I have always been fascinated by the Alps and participating in the Trans Alp sounded like a great (but crazy) way to experience the Alps. The route this year traversed the Alps from Fussen, Germany (close to Rita’s home town of Pfronten) to Riva del Garda in Italy, leading through the most beautiful mountain ranges of Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy. Sounds nice… only problem of course is that there are a number of very high mountains to conquer in the 665km between Fussen and Riva. The total vertical elevation gain is almost 22,000m, averaging 2,750m per day over 8 days. The Trans Alp is a team race and my partner for the race was initially Axel Bertle, but unfortunately he has had a crash 2 weeks before the start of the race and he broke his collar bone. Very unfortunate for him. I have had to find a new partner and I was lucky enough to get a very good partner, Michael Horn, to join me as a team member. For pictures of the race and also the GPS track data, follow the header links of each stage. Below a description of each stage.

Stage 1

The first day started out for us in chaos as I realized on the way to the start of the race that I left my helmet at home in Pfronten. After some hurried phone calls my helmet arrived with Anja and Axel coming to see us off at the start of the race in Fussen. When the starting gun was fired, we got under way with a view of Schloss Neuschwanstein. The narrow road in the beginning made for a big traffic jam, but after the first 10km’s we were on our way and onto the first climb. We enjoyed the first day and we finished in good spirits, in a time of 4h21min.

Stage 2

The day started off with some rain and it was VERY cold. The clouds were covering the mountains and the first climb of the day was taking us to a cold and icy 2,000m. It was a very hard day and Michael was starting to feel sick. We finished in a slow 6h30min.

Stage 3

Throughout the night it was raining and although it was nice sleeping with the soft rain in the background, the prospects of getting soaked the next day was not that enticing. Before breakfast Michael told me that he was sick during the night and that he will not be able to continue the race. It was a big disappointment for me, but a far bigger disappointment for him. I really felt sorry for him since it was also one of his dreams to do the Trans Alp. Nevertheless, I was at the starting line as a individual rider now and ready to tackle the first climb that would take us to a height of 2,739m – the highest point of the race. Going up that climb was unbelievable – it started out wet and just got colder and colder as we went higher. Eventually it was snowing so hard that I could not see 2m ahead of me. The top of the climb was incredibly steep reaching 28% at times. When I reached the top I was half frozen and the ride down the mountain was very precarious sine I haven’t had a lot of feeling left in my hands. While I was defrosting on the way down I let go of a huge “who-ha”, thinking how incredibly surreal that climb was! I felt like a penguin that got lost and ended up on the top of the Alps instead of down in Antarctica. I was really pumped and despite starting out way in the back in Ischgl due to our slow time the previous day, I finished in 4H17min, which put me in the top 20 of the Masters Category for the stage. However, since I was without a partner, I was not participating in any category anymore. We had dinner that evening on one of the mountains going up in a cable car – spectacular views!

Stage 4

In the morning it looked like it was going to be a fine day without rain (or snow) – turns out this estimation was wrong. It snowed on the top of the climbs and arriving in Livigno was freezing cold. I have had a couple of minor mechanical issues with my bike, but the scenery was absolutely amazing. Anybody who wants to see the best of the Alps should ride the mountains around Livigno – single trail that will make you think that you are the only person on the planet. The last 10km of the race was the hardest – Livigno was already in sight and I secretly hoped the organizers got the distance wrong for the day – but alas, they had it right. The last stretch took us on a very rolling and steep section of the mountain above Livigno and it is was steep up and down all the way to the finish. I was very happy to see Rita at the finish and to be taken to our hotel where there was a warm shower and food waiting. I finished the day 4h33min.

Stage 5

The day started as cold as ever with a very high mountain waiting to be conquered. This was by far the most spectacular stage – single tracking like a goat, truly feeling like I was on top of the world. We were leaving the high altitudes of the Alps (the valley of Livigno is at 1,900m), going down to Naturns at 500m. The change in weather was remarkable – Naturns has vineyards, apples, pears, apricots etc. The arm and leg warmers I needed in Livigno were now causing me to over heat. The last 80km of the day was mainly downhill with a couple of short, but brutal climbs thrown in. I really felt strong today and finished a hard day in 6h09min – almost a top 10 finish in the Masters Category.

Stage 6

By now we were familiar with the “straight up” approach of the Trans Alp. We set out from Naturns to Naturnser Alm – an uninterrupted climb from 500m to 1,980m in 14km for an average grade of 10%. This was just the prelude to what was by far the hardest stage of the race. In particular, for me the day turned for the worst as it progressed. After the second climb and after one of the scariest descents I have ever been on, my rear deraileur broke and as a result my chain was dragging on the road. I had to stop and try to repair my deraileur. The only solution was to remove my deraileur and to ride in only one gear by making the chain shorter. In theory this is suppose to work, but I did something wrong and completely messed up my bike. My chain broke 5 times and I had to walk for more than 15km to the next feeding station. Luckily one of the organizers took pity on me and lend me a bike to finish the race with. I ran out of water as well since I lost a water bottle and after 8h30min I made it to the finish line. I was VERY happy to see Rita waiting for me with water and food! What a day!

Stage 7

Everybody was a bit sore after a grueling day yesterday. My legs were particularly sore after all the walking and dehydration from yesterday. I really struggled to get up the first climb – an uninterrupted 1,400m climb. I was pretty empty when we hit the last climb of the day going up to Andalo, and again very happy to see Rita close to the finish with the South African flag and her cow bell to edge me on. I finished the day in 5h00min – one more day to go!

Stage 8

The last day! A relatively short day with an incredibly steep single track close to the finish. At the top of the last climb of the Trans Alp, I was very happy and thinking the worst is over – until I got a flat tire. What a disappointment! I have also lost my pump and was appealing to the good hearted nature of my fellow riders as they flew past me. Luckily George and Greg from South Africa stopped and gave me their pump – thanks again guys! By the time I got a pump and fixed my flat so many people past me that there was a huge traffic jam of everybody trying to go down the very steep single track. I was nevertheless in good spirit since there was only 30km downhill left to Riva. As I came into the finish line it was great to see Rita, Anja, Axel and Michael waiting for me! We celebrated with champaign and lots of food. What a great race! It was the best of all the Epic mountain bike races I have done so far. It was well organized and the scenery was literally out of this world. I can highly recommend anyone to do the Trans Alp – I hope to be back again in the future. The overall results are here.