The Trans Am Bike Race is a continent-sized challenge
Covering over 6,800 km from Astoria, Oregon to Yorktown, Virginia
Riders from around the world gathered in Astoria, Oregon for the 2017 Trans Am Bike Race on June 3. The self-supported ultra-endurance event covering more than 6,800 km from Astoria, Ore., to Yorktown, Va. and passes through 10 states. Participants are timed from the moment they leave with the clock never stopping until their arrival at the finish. It’s up to the riders own discretion to take as much time for rest and refueling as they need before the resume pedalling across the continent.
The route mainly uses the TransAmerica Bicycle Trail which was established in the 1970s. It starts in Oregon and then passes through Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Kentucky, West Virginia and finally concludes in Virginia.
First held in 2014, the men’s course record was set at 17 days 16 hours 17 minutes in the races innaugural edition by accomplished ultra-cyclist Mike Hall of Great Britain. Hall was recently killed by a car while participating in the Indian Pacific Wheel Race on 31 March 2017. Juliana Buhring of Italy holds the women’s record at 20 days 23 hours for the West bound route while Lael Wilcox has the women’s eastbound route record set at 18 days 10 minutes.
The race’s fourth edition began with 99 entries each of whom can be individually tracked at trackleaders.com/transam17. Riders from the U.S., Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands, India and more. There were 14 Canadians on the startlist.
One of the Canadians in Russell Slater who originates from Great Britain who we spoke to over the winter after he rode 342 virtual kilometres on Zwift in January. You can follow Slater’s progress on his Strava or his tracker page.
Riders are not allowed to draft as it is a self-supported event. The route also doesn’t have makers with participants needing to know it themselves. “The intent is to ride unsupported between towns, and function self-supported when in towns. Any services utilized must always be commercially available to all challengers and not pre-arranged,” the rules read. “No private resupply, no private lodging.”
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Riders are allowed to use any bike with most choosing endurance road or gravel bikes packed up with their gear.
American John Lester leads the race as it enters it’s seventh day. He has covered 2,918 km since departing Astoria. Janie Hayes leads the women and is at kilometre 2,726 km.
The race can be followed on Instagram with the #tabr2017 hashtag.
Social media from the 2017 Trans Am Bike Race
https://www.instagram.com/p/BVHDM_Lh1bW/
