Posted by Ron Prinzlau On June 24, 20140 Comment
Translated by Bjorn Henschke
Stage races are something like the ultimate in cycling and for every marathon rider, the challenge of his life. Every day another race, with everything. At the start of the first race your legs are fit and well shaved and in your eyes is fire, passion. But keep holding this over a few days a is hard and difficult. Because after the first day, your eyes are burning of dirt and dust of the roads, like your ass as well with each touch of your saddle.
If you think FourPeaks, is just a 4 stage race, you will be warned. This race will be a Transalp shorten up on 4 days. Easy stages? No way. Even the shortest day, the 3rd day was really hard and was something like a cross country deluxe…
After every uphill part another downhill part followed with different requirements, sometimes on bike trails, than on natural paths and up and down again. Lot´s of trails make this race for a real MTB-race.
Not only the endurance of the athlete is required, also the technical part of you. Each was rewarded and for the first time, the race got an enduro ranking, as an extra challenge on each stage. The start of the first stage was in Leogang, and lead you just over gravel ways right to Lofer.
The biggest technical challenge was the Hangmantrail, which was right after the first ascent, which was really good ridable, because it belong to the bike parc of Leogang. Until the finish in Lofer, about 50km´s, with two ascents, not that steep and so the speed was quite fast. Nothing about saving energies. Sadly, I met on the 2nd stage a group of talent free riders and stayed in jams often. The conditions became harder. The ground was soft because of the rain falls during the night. The conditions were really bad, when you think about riding uphill for about 1000m of altitude on or thru mud.
As I said before the 3rd day was the toughest, which forced you very much, even of your riding skills. Than the steep ascent up the Harsassanger trail, where I gained some places, but you were offered a wonderful scenery.
All three stages offered you everything a MTB rider need or want and were squeezed on 3 stages. A good technical rider could do really well on the first sections. On the last stage, was like the first, starting with a long ride with drafting, which ended on the foot of a mountain and went uphill and ended with a hard single trail in Kaprun.
On the last day, the temperatures were rising over 30degrees. I love this, because I love riding when it´s really hot. Kaprun is well known in the cycling scene, and finishing here is like being awarded a knight. After 273km and 9200m of altitude the race was over and I felt quite good and thought about, having tried harder. I was really happy about the finishing medal and my 148th overall place. With riders out of more than 40 different countries.
The FourPeaks got lots of high lights. Not just the course, even the feeling of riding with lots of riders from so many countries of the world, like New Zealand, Costa Rica, South Africa or Israel.
Even the pasta party afterwards is a high light, when you try to fill up your storages again while enjoying the sun down over the mountains.
Let´s go fort he next adventure…next stop „Sellaronda Hero“ in the Dolomites.
Michael Gnannt
Pictures: Sportograf, Michael and Herbert Gnannt (the best adviser of the world)
