.Ahumeda and R.Manriquez).

The last athletes closing the race are currently battling the gravel of the Andes. F.Morales (Chile) rides 25mm tires and will have a very hard time to cross this section, but he is moving slowly. A.Diaz (Spain) is fighting with a heavy bike configuration and our dean of the race JM.Carmona (Chile) is steadily progressing. He managed to reach Pallasca city by night fall…

#Endure

Who would think we could have our first finisher completing the entire race in less than 6 days? Rodney Soncco (Peru) has defended his title very hard and managed to complete IncaDivide 2018 in 127 hours and 22 minutes! In the meantime he was chased by Michelangelo Pacifico (Italy) and Niel Copeland (UK) who were riding non stop from Checkpoint 3 in Casma to the finish…

The middle pack riders were climbing into the Southern part of the Huascaran national park where the highest pass of the race is located (4,920m…) on a tough gravel section. The second picture checkpoint (Yanashalla pass at 4,720m) is not an easy catch to get! Surprisingly, despite our advice of not attempting the gravel section because of freezing temperatures, we had Nicolas Meunier (France) riding his way during the night! The back riders battled their way through the Cañon del Pato and Punta Olimpica climb to get their picture on top!

Checkpoint 2 (Huaraz) will close on July 7th at 7pm. Will every athlete manage to reach it before the official closing time?

Sometimes you start your day and nothing follow your plans. Day 7 was a day like this. Our podium made it early in the morning: M.Pacifico (IT) While the challengers athletes were pushing hard on the coast to reach the finish line L.Masini (IT), M.Beligni (IT), B.Bizinoto (BR), F.Sevilla (EC) kindly expected by Didier and his team in Trujillo at the finish line, the media car 1 (Axel, David and Anthony) went again across the Southern part of the Huascaran National Park to figure out the situation with Robbie Ferri’s tracking system. His GPS was not sending any signals since the evening of the day before and was located at 4,400m in a very cold and remote area. On their way, they met F.Burry (CH) and V.Martins (BR) who were cycling down from Yanashalla pass (4,720m) where they endure -5° temperatures. They decided to head to the coast and follow the recommended route to heat up their legs!

Axel, David and Anthony drove fast on the gravel section of the Park without finding any signs of Robbie. On their journey, at 4,800m, they found a Peruvian woman, Judit, with her kid Naidan, on the side of the track, crying. It happened that Judit had been kicked out from her home by her husband in one of the most remote areas of the Andes…Change of plans for the team as they decided to drive them back to Catac to a safe area. As they were discussing with Judit at a gas station by the end of the afternoon, Robbie showed up! He was followed by the Ecuadorean unofficial group (D.Herrera, J.Mera, J.Echeverra). They all stayed safely in Catac, avoiding the night freezing temperatures…

Meanwhile, yesterday was the time limit to reach CP2. All athletes managed to reach it before 7pm with Arturo Diaz Herrera (ES) who made it at 6pm, exhausted by the race course!

Early in the morning Breno Bizinoto (BR) arrived with his mountain bike in Trujillo under 168 hours. He was followed closely by Franciso Sevilla (EC) who made it 2,5hours later…They both battled the Andes, a big up for Breno who was the master of impossible rocky shortcuts in the mountains!

CP2 closed, all athletes headed to the highest part of the race to the Huascaran National Park. The strategy of the leaders and challengers of the race has certainly influenced some of the route choices we have seen on day 8…The Venezuelan couple (Eddy and Yanis) traded the gravel section and the high passes of Pastoruri Glacier to a detour longer paved route from Conococha to Yanashalla pass…

The Ecuadorean unofficial team (Joaquim, Diego and José) rode the gravel section up and down, battling with stiff legs and high altitude lack of energy. They were blown away by the snow-capped mountains of the Huascaran National Park…

Luis (Colombia) went the hard way, following the recommended route passing by San Marcos and Antamina sector. The day was particularly cold, it will take him almost 2 days to cover the whole section and reach picture checkpoint 2 (Yanashalla pass).

Meanwhile, Vinicius (BR) and Fabian (CH), followed closely by Ry (UK), done and dusted by high altitude, made the call to cruise down to Paramonga city on the coast instead of the shorter option of heading back to Huaraz which would imply a last 4,200m pass…

Our lanternes rouges, Arturo (ES) and José Manuel (CL), were doing the job of relentlessly progressing, day by day, to the race finish. The cold and high altitude was very hard on Arturo. José Manuel from Chile is more used to these rough conditions and is progressing slowly but surely to Yanashalla pass…

Early in the morning, Robbie Ferri (UK) initiated his operation Desert Storm. He managed to reach Trujillo at 7h57am after leaving Chimbote at sunrise. Ry Mcgrath (UK) made it at 12h55pm followed closely by the unofficial team Vinicius Martins (BR) and Fabian Burri (CH) who successfully arrived at 2:30pm…Carlos Reis (BR) who was one of the only crazies to follow the entire recommended route, finally could open his lungs on the coast! He managed to ride a stunning non stop from Paramonga to Trujillo (363km) and made it to the finish-line at 10h38pm, warmly welcomed by the other athletes on the Plaza de Armas of Trujillo!

Meanwhile, our favorite Venezuelan pair (Yanis and Eddy) opted for the option to climb up Punta Callan pass above Huaraz (4,204m) to cruise down to the coast up to CP3 in Casma city with a longgggg +100km downhill and stayed in Chimbote city before their final leg to the finish line. They were just behind the Ecuadorean riders (Diego, Joaquin, José) who were riding the dusty gravel with big smiles on their faces! Hitting the Pacific Ocean and a fully oxygen air surely help to build up their spirit for the final ride as they stopped in Chimbote city as well…

Our relentless Lanternes Rouges from Chile (Ricardo, Fernando and José Manuel) rode the PanAmerican Highway until Huarmey where they stopped for the day. Arturo Diaz (Spain) chose to tackle a final +4,000m pass above Huaraz rather than hitting the longer coastal option from Conococha village, even though he was hit by a big cold in the Andes mountains. Our unique Colombian athlete, Luiz Matiz decided to stop in Huaricanca after coming back from the dreadful Antamina gravel section where he had slept at a Peruvian’s house the night before…

Most athletes were rushing to reach the finish line of the race before July 13th – 5am (time limit) to complete the race!

Our unique team, from Venezuela, Eddy and Yanis, stuck to their plan and arrived safe and smile in Trujillo at 10h34am. What a great couple to be able to start and finish together despite all the odds and challenges they had to battle…

They were closely followed by our splendid unofficial Ecuadorean team: José Mera, Diego Herrera and Joaquin Echeverria who made it to Trujillo all smiles out at 12h45pm. After battling the cold in the Pastoruri gravel loop and the high altitude of Yanashalla pass, they cruised their way to the coast to grab a final blow of fresh air to reach the finish line. They showed a great sportsmanship all along the race and a great Ecuadorean spirit for Adventure racing that we had experienced with Felipe Borja in 2017’s edition…

On July 11th, our unique Colombian athlete, Luis Matiz (who followed the whole recommended route!) reached Trujillo at 8h45am, proud to be one of the few who dared to tackle the whole recommended route of the race…

The true values of IncaDivide race were carried to Trujillo by the Chilean group of athletes: Fernando Morales, Ricardo Manriquez and José Carmona who decided to wait for Diego Ahumada (scratched from the race several days before) who got sick in the mountains, so that they could ride together up to the finish-line, aiming only for the spirit of reaching the finish-line as a united group of friends. They made it together before 1pm.

Our Lanterne Rouge, our last finisher: Arturo Herrero (Spain), was welcomed by almost all finishers of the race and congratulated for making his way to Trujillo, despite a strong cold which considerably slowed him down during the race…

Every great story has an end, a great cocktail time was organized by our friends of Trek bicycle shop for a warm session of sharing adventure stories and future challenges to come…

#IncaDivide2018

Key figures of 2018 edition: 5 checkpoints, 1,800 kilometers, 31,000 meters of elevation gain. 12 day limit time limit to cross the coastal desert and the highest mountains of the Peruvian Andes

Full screen replay of the race on the tracking platform: click here

Still relatively unknown for cycling, the magic of Peru can within few hours of saddle, take you from the Pacific ocean and its scenic coastal dune desert to the natural border of the Black and White Cordilleras. You can literally cycle from sea level to almost 4,800m a.s.l in a couple of days, getting the chance to acclimatize your legs, lungs and body to the mysterious universe of high altitude.

As you get closer from the high mountains of Peru, you can feel the Herculean strength of nature happening all around you. The most surprising is your body which eventually slowly gets used to work with less oxygen. Legs get stiffer, your breath gets deeper, the experience begins. It turns out that high altitude is a brain challenge which brings a new dimension to ultra distance cycling. A new element like wind, heat or dehydration that only experienced endurance athletes can test their mindset upon.

You have an understanding of what you are capable of doing before this kind of challenge and a power of believing in what you truly are made of, after. Like most life challenges, few are the people to take the lead and attempt them.

There are bicycle explorations that are genuinely capable to change your mindset forever. Peru is one of them for ultra distance cycling. From the saddle of a touring bike or a super light bikepacking bicycle, the experience remains unforgettable. There is this idea you have about exploration cycling before heading there. There is your idea after. It empowers your heart and lungs and gives you the illusion of being unbreakable.

You can eat a ton of “salted beef” anywhere in Peru. This is great opportunity to sit down, meet, discuss and discover the local lifestyle of the Peruvian people, especially in the high mountains. While your favorite rig is parked next to a small local restaurant, you dive into this peaceful people culture and understand how challenging life can be when you breath 365 days a year at 4,000 a.s.l. Peru is among these countries where you might not have a sign on the wall but you’ll find what ultra distance cyclists are looking for: a warm meal and possibly a warm bed if you don’t like wild camping. Open from 6:00am until 9:00pm, fueling is not really an issue.

The most heady experience in Peru is that you will never be alone. Whether you are in the high mountains or on a dirt road without a single soul around, you always happen to meet a shepherd or someone else, also walking on these forgotten roads. A dark stranger who will greet you, as surprised as you will be to meet him/her on the road…