And they are off: Silk Road Mountain Race 2026
At 11 a.m. local time on Saturday, the 2026 Silk Road Mountain Race started in Talas, Kyrgyzstan. The Silk Road is the longest of the ‘Mountain Races’ —more than 2,000 km (1,250 miles)—and arguably the hardest, with more than 36,000 m (119,000 ft) of climbing in some of the world’s highest mountains. The Silk Road is famous for long mountain passes that aren’t rideable, but require many hours of ‘hike-a-bike.’
And yet the racers traverse this inhospitable terrain at incredible speeds. Just consider: The fastest men’s time is just 6 days, 16 hours, and 47 minutes, set by Sofiane Sehili in 2023. Meaghan Hackinen is the fastest woman, with a time of 9 days, 4 hours, and 6 minutes, in last year’s race.
Both chose Rene Herse Fleecer Ridge tires for their record-setting races—and both reported zero tire issues despite the rough roads and trails. In fact, Sofiane has raced three Silk Road Mountain Races—and he’s won every time (above in 2022)! He’s returning this year, for a fourth ride across the mountains of Kyrgyzstan.
Sofiane may be the only rider this year who has won the race in the past, but that doesn’t mean there is no competition. This year’s field is stacked with the world’s fastest ultra racers. Right now, they are speeding neck-to-neck across the high passes and vast distances of Kyrgyzstan. After 24 hours of racing, the seven fastest riders are separated by less than 30 km (18 miles). The first two women are not far behind, either. The 2026 edition is shaping up as an exciting race again.
Past editions came down to the wire—or, more accurately, the last mountain pass. In 2023, Jakub Sliacan and Sofiane were literally just a few hundred meters apart (as the crow flies) as they climbed Kegety Pass with less than 100 km (60 miles) to go. In fact, the third-place finisher that year, Justinas Leveika, is racing again this year.
There is still a long way to go—the racers have covered roughly 1/6 of the course in the first 24 hours. This year’s course is a little longer than in the past, but the weather forecast predicts good riding conditions, unlike last year’s rains or the snow during previous editions. It’ll be exciting to see how the race unfolds—and whether any records will be broken.
I’ll be following the dots as they climb those incredible mountains, reaching 13,000 ft (3,900 m) multiple times during the race. Having read Sofiane’s and Meaghan’s stories in Bicycle Quarterly, I can (almost) imagine what it’s like to ride there…
More Information:
- Tracker for the 2026 Silk Road Mountain Race
- 8 Wins out of 15 Mountain Races on Rene Herse tires
- Meaghan’s story of last year’s Silk Road Mountain Race is in the current Bicycle Quarterly.
Photo captions: Stephen Shelesky (Meaghan); Tristan Boogard (Sofiane winning); Usmanov Danil (Sofiane in snow); Meaghan Hackinen (Silk Road Mountain road)
