Singletrack/MTB
Gravel/All-road
Dirt-road Touring
Fat-bike
Route, Riders & Rigs from the 1st American Trail Race
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Early yesterday morning 13 valiant bikepackers set out on the first annual American Trail Race, a 5,000 mile self-supported bikepacking race crossing the USA along the off-road Trans-America Trail (TAT). Here are details about the route and photos of the riders from the grand depart… plus, we revisit the Swallow’s TAT scout coverage.
The American Trail Race is the first of it’s kind ultra-endurance, self-supported, bikepacking race across the country on a majority off-pavement route. Riders will follow a course predominantly based on the Trans-America Trail (TAT), originally established by dual-sport motorcyclists, then first ridden on bicycle in its entirety in 2015 by Sarah and Tom Swallow. The off-pavement version of the Trans-Am Trail has long been on the radar of ultra endurance bikepackers and has finally come to fruition in the form of a group ride/race with the grand depart taking place on the morning of June 1, 2017. Follow 13 fearless riders on Trackleaders (tracker and map below) as they make their way along an arduous course from Cape Lookout, North Carolina to Port Orford, Oregon.
To introduce these racers, here are a few details about each with excellent photos by Lina Rice, daughter of Billy Rice, race organizer and founder of Invictus Cycling:
Aaron Weinsheimer
Age 48 / Salida, CO United States
BIKE: Waltworks rigid 29er
David & Loreto Garcia
Age 42 / Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
BIKE: Duratec Big Bang C9 Tandem
Dylan Taylor
Age 45 / Bozeman, MT United States
BIKE: Salsa Cutthroat
Hal Russell
Age 68 / Osceola, MO United States
BIKE: Salsa Cutthroat
Indiana Schulz
Age 33 / Coal Valley, IL United States
BIKE: Salsa Fargo Ti (link to interview and full gear list)
Jared Harris
Age 26 / Buena Vista, CO United States
BIKE: Salsa Deadwood
Jen Marsh-Siruchek
Age 46 / Middletown, NY United States
BIKE: Veritas 26 hardtail
Lindsay Shepard
Age 35 / Phoenix, AZ United States
BIKE: Specialized Jett Pro
Mark Snidero
Age 56 / Bel Air, MD United States
BIKE: Salsa Cutthroat
Michael Kinney
Age 32 / Rock Island, IL United States
BIKE: Lynskey Pro 29er
Riccardo Alessi
Age 48 / Valguarnera, Italy
BIKE: Silverback Syncra 27.5
Rob Colliver
Age 52 / Hampshire, England
BIKE: 2010 Santa Cruz Tallboy with Lauf
The American Trail Race Route
The Trans-America Trail, or TAT, is a 5,000+ mile dirt and gravel route across the US from North Carolina’s Outer Banks to Port Orford, Oregon. The route was initially designed for dual-sport motorcycles by Sam Correro and wends its way over a hearty elevation profile that gains more than 300,000 feet of climbing. The TAT isn’t to be mistaken for the Adventure Cycling Association’s route of the same name, which is a mostly paved route that runs from Astoria, Oregon to Yorktown, VA. The first Annual American Trail Race will closely follow the TAT route with a few tweaks made by race organizers. Here is the map on Trackleaders currently live tracking each racer. Check back often to follow their progress. We’ll also update this post with new photos and info as we get it.
Follow the American Trail Race
You can check back here regularly to update the Trackleaders tracker map, or use these resources. We’ll be adding to this list of links as information comes available:
- Official American Trail Race Facebook Page
- Trackleaders tracker for 2017 American Trail Race
- Instagrams to follow: @gobig_gofat (Jared Harris) / @carefreewanderings (Lindsay Shepard)
The 2015 Swallow/TAT ride
On August 1st, 2015 Sarah and Tom Swallow set out from eastern NC to pioneer the TAT route via bicycle. As far as we know, they were the first ones to scout it under human power and made some worthwhile adaptations to the route for a bicycle. Prior to this trip the Swallows completed several big bikepacking gravel grinders, including the Oregon Outback and the Ohio Buckeye Trail, but nothing of this caliber. The Swallows completed the 4,970 mile route on Sunday, October 26, 2015. They took a total of 87 days (81 days pedaling with 6 days off). Scroll down for links to their epic 5-part story with tons of great photos from along the way…
Make sure to revisit their coverage from this epic adventure to get a feel for what the riders of the American Trail Race will be facing:
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