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A Race with Character - Why Dead Ends & cake is more than just a race

Afternoon 1 - Almost 12 Hours In - Organiser Update

Lunchtime Update

DotWatcher Update - Local Riding Knowledge

Organiser's Early Update

Ben Koch

Luca Widmer

Lorenz Inauen

Lucas Rüesch

Moritz Grämiger

Thomas Schlatter

Christof Jeker

Maxime Holdener

Raphael Ottiger

Alessia Sträuli

Ulrich Rose

Cornel Müller

Christian Schmidt

Thomas Martinus

Samuel Rosport

Johannes Eckstein

Tim von Glahn

Stefan Wegmann

Christian Mathis

Irene Graf

Joaquin Olguin

Sibylle Mumenthaler

Simone Allemann

Niko Maric

Franziska Schöni

Johanna Wildmoser

Alicia Köster

Violaine Messiant

Samuel Frésard

Tobias Callister

Jolien van Uden

Ruben Coll

Florian Schigelski

Michael Grass

Anna-Lena Niemeyer

Conor Hannigan

Fabian Frech

Melanie Scheffke

Kathrin Springet

Gabriella Antal

Michael Sandner

Julia Achenbach

Mark Starmanns

Johanna Ose

Gaëlle Liengme

Katerina Sedlackova

Julia Röhl

Ramón Rico

Mascha Roeder

Leonie Hagemeister

Filip Bieleszuk

Annika Kamper

Seraina Blum

Laura Bär & Carolin Barbey

Eric Knoll & Nathan Saurer

Tanja Frischknecht & Samuel Meili

Reto Aeppli & Martin Lieberherr

Erwin Selva & Hannes Murer

Marie-Sophie von Stetten & Anjuli Vogler

Luca Noelia Gruber & Jonas Weibel

Lorena Isepponi & Josua Eigenmann

Anna Saryusz-Bielski & Mateusz Paluchowski

Hans-Martin Schnurr & Johannes Schneider

David Schneider & Mathias Stauffer Oneta

Aaron Meyer & John McVey

Geraldine Kaufmann & Larissa Hintermann

Anna Kohler & Lukas Kohler

Giulia Zumstein & Samira Borbach

Bastian Cambrésy & Svenja Hoelzl

Marleen Kirchner & Vivien Neumann

Georgina Shepherd & Zoe Maikovsky

Media Jonas & Andrea

Media Tobias & Andrea

*Featured photo by Ben Tobias Schürer*

And that's it! DEAD ENDS & cake 2023 is baked. Every single rider made it to the finish and all the cake was devoured.

Our Lanterne Rouge __Seraina Blum__ came in last night at 10pm. Seraina had an amazing ride taking her through some of the most beautiful parts of the route!

There is something special about the DEAD ENDS races. With such a low scratch rate, so many interesting route choices and cake everywhere you look. It really is a recipe for a unique and enjoyable race.

![R6JT7742](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1Cs7EfEXY7sFuxWloPct9Q/d6bc460cfb565034aeac9b785f9dc5c4/R6JT7742.JPG)
*Photo by Jonas Traber*

## DEAD ENDS & cake Recipe

### Ingredients

__5__ dead end checkpoints

__1 or 2__ intrepid cyclists

__1__ bikepacking bike, determined by route choice

__1__ full set of bikepacking gear

__5__ delicious cakes

__unlimited__ views

__up to 3__ days to complete the race

### Preparation
__Spend hours researching your dead ends__. Try and find the most direct, most enjoyable or most challenging route connecting your dead ends and then change it at least 20 times prior to the race.

__Lay out all of your bikepacking gear__ and try shoving it or neatly packing it in different combinations depending on your style. Ensure you have a last minute repack the night before and leave out one crucial item, a good one to leave is your toothbrush or tyre levers. 

__Check your bike is in a roadworthy condition__. If you like to live on the edge you can leave this until the day before and then have to run around every bike shop in the area trying to find some new brake pads.

### Cooking Instructions
__Arrive at the start in St. Gallen__, meet your fellow riders and remember your forgotten toothbrush. Whatever you do, __do NOT compare your route__ with other riders, it's too late now.

Set off and __ride for 19 hours to 3 days__ depending on desired experience, those who are looking to hike-a-bike should allow more time to rise. Make sure to stop and rest every so often to allow the rider to recharge and enjoy the cakes on offer.

If your spirits become low, make sure to __resupply any sugar stores__ with a local Swiss cake or sweet. 

__Finish the race__ to a spread of fantastic foods and cakes, with home-made ramen courtesy of the team at DE&c.

To finish the experience, make sure you arrive home, __put your feet up and enjoy the next race on DotWatcher__ that will get you in the mood to do it all again.

- Kitty @ DotWatcher

A Recipe for a Race

As we see our riders trickling into the finish, we celebrate 2nd and 3rd woman - __Irene Graf__ and __Sibylle Mumenthaler__. An incredibly close finish with a time of 39 hours 31 mins and 39 hours 39 mins! A nailbiting race to the podium. 

![292A3167](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3NrhyN9KpKUENpqtka7qr4/1356face74cae9a34f557664bf325c06/292A3167.JPG)

Photo by Jonas Traber

## Cake

Something we haven't mentioned yet is cake, each checkpoint has cake which is sourced from local bakeries and huts. They are representative of local sweet tooths and always provide the riders with a great hit of sugar and carbs. Throughout the race we keenly look for the best cake and it seems the 5/7 of Dominik's cake focus group voted for the Schlorzifladen at the Calfeisental checkpoint. A win for the multi-layered tart lovers.

![Schlorzifladen](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4FpabVk9BxwfwjCiaEdxO/90422190ebf9b7170234cd0e1dae962f/Schlorzifladen.jpeg)

## Low Scratch Rate

Due to a combination of cake, kind checkpoint volunteers, thorough organisation and just general good vibes and routes, DE&c often has a very low scratch rate. Often with scratches that are due to insurmountable challenges (mechanicals and crashes). Last year saw a 0% scratch rate and Dominik is hoping for this again. He had a call from one rider who was already on the train, but with a good pep talk and promise of cake and beautiful views, our rider went back to the scratch point, performing the big foot of ultra-racing, the __unscratch__.

## General Update

With plenty of riders still on the road, the incredibly nice riding conditions will hopefully mean there'll be smiles all round. With all riders looking like they may finish by this evening, there's plenty of DotWatching left to fill your Sunday.


The first pair in was __Laura Bär & Carolin Barbey__ in 32 hrs 5 mins. This speedy duo headed for the more road route, leading to lots of Dead Ends. Well done to our duo!

Second in was __Eric Knoll & Nathan Saurer__ and then third was __Tanja Frischknecht & Samuel Meili__ in 34 hrs 46 mins	 and 35 hrs 6 mins respectively. Interestingly all the pairs came in with a route around the 480km mark.

Riding as a pair in a race like this can be uplifting and enjoyable, sharing the load, the route planning and the tactics. Well done to our speedy teamies.

Photo by Ben Tobias Schürer

__Alessia Sträuli__ (pictured) Is our women's winner. Coming in at an extrememly fast 27 hrs 47 mins she finished with 485.08 KM on the clock. An extremely impressive almost non-stop ride. 10th overall in one of the most competitive editions yet.

Close to the finish, __Irene Graf__ and __Sibylle Mumenthaler__	are 17th and 18th respectively as they race for the women's 2nd and 3rd place, should all go to plan. __Simone Allemann__ and __Franziska Schöni__ are next up. Franziska's progress seems to have slowed a little, maybe the fantastic cake is too hard to leave! __Alicia Köster__ is also up there, seemingly taking a very similar route to Irene.

Photo by Jonas Traber

__Alessia Sträuli__ is quickly closing in on the finish  choosing a similar route to Thomas Schlatter, Alessia was one of the first riders to reach Alp Nurdagn. She looks like she may be in within the next hour or so. Alessia rides for Cycle Team Ost and is no stranger to riding fast. She took a single rest at around 9pm but has pushed through the entire race.

Our next woman is __Irene Graf__, she took a decent rest overnight last night and is pushing on this morning.She's left Alp Nurdagn and is on the long journey to Bischofalp.

__Franziska Schöni__ is our third woman in the rankings at the moment.She took a rest last night but is off, riding strong this morning. She's currently on her way back North after bagging Alp Nurdagn.

Photo by Jonas Traber

After an incredibly fierce day of riding, __Ben Koch__ is our 2023 DEAD ENDS & cake champion. After having a low point at Alp Nurdagn, he pressed on through. With a blistering finish time of 19 hrs and 34 mins, Ben was rewarded with a piece of rhubarb from a friend at the finish. His route has been the shortest so far at 450km.

In just an hour and 15 minutes later was __Luca Widmer__ who did pretty much Ben's route in reverse with an additional 10km. Luca is a strong rider and made short work of a lot of the climbs.

The podium is completed by __Lorenz Inauen__ who rolled in less than an hour later. A silver medalist at the long distance duathlon world champs, he's really proved himself a force to be reckoned with.

Also in under 24 hours were __Lucas Rüesch__, __Moritz Grämiger__ and __Thomas Schlatter__.

Photo by Jonas Traber

Dominik has sent through the first full brevet! Luca Widmer has right this second just completed his brevet at Bischofalp. However, it's not over yet - Lorenz is trailing as is Ben, who is heading for Kamor which is much closer to the finish.


A Full Brevet, We're On The Home Straight

Riders flock to DE&c each year and the ballot fills extremely quickly, the feedback is always glowing and so we've recruited veteran racer [Hetty Kingston](https://www.instagram.com/hettykingston/) to provide some insight into the more quirky parts of the race.

### The Checkpoints

Obviously, each checkpoint provides the riders with some cake - a treat and a reward in such a tough ride. But, did you know it's not just the cake that riders are treated to?

At Kamor checkpoint volunteers serenade the incoming riders with a ukelele and a smile, ensuring spirits are lifted as they roll in. In Calfeisental there's a hot tub and a sauna which riders can hop into and warm the cockles of their cycling hearts whilst they enjoy their cake and satisfaction of reaching another goal.

![6124b60e-5af7-4a9e-849a-6830e2669b2a](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1nGkZPgsh20P0ekj2f0Amd/4a6caab09264f0ae714d8c5625b152fc/6124b60e-5af7-4a9e-849a-6830e2669b2a.JPG)

### The Race Interval

At the DEAD ENDS events Dominik Bokstaller (organiser) has noticed a phenomenon that seems to only happen at his races - the interval. In 2022 Christof Jeker left for a wedding (keeping his DE&c socks on for his outfit) he then returned to finish the race. Emma Pooley left DEAD ENDS & dolci this year to compete in a national trail running race and returned to finish. This year, Niko Maric has left for a book launch of a friend and is now heading back to the race.

![Screenshot 2023-06-23 at 21.42.36](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2ukU1E5qQXdAlk4MHvTReE/aced9089efd681f6dfdae028a6b03657/Screenshot_2023-06-23_at_21.42.36.png)

### The Hike-a-Bike Potential

A final quirk of the Dead Ends races is the ability to hike-a-bike. As spurred on in the first edition by Emma Pooley, it seems to have now become the alternative race for some. Ulrich and Filip's route between Calfeisental and Bischofalp is not for the faint of heart. With snow still on the tops it's a pretty perilous journey for the uninitiated taking them all day to complete. Those who remember Dead Ends & dolci this year will also be acquainted with this as a rider took snow shoes to complete his race.

Featured Photo by Ben Tobias Schürer

From what seemed to have been two completely different routes by __Ben Koch__ and __Luca Widmer__ and __Lorenz Inauen__, we can now see they're essentially running the same route backwards with Ben doing the reverse of the other two. With such a close race, there's no way to call it!

Quick Update on the Leaders

Now the riders are spread all over eastern Switzerland. Some are pushing really hard - all of them on different routes. Time will tell whats faster - eating all cakes clockwise ore counter clockwise.

__Ben Koch__ decided to go counter clockwise and went to __Bischofalp__ first. This means covering a lot of distance and validating "only" one checkpoint. He went flat along Walensee, checked Alp Nurdagn and is now on the hike-a-bike up to Obermutten. Later on his Menu: __Calfeisental__ (up the very steep side of Kunkelspass) and then the grueling long and very hard climb to __Kamor__ from Rüthi. Once he's up there, it's all downhill to the finishline!

__Lorenz Inauen__ looks like he is in the lead of the group going the other way around. Not too far behind __Moritz Grämiger__ and __Thomas Schlatter__ are following. But - __Luca Widmer__ has one big advantage! He already had his cake at __Calfeisental__ and is the first to visit four of our five checkpoints! He will now enjoy a long stretch of flat riding towards __Bischofalp__. 

Who will be first to collect all cakes? We honestly can't say yet. One thing we can say for sure - they will be back very early! Crazy pace!!

In our more intrepid hike-a-bike, two riders, __Ulrich Rose__ and __Filip Ieleszuk__ have taken a mammoth hike-a-bike from __Bischofalp__ to __Calfeisental__, the weather conditions are stabilised. 

Photo by Jonas Traber

Kitty Dennis

DEAD ENDS & cake 2023 Tracking + Commentary: A free-route adventure with five checkpoints, each at the end of a dead-end path, to explore the most beautiful, remote places of eastern Switzerland. One for the sweet tooths amongst us and a penchant for doing things a little differently.

DEAD ENDS & cake 2023 Tracking

A free-route adventure with five checkpoints, each at the end of a dead-end path, to explore the most beautiful, remote places of eastern Switzerland. One for the sweet tooths amongst us and a penchant for doing things a little differently.

DEAD ENDS & cake 2023

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