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Five Minutes with... Dulkara Martig
Dulkara Martig spends her time in some of New Zealand and Alaska's wildest places, working and adventuring. Her experience from the first edition of the Tour Te Waipounamu offer a unique insight into a bonified adventurer's exploration into bikepacking.
Bikes of Tour Te Waipounamu 2022
A selection of the chosen rigs for the second edition of the Tour Te Waipounamu. With lessons learnt from 2021, have a browse at how the riders' kit lists have evolved.
Roundtable: The Role of the Media Crew
The role of the media crew in telling the story of a race both during and after the event has been instrumental in the growth of our sport but their potential influence on the race is disputed. We pose our questions to those with the most experience from either side of the lens.
Bikes of GranGuanche Audax Trail
GranGuanche Audax Trail - a self supported route across the Canary Islands.
Two Peas in a Pod: A Look at Pairs Racing
A unique feature of ultra-distance racing is the ability to compete as a pair. It seems to be the marmite of the ultra-world, either love it or hate it, it's here to stay. We spoke to some standout duos to learn more about the motivation behind this style of racing.
2021 End of Season Wrap
From the flames of 2020 came a dotwatcher's delight in 2021. Restrictions in travel made for many startlists to be dominated by domestic racers and we witnessed some household names cement their prominence as well as some new names bursting onto the scene.
Five Minutes With... Alice Lemkes
Alice Lemkes is a familiar name around the ultra-distance community in the UK. This year she took on the challenge of GBDURO and became one of the few finishers, hitting John O'Groats in 7th place. We talked racing mentality, her current projects and wild swimming tips.
Winter Watching: Ultra-Distance Films
The racing may be on hold for the snowy season, but we wouldn't want you to miss out on your ultra-distance fix. We've compiled a list of films to keep you entertained, binge them or create your own ultra-advent(ure) calendar!
2021 DotWatcher Awards
Welcome to the 2021 DotWatcher Awards! This year we are honouring some inspirational and dedicated riders who have made an impact on the 2021 race season.
Bikes of Across Andes 2021
Take a browse of the riders' chosen bikes and equipment for this gravel race across the Andean Mountains.
Five Minutes With... Jaimi Wilson
A new name in the ultra-racing scene, Jaimi Wilson lit up dotwatchers' screens this summer when she stormed to third place at GBDURO21, taking the women's title as well. We delve a little more into her ride and her background on the bike.
Five Minutes With... Scotti Lechuga
Seasoned pairs ultra-racer turned solo winner, Scotti Lechuga, shares with us her entry into ultracycling, tips for family bikepacking and how to master the perfect camp coffee.
Roundtable: How can our sport achieve better diversity through positive action?
In a changing world, organisers and coordinators are seeking to address the gender, racial and LGBTQ+ imbalances in bikepacking. We put some questions to these changemakers about their chosen methods for positive action, the benefits they’ve reaped and the work left to be done.
Bikes of Two Volcano Sprint 2021
A selection of the riders' chosen weapons for the roads between Italy's Mount Etna and Vesuvio.
Bikes of Race Through Poland 2021
With the last edition of Race Through Poland throwing some absolute curveballs with snow, rain and sleet the field thinned to a final 8 finishers. Remote settings and long climb require the perfect balance of weight and preparedness. Photo: Adrian Crapciu
Roundtable: How do dotwatchers affect the racing experience?
As the sport of ultraracing has grown, so has its spectator experience: dotwatching. In the world of unsupported racing, we ask the panel how do dotwatchers affect the race experience?
Bikes of GBDURO 2021
GBDURO is most accurately described as a four-stage 2,000km race. With grand departs from each CP the riders will be waiting at the CP from the moment they arrive until the grand depart and will need to pack for this stopping time.
Bikes of TransIbérica 2021
We take a look at the rigs and equipment choices of riders who will be tackling the ~3,300km road free-route through the Iberian Peninsula ticking off the 9 checkpoints.
Roundtable: Should races enforce safety equipment that are additional to the country’s legal requirements?
Welcome to the DotWatcher Roundtable, a new feature where we invite prominent guests from our racing community to discuss a hot topic in unsupported racing. To kick things off, we’re posing some questions about rider safety in events.
Bikes of Great British Divide 2021
The inaugural edition of a race brings a level of uncertainty in what to expect. With no previous years' kit lists to rely on, riders head into some of the most remote and challenging parts of GB with their personal selection of tried and tested kit.
Bikes of Three Peaks Bike Race 2021
What machine does it take to conquer three brutal peaks in Europe? We delve into some of the choices riders have made for the 2021 Three Peaks Bike Race.
Bikes of Pan Celtic Race 2021
The British Isles are notorious for their tempermental weather system but the Celtic Nations are their own beast. The least predictable regions of the UK make for some of the most dialled-in packing lists.
Bikes of Transpyrenees 2021
Riders head into the final week of preparations for the Transpyrenees and with their bikes and kit lists dialled in, we take a look at their chosen kit lists for a 1,000km route over 36 Pyrenean cols covering a total of 27,000m of climbing. ⛰️🚵
European race availability 2021
Need a racing fix this year? We have you covered. We've been in contact with many European organisers to compile a list of races that are either full or still accepting entries and some other options for getting in some racing kilometres.
Five Minutes With... James Craven and Brad Shenton
Two childhood friends took on the King Alfred's Way route solo but they both took the FKT. Keen to know how that's possible? Continue reading.
Bikes of the Highland Trail 550
The HT550 is back following its 2020 hiatus with a star studded line up of some of the best racers in the UK. A Best of British roster with former winners and those looking to redeem themselves after a very wet 2019.
Bikes of Race Around the Netherlands 2021
What bike would you take for possibly the flattest utra race on the calendar? Found out how riders balance comfort and speed when elevation isn't a consideration.
Bikes of Dales Divide 2021
A route with a blend of singletrack, bridleways, 4x4 tracks and tarmac calls for a versatile bike. Each rider has chosen their perfect compromise of comfort and speed to meet the varying demands of this off-road route.
Orbit360 Ride For A Reason
Riders have one week left to submit their rides for the inaugural Orbit360 virtual challenge ‘Ride For A Reason’ (#rideFAR).
Five Minutes With... Ben Davies
Ben Davies' recent 2nd place in TCRno7 (First Male), was his third TCR, progressing from 44th, 10th and finally 2nd. His is not a story of a new rider bursting onto a podium, but a tale of years of work and developing the skills and experience needed to succeed in these rides.
Five Minutes With... Alex Hotchin
Best known for her ability to put place to paper, Alex's work transports readers to a land faraway and instills wanderlust to any lucky enough to behold her work.
Five Minutes With... Emma Flukes
First and foremost a proud Tasmanian; she's the brains behind Tassie Gift and the brawn behind last year's second place Victoria Divide finish. We get to know a little more about the woman behind the instagram posts.
Five Minutes With... Hayden McCormick
Hayden is a Kiwi rider who stormed the inaugural Badlands last year into second place. A high achievement for any rider, but even more so for a man who only took up the sport at the start line in Grenada. We catch up with him ahead of the inaugural Tuatara 1000 in his motherland.
Bikes of Victoria Divide 2021
With previous winning times ranging from 40 to 44 hours, the front runners carry very little to no sleep equipment. Keep an eye out for the very lightly loaded bikes, they'll be ridden by those at the pointy end of the race. 📸 Jimmy Röstlund
Bikes of Tour Te Waipounamu 2021
Inaugural editions bring both excitement and uncertainty. For the riders, they face going into New Zealand's high country with no previous kit lists, no comparisons or guidelines to follow; merely their experience and intuition. And the Tour Te Waipounamu is no exception.
Bikes of Journey Around Rwanda 2021
As the Race Around Rwanda was adapted into the Journey Around Rwanda, so were the riders' kit lists. No longer a race and with hotel stops each night, we saw riders ditch any sleeping equipment for some clothes to wear to dinner each night, and a wide array of flipflops.
2020 DotWatcher Awards
We honour some of the admirable and inspirational stories from this year's unsupported ultra cycling races and efforts.
Five Minutes With... Chris Hall
Chris Hall is someone who loves a challenge, his most recent of which raised over £12,000 for the PACE Centre. We spoke to Chris about his life in cycling, his 107TDF challenge and his motivations to ride.
Bikes of Two Volcano Sprint 2020
Which bikes will ride to the finish at Mount Etna? Find out more about the riders and their rigs right here.
20,000 km on the Transcontinental Race
Doug Migden has achieved what many would consider a true feat of endurance. He's completed five Transcontinental Races throughout which he has learned a lot. Here, Doug shares his musings from across the continent and what those thousands of kilometres mean to him.
Five Minutes With... Chiru Bikes
Pierre Arnaud Le Magnan is the brains behind the Chiru Bikes and his passion for long-distance cycling inspired the creation of the brand. We sat down with him to find out what it takes to build some of the toughest bikes around.
Bikes of Race Around The Netherlands 2020
A race for the time triallists who need to carry everything around an entire country.
Bikes of Transpyrenees 2020
With a lot of riders now en route to Spain for the beginning of the Transpyrenees race, we've received a selection of the bikes that'll be toughing it out on the tarmac between Llança and San Sebastian.
Bikes of Three Peaks Bike Race 2020
What machine does it take to conquer three brutal peaks in Europe? We delve into some of the choices riders have made for the 2020 Three Peaks Bike Race.
Five Minutes With... The Racing Collective
The Racing Collective describe themeselves as 'a community of self-supported racers who love wild places'. With an already full calender or exciting Trans and XDuro trials, we discover plans for the 2020 GBDuro and environmental priorities in endurance events.
Five Minutes With... Jochen Böhringer
Two-time winner of the Hope 1000 sits down with us to discuss his 2020 win and the new course record.
NEW: Rider Profiles
Update your details, upload a picture and let fans and followers know your next races.
WIN: South Away by Meaghan Hackinen
We interviewed Meaghan Hackinen about her cycling exploits this week.
Top 10 ultra-endurance films
2020 has begun with mixed emotions: we saw a cracker of a race back in February but since then, we've been cast into a world of the unknown. To help you along, we've put together a list of our favourite films, in no particular order of course.