At almost 800 kilometers in length and with more than 15,000 meters of climbing through the remote wilderness of southern Spain, over mountains and across Europe's only desert, this was not a race for the faint of heart. This is my story of Badlands 2023.

See the race on Strava:   / strava  
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Cover image by Nils Laengner:   / nils_laengner  
Additional footage by Josh Reid:    / @joshreid  

A special thank you to BMC, ATTAQUER, SUPERNOVA and FUEL+ for helping make this race possible, and to John from Science to Sport for coaching me in the lead up to the event.

A few key products used during Badlands:
My front light: https://supernovalights.com/en/produ...
The most comfortable bib shorts I've ever worn: https://bit.ly/3SHFs1e
The bike I rode: https://www.bmcswitzerland.com/eu_en...

Grab a discount to help keep the channel going and videos like these possible!
20% off your next ATTAQUER order, use code CRATQTRISTANTAKE20: www.attaquercycling.com
15% off BONT cycling shoes, use code TRISTAN: www.bontcycling.com (excludes sale items)
10% off your next FUEL+ nutrition order, use code TRISTAN: www.fuelplus.es

00:00 Intro
02:45 The Start
05:00 KM32
08:39 Problems begin
13:40 KM173
20:13 The first night
23:06 KM455
27:03 Day Two
29:37 Coming undone
35:48 Night two
38:56 Interview with Badlands 2023 winner, Rob Britton
45:40 How the race ended

Music from Epidemic Sound: (free trial affiliate link): https://www.epidemicsound.com/referra...

Badlands is an ultradistance gravel bikepacking race with both professional and amateur cyclists from around the world attending. The race involves huge amounts of bike preparation, understanding of bikepacking equipment, resupply, gear, nutrition, fitness and training, survival and resilience. The race starts in Granada, southern Spain, and heads into the Gorafe Desert and Tabernas Desert, to Almeria on the coast, and finishes halfway up the Pico del Veleta, the highest paved road in all of Europe. This year the race was won by Canadian professional cyclist, Rob Britton, with first female finisher Cynthia Frazier coming in just a few hours later. The race had over 300 riders start and over 250 finish. A big thank you to the organisers of Badlands for putting on the event, and the hospitality of the Spanish restaurant and shop owners who stayed open outside the regular hours to accomodate riders' needs.