Silk Road Mountain Race

It has been a brutal start to the race for the entire field. Relentless heat and significant elevation gain have taken their toll on everyone.

We caught up with the leading women at sunrise as they climbed a valley of green hills, yurts dotted across the slopes. While we waited, two young boys on horseback from Toluk stopped to talk, sharing that they live in a nearby yurt where their family brings cattle up to graze these alpine pastures through the summer months.

Last night, Kerry MacPhee Kerry MacPhee moved into the lead. When she rounded the corner this morning she shared that, like so many others, she had found the first day’s heat hard going but was hopeful for cooler temperatures ahead. She’d slept three hours overnight and called it enough, telling us that self-care is one of her top priorities with such a long way still to go.

A couple of hours back sat Nathalie Schneitter nathalie schneitter She had few words, looking focused in the early hours of the day. This is the longest race she’s taken on yet, having finished 2nd overall at the Hungarian Divide and previously raced World Cup MTB.

Kerry and Nathalie both rode near Cynthia Carson Cynthia Carson on day one, opening a gap over the rest of the solo women, with Nathalie initially leading, followed by Cynthia, then Kerry. Cynthia has unfortunately fallen ill, whether from food poisoning or the heat we’re not sure. She was forced into a long sleep that dropped her back to the midpack to recalibrate. Time will tell if she recovers. That puts Kristen Tonsager Kristen Tonsager third woman on the road, with plenty of other strong riders still to challenge for the podium.

As Kerry reminded us this afternoon, resupplying in Kyzyl-Oi: “there are still 1700km to go,” and anything can happen.

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📷 Stephen Shelesky

The heat was on today in more ways than one. Once the neutral start was over, the head of the race lit up — the leading riders exceeding Race Director Nelson Trees’ initial estimated. Max Riese was the first to begin the ascent to Terekti Pass, but his afternoon took a turn, sharing on his social media that he was struggling with vomiting and diarrhea. Angus Young appears to be suffering from heatstroke, and Justinas Leveikas said locals kept handing him ice cream because he looked so rough. Nils Kopf is struggling to eat.

In the women’s race, Nathalie Schneitter led through the day, she shouting that she wasn’t a climber when she passed on Terekti. Cynthia Carson, in second, looked very focused and was managing the altitude well. Kerry MacPhee wasn’t tracking for the opening hours of the race, so her position was a bit of a mystery, but she was the third woman we came across. She’s been struggling with the heat — as have most riders today — but pulled back a chunk of time once the temperatures dropped in the evening.

There was at least one reward for the day’s effort — the whole field got to see this pass in daylight, which isn’t always the case. Tomorrow is a new day, and it’s looking to be a hot one around the Toktogul Reservoir. Those who persevere will be rewarded with cooler temperatures in the Karakol valley.

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📷Nils Laengner Stephen Shelesky

Glimpses of the first day

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🎥 Евгений Чистяков

We wasted no time giving riders a taste of the bountiful natural landscapes this country has to offer. Within the first few hours, the route takes them through the Besh-Tash valley, inside Besh-Tash National Park, a protected area south of Talas. “Besh-Tash” means “five stones” in Kyrgyz; local lore says five bandits were turned to rock here as punishment, and the stones are still standing.

The valley runs hot down low, rising in altitude as the kilometers tick on. Riders who came in without acclimatizing feel it immediately — the thin air turns a manageable gradient into a grind (or a hike), and the heat lower down has already taken its toll. The field starts to spread out on the climb.

So it becomes a string of impromptu stops. People clustering at the river to top off bottles, dunking heads and jerseys, perhaps sitting in the shade a few minutes longer than they meant to.

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📷 Danil Usmanov

Registration day is complete.

Talas is a fitting start for the riders’ adventure across Kyrgyzstan. This valley is where the legend of Manas begins, the warrior-hero at the heart of the nation’s culture. The Epic of Manas tells of how he united the 40 scattered nomadic tribes to forge a homeland, and much of that founding story unfolds right here. You’ll find him honoured across the country: a grand bronze statue on horseback stands in Ala-Too Square in the capital, with similar monuments in almost every major town.

Riders ran through the usual document and gear checks, and collected caps from Albion and straps from Tailfin. We’re lucky to have great local support here — thanks to Alex from Velo Mesto for once again handling the equipment checks and offering mechanic support, and to local artist Zarema, who designed this year’s socks and t-shirts.

The day closed with the race briefing from Race Director Nelson Trees, covering the rules and route, followed by a screening of the Albion and Pertex film Mountains and Trees to get riders in the racing mood.

We’re expecting an animated race across every category. The field is strong, with plenty of past Mountain Race winners in the mix.

Racing begins at 09:00 local time on Saturday 15th August, in front of Talas City Hall. Head to the link in our bio to dotwatch.

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📷 Nils Laengner Danil Usmanov

Wait… did someone say it’s almost Silk Road Mountain Race?

Dotwatching starts Saturday at 09:00 local time.

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📷 Stephen Shelesky

This year’s race map is now live and the countdown is officially on until the eighth edition of Silk Road Mountain Race. Riders have been arriving in Kyrgyzstan throughout the week, many heading off into the mountains to acclimate.

For those still en route, safe travels and see you soon. For those dotwatching at home, head to the link in our bio for the link to tracking and further race coverage. Not long now!

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📷 Lloyd Wright