We've Arrived:
Let the adventure racers have their Southern Traverse, their Eco-Challenge
and Elf Adventure. Pro world cup mountain bike races? Hah! A walk in the
park. We're south of the border this weekend to showcase one of the ultimate
tests of machismo for our armchair adventurers everywhere. We're about to
land in fabled Costa Rica, for one humdinger of a mountain bike event that
literally cuts this beautiful country in half.
It's called La Ruta de los Conquistadores and it's one of the original
ultra-long mountain bike races. These days endurance riders have several
events they can race, from the NORBA-sanctioned 24 Hours series, to several
"century" races in Colorado, including a rival for the "toughest" title,
Montezuma's Revenge. But for a combination of scenery, terrain and
never-ending misery in the saddle — perhaps no other event can rival La Ruta.
What we're aiming for is three days and nearly 300 miles of
mountain bike racing, crossing the rich biodiversity of Costa Rica in a test of legs, lungs...and sanity. Imagine climbing 20,000 feet of
vertical on your mountain bike some weekend, against 200 other international
certifiables for three straight days through rainforest, coastal plain and mountainous terrain.
"By the end of day one your legs are shot — totally cramped," says one
competitor before the race. "By the second day you wonder if you have any
business being out there — I once got passed on a climb by a farmer who was
just walking up the hill." Straight up or straight down — that's one way the
course has been described. Half the time you're walking your bike up hills
too steep to ride, next thing you're plummeting down a 4,000-foot descent
that can melt your brakes.
That's La Ruta — one of the most hard core athletic events we've come across,
and for good reason. Mountain bikers of all skill levels come from all over
the world (mostly the US and Costa Rica), to pit themselves against the
brutal challenge that is mountain bike stage racing. You won't recognize most
of their names, but you'll identify with their stories, and marvel at their
fortitude as they battle fatigue, cramps, broken bikes and sheer exhaustion —
trying merely to finish with body and bike in one piece.
The name, "The Route of the Conquistadors," is apt and reflects the course's
route — that of a plundering Spanish empire trekking across the country in
the 15th century to reach the Caribbean from the Pacific — the Spanish
trying to figure out the best way to transport all their stolen treasure back
home. This weekend a different army of conquerors will work their way over
the inhospitable peaks, looking for their own route to personal riches.
Will We Arrive?
Part of the adventure in bringing our live coverage to you is the simple
challenge of getting to our locations week in and week out. This time our
delays were courtesy of Grupo Taca Airlines, and their convenient policy of
throwing passengers — including several international journalists and a TV
crew — off their flights midway to Costa Rica if it suits their revenue
stream. So while we were en route to photographing mouth-watering scenic
photos of the Costa Rican countryside for our introduction to this year's "La
Ruta," Grupo Taca Airlines decided to send us on a wild goose chase through
Central America instead.
Not that we're complaining, no sir! Because this is spectacular terrain we're
seeing — especially after sleep deprivation and several tequila samplers in a
Guatemalan airport. After leaving the relatively flat environs of central
Mexico, our Zoner-laden Airbus plied the thin atmosphere of four different
countries before finally depositing us in San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica.
It's a four-hour drive from the metropolis of San Jose to the Pacific Coast,
where our race begins. Racers arrived at a small hotel in the capital over
the past few days, wrenching together their bikes and no doubt wondering what
they had signed up for. "It's a challenge, just one of those things you want
to check off 'your list,' " says one competitor in the airport. This is his
third attempt at completing La Ruta, after finishing only three stages of six
attempted. We all drink one more tequila sampler to his success in this 2000
edition.
La Ruta goes from the Western Pacific Coast to the Eastern Caribbean Coast,
with two stops between. Day one will travel back to San Jose, then
day two will go mid-country before finally finishing on day three. The
weather here is perfect right now, with most of the course dry and warm, with sunny
days greeting our powerful field. Check back each day for a run down of the
day's challenge — plus of course some fabulous photos.
For further information on the event contact Race Director Roman Ubina at roman@mountainbikecostarica.com.
— Ari Cheren, 4x4 rumbling across the Costa Rican countryside for
MountainZone.com
