Wild Horses, The Silk Road Mountain Race documentary.

[Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] I left knowing very little about Kyrgyzstan as soon as I arrived I realized it was exactly what I was looking for expansive spaces extensive silences breathtaking mountains as far as the eye can see here in the heart of Central Asia I fell to the edge of the world suspended outside of time the Kyrgyz are a hospitable people but their land is certainly not [Music] yeah I can't go again [Music] a wild mostly deserted land the perfect setting for an epic adventure my name is Nelson trees a year ago I traced a 1700 kilometer long route for a bicycle race it's been called the toughest race in the world [Music] today we are ready to depart 88 cyclists from all over the world have paused their daily lives for two weeks to immerse themselves in a basic life on the road [Music] yes [Laughter] [Music] [Music] I wasn't paying the colonel as I told we gonna bring these verbs I do not know if this will be the toughest race I did not set out to make it so but I know this vast country it will surely leave its mark on these riders as it did on me we are the ones sending them on their way but from there on it will be up for them to figure it out being an athlete is not what will we knew this race [Music] once you leave the confines of Bishkek the landscape changes rapidly the land becomes increasingly uninhabited [Music] this guestlist of food increases with every mile there are no hospitals Norma Kanak sin range every cyclist will have to be totally self-sufficient it is not us but the mountains the rain over this magnificent area the first major obstacle riders will encounter is ket pass 3,780 metres above sea level [Music] out here weather can take you by surprise at any moments if it does there is not much more to do than to wait out the storm [Music] the first participant to reach us is Kim Ramos from Belgium with his extensive experience he has been tipped as a favorite for this competition [Music] another front-runner is JP Tabari 45 years old and a legend of endurance races while the fastest riders pushed through the other cyclists stayed behind many have been forced to camp at the base of the mountain as they wait for the snowstorm to stop so you came through the pass my god unbelievable the past on that side there was already so many things sketchy [Music] one of the last to push through the storm is the young Romanian Levin typically it has been clear from the star the impact of the vast Kyrgyz landscape on this race cannot be overstated improvise [Music] eighteen hours after departure we descend towards Sanko lake 400 kilometers later we reached checkpoint 1 it is 2 o'clock in the morning the only athletes who have made it here is J Peter Aaron here yeah what's your cap number J that's a great question 51 in general people don't know what they're signing up for yeah big attractions of this year as well the big attraction was coming year that's good beautiful [Music] [Music] from the second day onwards we realized the race will be intense for us as organizers as well we travel south along the border with China in what used to be the outermost frontier of the Soviet Union today it remains a militarized area we learn that a few of our scientists have been stopped by the authorities we talk with the commander of the military it should be okay they understand the situation they understand they have riders coming on okay the only problem is that the warrant aware of this okay if someone can call them and speak in Russian to explain the car everything we left them they know they I have a list of people coming off coming through okay and they have the copy that we left it's just it's just this okay it's just because we want to be safe sure that the riders can go through at kôzu not far from the border we set up checkpoint to 350 kilometers from checkpoint 1 [Music] [Music] we take the opportunity to survey the area among the canyons of coal sue at 3,500 metres above sea level there is a spectacular glacial lake or at least there was the last time I was here it is completely dry this season [Music] keep filming J is the first to reach coal sue remaining at the head of the race [Music] we decide to keep the out and backtrack to the lake not everyone will appreciate this choice [Music] you didn't drive a lake where's nice yeah how's the beer in my pit I haven't been there yet so funny just a my day exactly yeah on the fifth day Pierre and Kim reached checkpoint two making them second and third in the temporary standings the others haven't been so lucky obstructed by unpredictable weather health and mechanical failures 14 participants have already chosen to scratch the wind changed thunderstorm came and got hailed upon and then I got cold to hide in one of those sewage big sewage pipes underneath uh no need the road the worst part was over so after that yeah we just got cold by the time levente conquers his second checkpoint stamp Kim and Pierre are miles ahead holding a sizable lead when I was at that checkpoint that you check the distance oh it's a hundred kilometers to the this checkpoint I can make it easily and I barely made it at midnight when I got to the base of the climb I stopped for a second put my hand and head head on the handlebar and woke up after three minutes I literally slept like standing so and I was soaking wet I knew that I I just have to come up there's a warm yurt waiting for me here [Music] [Music] after checkpoint two the route passes through an extremely wild Valley with no supply points [Music] six days from the start of the race 25 cyclists have dropped out you see where today brings us I could take the venti continues his relentless pursuit but Pierre and Kim remain comfortably in front of him much better spirits than they were CP 151 they were we find them in the town of Marion along the road [Music] Geron Kim decided to stop unaware that Levent is catching up meanwhile Jay continues to dominate the standings in the past few days he suffered from heat stroke but seems to have recovered completely what I played up you tonight about 9,000 feet or something I got up there a little back slapped about four hours I think it's fair to say that endurance cyclists all have a bit of a wandering soul coming to a place like this feeding that soul with wide-open spaces and new frontiers to be taken on embodies the free-spirited nosov this race much like the wild horses roaming these Plains it is what I looked for coming back [Applause] J is the first to reach teach cam on lake issyk-kul third and final checkpoint I'm pretty wasted no I don't want to get wasted I'm already wasted but I would love some PMO coca-cola where's that probably asked me too much C would be awesome please okay thank you we organizers go back to sleep in the town of Marin where we meet the athletes left behind it is now the morning of the seventh day yeah it's great this sure that's not easy it's beyond tough as well yeah what food poisoning around it's the toughest thing I've ever done sure so yeah yesterday was pretty brutal I really enjoyed this lot forty percent incline pushing up there and also dragging a bike axe while the mud - - like in back it's fun in a bizarre kind of way it's had an uncomfortable night but feel like better in the stomach today just weak now but that happens it's definitely living up to the the plan of being the toughest race I think yeah I should've got a couple of them much later Jay is having breakfast taking his time without mobile signal he's completely unaware that Levent has overtaken Pierre and Kim and is rapidly approaching him we are reaching one of the most brutal passages of the race toss or pass at 3800 meters altitude [Music] in the midst of a violent thunderstorm we are once again reminded of the fiercest element of this battle je reaches the pass after the storm descending smoothly into Arabelle Valley I do these things first a lot of reasons they're super hard but so powerful hard times are so worth it you can only have so many nice days it's this kind of stuff you don't forget there wasn't even that bad the wind wasn't even up the winds up there me like whew alright we'll see you guys [Music] [Music] Levin T continues his chase but lacking mobile signal he has no idea how close he is to Jake okay can we straight yes anything even I don't know did you guys realize there's about 100 kilometers washboard that was hell oh it's gonna be here pretty quick but I stopped and I just had something go good though to get out of there that's for sure so I'm looking forward to the next little town I'm even thinking about guest house I prayed I'd rather do it and feel good then do it and feel like a Turk it's not good strategy I think I have some time when Jay discovers Leventis position he decides not to make any more stops [Music] despite Leventis increasing neck pain he pushes on and the pursuit between the two goes on throughout the night chunk him in a long Valley that rises towards Kazakhstan we prepare for the winners arrival at the finish it's not exactly the welcome from the Tour de France but I would say that it is in line with the spirits of the race after 1721 kilometers traveled JP Tiwari is the first to cross the finish line [Music] [Laughter] [Music] just wanted to keep for sure J conquered the race in only 8 days 8 hours and 15 minutes there you go cheers everyone just over half the maximum time setting the rules awesome job out there he's doing Thanks I thought you're gonna changed me up that hike a bike yeah but I was riding all day so welcome my collection is complete now thank you congratulation levente takes second place followed by Kim and Kim only a third of the participants will succeed in reaching Chong Kim in fewer than expected I do not know what the future of this race will be I hope that in the coming years we will return and hold the same spirit of this first journey it was not just a challenge between athletes but an adventure in which the landscape dictated to force the mountains of Kyrgyzstan appear endless we have only begun to explore them [Music] [Music] Oh right yeah look [Music] you [Music]

Channel: PEdAL ED

Views: 26,201

Rating: 4.9931507 out of 5

Keywords: cycling, bicycle, clothing, nature

Id: UVwjQ_l38LY

Length: 27min 58sec (1678 seconds)

Published: Mon Feb 25 2019