Race through Poland 4 – Race Preview

Krakow calling

Ready, set, pedal

 Day 1 Recap

The first night

Day 2 Recap

The second night

Day 3 Recap

Adam Bialek wins the Race Through Poland

Day 4 Recap

Adam Bialek

Björn Lenhard

Krystian Jakubek

Martin Haubold

Fiona Kolbinger

Paul Niehoff

Paweł Miłkowski

Andrew Phillips

Michał Wolff

Łukasz Tarnawski

Marcin Koseski

Joseph Dorsett

Stephen Haines

Felix Heine

Radosław Wierzbiński

Łukasz Jędrzejewski

Tomas Dvorak

Dawid Stanek

Valérie Dumangin

Krzysztof Wolański

Paweł Małagowski

Joanna Rumińska-Pietrzyk

Maciej Kasprzyk

Alexander Ebell

Adam Kałużny

Philipp Hanneck

Claudia Decker

Arno Burgi

Róża Szczucka

Dragomir Titei

Thorsten Naber

Krzysztof Miłosz

Marcin Zielkowski

Witold Bonnard

Marcin Kabała

Michał Stencel

Raphael Ottiger

Rafał Fałowski

Jakob Klaer

Wojciech Florek

Paweł Pesz

Rafał Wanat

Paweł Figiński

Maciej Łukawski

Florian Schmerlaib

Artur Kamczycki

Mateusz Kotowski

Marcel Falkiewicz

Mindaugas Kasieta

Gerold Lehmann

Jarosław Oglecki

Paweł Bielecki

Radu Cristian

Mariusz Niepsuj

Jakub Osadnik

Wojciech Jaguś

Adam Szczygieł

Brendan Cassidy

Karol Kamyczek

Wojciech Bystrzycki

Richard Bent

Piotr Skweres

Mariusz Cukierski

Bastian Schneider

Piotr Gdowski

Wiktor Naraziński

Michał Potępa

Peter Borko

Alexander Bosch

Grzegorz Kowal

Marcel Łukasiewicz

Peter Weiss

Waldemar Kędyś

Dimitriy Kumundzhiev

Bartek Wieczorek

Łukasz Piotrów

Anna Małecka

Michał Czubkowski

Pavel Klinov

Frank Scholler

Łukasz Sieczkowski

Bartłomiej Bińkowski

Patrick Doupe

Mateusz Gołąb

Paweł Gołaszewski

Krzysztof Iljuczonek

Ryszard Herc

Karl Krabbenhöft

Moritz Lemmermeier

Michał Makowski

Lukas Neubeck

Tomasz Zakolski

Piotr Tkaczynski

Łukasz Ugarenko

Jost Schumski

Sebastiaan Sijtstra

Mariusz Sobczak

Robert Huke

Małgorzata Szwaracka

Grzegorz Szamrowicz

Andrzej Binkowski

Kinga Budny

Kacper Kaczmarek

Tomasz Sieczkowski

Ewa Modrakowska

Magdalena Sobczak

Anastasiya Ankhim

Joanna Jopkiewicz

Błażej Komander

Tomasz Jędrzejewski

Rafał Jeleń

Ewelina Misztal

Bartosz Zalepiński

Bartosz Kaczmarek

Natalia Rudzka

Hannes Gruebner

Dariusz Świtała

Marcel Gawron

Stefanie Fritzen

Marie Beulig

Media 3

Media 1

Media 2

Magda Hasiak

I've been dotwatching and closely following bikepacking races since getting infected with the long-distance bug about ten years ago, when following the first Transcontinental races.

![Race through Poland 2021](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/hiL9gqzMSDijGGkeDW9cx/224a07c48d64924cac83b2cc3eee2488/DSC04485.JPG)

In 2015 I went from following to racing myself and haven't looked back since. Three TAWs, two TCRs and many other races later, I still love everything about unsupported long-distance cycling: The open community, the sense of camaraderie and adventure, the feeling of being out there for days on end and of course, the dotwatching. The love for these events has lead me to organizing my own little ride in my home region of the Taunus hills. Last summer I was lucky enough to ride the Race through Poland. RTPL embodies everything I love about these kind of rides. Piko has put so much love and attention to detail into running the race. It's unpretentious, pure, hard and very rewarding. An adventure in the truest sense. This year I cannot ride it myself, so I'm more than happy to provide some commentary for dotwatcher.cc.

- [Jesko von Werthern](https://www.instagram.com/jesko_werthern/)

*Photo is Jesko riding last year's RTP by Tadek Ciechanowski.*

Hello from Jesko!

The long anticipated fourth edition of Race through Poland is finally kicking off this weekend. With four new checkpoints, border crossings and a very exciting line-up, this promises to become the best edition of the race yet. What’s in store?

## The Race
RTPL follows pretty much the same concept as the Transcontinental Race: Riders are entirely self-supported and have to find their own way from the start to the finish via four checkpoints. Each checkpoint is accompanied by a mandatory parcours. The free route choice makes the dotwatching especially interesting, while the mandatory parcours are sure to throw in a couple of surprises. Each year, race mastermind Piko seeks out some of the hardest, but also most beautiful mountain roads. These parcours are always beautiful, and also ridiculously hard. You know, just riding bikes nonstop for over thousand kilometers is not hard enough… There’s plenty of steep climbs and the odd gravel road thrown in there. Because as we all know, nothing that’s worth anything is ever easy. For safety reasons, riding on the “red” national roads is prohibited, which makes finding the fastest route even more challenging. Speaking of the route…

## The Route

![It's hilly](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2qMgL5zE3e87VtIIbrKVkH/b426148ce0b75c2720e16be81d34e2cf/Screenshot_2022-05-19_143642.png)

Southern Poland is definitely not a flat place. Last year Piko was just a little bit sad that he couldn’t show us the Slowakian side of the border, where some of his favourite mountains are located. Border crossings are easier again and the riders are in for a mountainous treat. What doesn’t exactly look like a treat right now is the weather forecast. There might be rain, and lots of it. Cue flashbacks to 2019 and the infamous cold and rainy edition, which only saw 8 hardy riders reach the finish line. Fingers crossed it won’t be that bad. 

![2019](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4TzyZaoag7LtxlT2wTpo5n/6054f48439242c92b3c6c37f5d79b00b/Screenshot_2022-05-19_143738.png)

For the first time in the history of the race, the start is in Krakow. Riders are escorted out of the city by police, ride the first mandatory parcours and then follow their own planned routes towards Checkpoint 1 at the small Slovak settlement of Nová Sedlica, just next to the Ukrainian border. To reach the start of the CP2 parcours, riders first have to climb back over the Carpathians into southern Poland. It’s back into Slovakia for the long and winding CP3 parcours, which includes a visit to the summit of Kráľova hoľa at 1,946 meters above the sea. As the race website puts it, “Climbing this summit in May will be an unforgettable experience for our riders.” I think the whole race will be an unforgettable experience from start to finish. From CP3, it’s a long way to the fourth and final checkpoint. CP4 is located on the Czech-Polish border. You can almost smell the finish from here, but not quite. There is no direct road, so the routing choices here will once again be very interesting.

Will some riders scramble down the mountain on hiking paths to save some distance or will they safely ride around? Will it even matter at this point? Finishers will be rewarded with the calm oasis that is Przystanek Raj. A perfect place to unwind, swap stories with likeminded souls and recover from the race.

![Przystanek Raj](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3CJXd2gOzE5f5THttuwdbL/1c33829607249b6b46c44072b54a005f/Screenshot_2022-05-19_143932.png)

## The Riders

![Some of the favourites](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6ivj1faIQsUFQolnYWcbef/abfae4993a4d59b8ed13566069eb32d4/Screenshot_2022-05-19_144021.png)

So, who’s going to be at the start line? Poland is long known to have a large number of very strong riders and it’s no surprise that RTPL attracts some of the countries’ strongest. However, with the world opening up again, this year’s start list features a lot of other colourful flags too, which is just great to see. 

![Adam Bialek](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5oOFVkgOLaLSnDtpbpGLFH/a3a12aea1d50705f5f2fc7573a65698a/Screenshot_2022-05-19_144114.png)

The one to beat is last year’s winner Adam Bialek. It’s far from a done deal though, as there is some serious competition on this race. In fact, six of last year’s Top Ten riders are back. This includes two-time second placed Krystian Jakubek, Mariusz Cukierski, young ex-pro Wojciech Bystrzycki and the very experienced Björn Lenhard. These RTPL veterans are joined by more exciting riders such as reigning TCR winner Fiona Kolbinger, Two Volcano Sprint victor Andrew Phillips, the notoriously fast Irishman Brendan Cassidy and Pan Celtic Race runner-up Stephen Haines. And that’s just naming a few of the favourites. Never underestimate the dark horses.

![Wojciech Bystrzycki](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7AmuRurGOzej2NPo1IeuDP/fc98b609d19e00aaa9318599ad7eb523/Screenshot_2022-05-19_144209.png)

Fan favourite [Anna Malecka](https://www.instagram.com/wspodnicynaszosie/) is back with a vengeance after putting up a fierce fight last year and winning over lots of dotwatchers with her efforts. So is the seemingly always smiling pair Ewa Modrakowska and Magdalena Sobczak. Dotwatchers of RTPL3 will surely remember these names. With no fewer than 14 pairs on the start line – 3 of which all-female! – the pairs competition promises to become a good watch. Social media is already filling up with kit grids and stories of pre-race nerves. 

![Kit grid](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/250DDv0vb5ibg83zgGyv0A/a337b459de077254b08d81625c3d081b/Screenshot_2022-05-19_145208.png)

Source: [@alex.on.bike](https://www.instagram.com/alex.on.bike/)

![All the bells and whistles](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4jfGTbqAsEdSHOB3j7EL7Y/77ed07b33c9d3a41e432e6593d9e9c6f/Screenshot_2022-05-19_145521.png)

Source: [@klarmess](https://www.instagram.com/klarmess/)

Also make sure to check out [The Bikes of Race through Poland](https://dotwatcher.cc/feature/bikes-of-rtp4) to see some of the set-ups. 

I cannot wait to watch this one unfold. As always in these kinds of races, the mid-pack stories of grit and tenacity will be at least as thrilling as the battle in the front. Who will come out on top and who will make it to the finish at all? Nothing is certain, except for the fact that this won’t be an easy ride. Whatever happens, the fantastic race photographers Adrian Crapciu and Tadek Ciechanowski will be on site once again to capture it all. The main square of Krakow will see the race start in the early hours of Saturday May 21. The dots we’ll keep a close eye on will be brought to life by everybody’s favourite tracking site Follow My Challenge.

Photos by [Adrian Crapciu](https://www.instagram.com/adriancrapciu/) and [Tadek Ciechanowski](https://www.instagram.com/tadekciechanowski/)

Text by [Jesko von Werthern](https://www.instagram.com/jesko_werthern/)

Over the last day or two, suspiciously laden bikes have been spotted on many Polish train stations. They’re streaming into Krakow from all over Europe. Something must be up there!

![Bikes inbound](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/618rhQmaih0m2woPKwyp5o/789bf1f827c28a577164cd94a063a19c/day0_1.png)
Source: [@toszbar](https://www.instagram.com/toszbar/)

![On the way to Krakow](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/63PLtf0NFanzt6hGVGmJeZ/681d473a2e288210e9d9d32c9898a8aa/day0_2.png)
Source: [@whenyouarehappy_](https://www.instagram.com/whenyouarehappy_/)

Right, it’s RTPL registration day at the Arteteka Regional Public Library. The volunteers are doing a great job to make everybody feel welcome. Excitement is in the air, the general mood is happy and there are lots of friendly faces.

![Registration](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/TTWxBlOyG05wXMtQq1QXB/03da19cc3c7a2710afb64990364266aa/_DSC6509.JPG)

A whopping 102 people have picked up their coveted red cap, brevet card, musette and the tracker that will turn them into a dot. It’s safe to say there’s a lot of red hats roaming Krakow tonight.

![Happy faces](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7otgas6bloggKrZJNsCxVu/d69a2a0811b8077d9221224b8683e1e3/_DSC6661.JPG)

Among the red caps are finishers of previous editions, but also many riders that had to scratch for various reasons and are now back to finish what they started. Kudos to all of them! They don’t say for nothing that the hardest thing is even just making it to the start line.

![Thumbs up from Adam Bialek](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6Fc6IO2RWyRW8uK83zUIQT/8555f8c561c4a1e38aae0f60c85f3979/DSC01029.JPG)

Fun fact: The mountainous Race Through Poland has been attempted on fixed gear bikes twice before, unsuccessfully. It won’t be done for at least another year either, as nobody was brave (or overconfident) enough to try this time around.

One virtue that is definitely needed on these kinds of races is a talent for improvisation. As a friend of mine always said, “Some proper random things are going to happen.” You can be sure of that. And more often than not, these proper random things already happen before the ride has even started. 

In an attempt to get all of the bad luck out of the way early, cap 28 Marcel Falkiewicz’s thru-axle and rear wheel bearings decided to break down while he was on his way to registration. What then? Well, a detour to the Decathlon shop. He eventually made it to registration in time, with a brand new wheel strapped to his back. Here’s hoping this one is a wheel of fortune.

![Marcel Falkiewicz](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1Jcl3N1eqiO2UP2FVMa9h8/20dbbc663c311445bc9e1a9b839a2b9c/DSC01014.JPG)

Paweł Bielecki did have all his bearings together, but his pairs partner didn’t show up. So instead of in the pairs category, he is now going to start solo. Not that big of a deal, really, except it’s a much lonelier affair. The plot twist is, he only found out at today’s registration that the checkpoints have to be visited in the correct order. So with mere hours to the start, he’s now off to rebuild his whole route. Good luck with that!

![Lucky charm](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4y0XZdBXeYCJE9hxlVqkaK/0cc811503ab3f46468c44aa31aba7bd2/DSC00967.JPG)

Hopefully most riders will get enough hours of sleep tonight. It seems like some definitely won’t. In any case it’s going to be an early alarm. The race starts at 5 AM local time. That’s just after sunrise. Now all that’s left to do is eat loads of pierogi, get some rest and of course, hydrate.

![Cheers!](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4KjPZwM79MOH1o2DVxpkhg/865918cbb40beb623a4f3aa89ec09185/day0_3.png)
[Source: @stephenhaines10](https://www.instagram.com/stephenhaines10/)

Good night Krakow!

Photos: [Małgorzata Michalik (Bite of Me)](https://www.biteofme.com/) and [Tadek Ciechanowski](https://ciechanowskiphoto.com/)

Text: [Jesko von Werthern](https://www.instagram.com/jesko_werthern/)

The dots are alive! Most of them anyway. Race director Piko Pulawski waved them off in the first daylight with a police-escorted, neutralised start out of the city.

![Race briefing](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5v5mT9XbxEeu4mR9Hu171c/b16f046c876389b2c36911e872d6f9b0/DSC07337.JPG)

The huge peloton cruising historic Krakow in one long procession was a sight for sore eyes. I’m sure there were quite literally a few sore eyes in that bunch. It was a short night.

![Rolling out](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7QLSfgnE0fcnjPO1kK0v8/6d647843647ecbbd86496cba7a0c12ea/ADR06765-01.jpeg)

They must have been raring to go, because the pace is high. Saturday morning group ride kind of high. Remember, these riders have over 1,400 kilometers to go and they are not allowed to draft each other. However, in the first three hours of the race, the pointy end has already covered more than ninety kilometers. While all I got done was make coffee, turn on the computer and stare at some dots. Even the media cars are struggling to keep up.

![Picking up speed](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1ja84FXRDs5oazb8mrPpRW/3deaac9c3931c64fd492db29a9b09d8b/ADR07228-01.jpeg)

It helps that the wind has changed and, opposite to the forecasted direction, blows from the west, read tailwind. For now, anyway. It will turn into more of a crosswind the more riders point their front wheels south later on. While the start was still dry, heavy rain started to fall in large parts of Poland in the meantime. It was never going to be easy, was it.

### The starting parcours
Riders have been making quick work of the start parcours. Reminiscent of a well-known fairytale, Piko lead them into the middle of the vast and dark Niepołomice forest from where everybody had to find their own way alone. And so they did, each following the breadcrumbs that they had prepared for themselves in advance. Most riders immediately took a turn to the south. Most, but not all. 

![Race director Piko Pulawski](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2deMrkn5vCaergxCNvp5M6/4d1b974ad01d4d5cf4a4d3c9ecb861a2/DSC01166.JPG)

### Early route choices
It’s a long ride to checkpoint 1. And there’s many different ways to get there. At the time of writing this, it looks like there are at least four general main routes developing. Fiona Kolbinger is leading on the southernmost route, while there’s a bigger bunch including Adam Bialek, Paul Niehoff and Brendan Cassidy just a bit to her north.

Bartosz Kaczmarek is right up there with the fastest and smashing along. Which is awesome, but I do wonder if he got carried away with the excitement a little bit. He did start in the pairs category and left his riding partner behind. Maybe he just went ahead to order the first ice cream?! Or hot soup rather, looking at how the weather is developing in the last few hours.

*EDIT: This mystery is solved! It turns out Bartosz and Björn Lenhard mixed up their trackers at the start. So it was Björn in the lead group all along, while Bartosz and his pair partner were merrily riding together. I told you some proper random things were going to happen.*

![Natalia Rudzka](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/zL62CTwlXyFdQIrTgdDfl/2ddc64f4c8d39678cede1dea16f3390f/ADR07132-01.jpeg)

Another big group of dots is heading straight to the east towards Tarnów. Michał Czubkowski is fastest on that trajectory as of now. And then there’s a much smaller group that chose a somewhat counterintuitive route, turning north after the start parcours. Martin Haubold is the fastest here. He seems to have traded a longer distance for some flatter roads, avoiding the hills for now. I’m sure he knows what he’s doing as he’s making quick progress. Even though it’s early days and impossible to call still, this is already turning out to be a fascinating watch.

![Supporter](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4d9eD5XeK0ecqKcqt5cl6F/a398317e374356fd3fa24a448f06a0dd/ADR06929-01.jpeg)

Honestly, these riders are making me feel a little bit lazy. I better get on my bike. But first, another coffee.

Photos: [Adrian Crapciu](http://adriancrapciu.com/) and [Tadek Ciechanowski](https://ciechanowskiphoto.com/)

Text: [Jesko von Werthern](https://www.instagram.com/jesko_werthern/)


The sun has set on the first day of the Race through Poland. And what a day it has been. The whole field is relentlessly moving forward, despite all kinds of unexpected obstacles.

![A different kind of roadblock](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2L7dIWsnHDyISdHT5FFZTS/14de5bb3868db5c9ace407f6608069cd/road_block.png)
Source: [@madziastic](https://www.instagram.com/_madziastic_/)

The many different routing choices of the early hours seem to have converged into something of a steady stream. Martin Haubold had a rather lonely day on his unconventional northern route, but this choice of path clearly wasn’t a bad one, as he is now comfortably sitting in a top ten position. Comfortably sitting is quite important. 

![Wet roads](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7E5FOGG93Wd8L9dvZ6vqC6/f5b4926372c6ad02eca0d354852af6e2/DSC01275.JPG)

We expected rain and rain is what we got. Just an hour after the start, the heavens opened up. Luckily it didn’t last very long, but it was heavy enough to soak some unlucky riders that happened to be at the wrong place at the right time.

![Grim weather conditions](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4OFaBbSX9ueOVD22jpcQpB/54292790ea8476967beb2474344fab4b/DSC01289.JPG)

Before I get into more details, I have to address the mix-up of the day. Remember these cheesy movies where two strangers switch bodies magically? That’s kind of what happened here. This morning I wrongly accused cap 124 [Bartosz Kaczmarek](https://www.instagram.com/toszbar/) of leaving his pair partner behind, when in reality he was just riding with a fake identity. Bartosz and Björn Lenhard had picked up each other’s tracker at registration, which obviously led to plenty of confusion. Luckily the wizard at Follow My Challenge was able to rectify the situation and gave both riders their true identities back. And so they are happily riding ever after.

Not all stories have a happy ending though.

### Mishaps and mechanicals
Just before noon, reports of a first scratch came in. Cap 51 [Pavel Klinov](https://www.instagram.com/pavel.klinov/) clipped a curb between the bike path and the road, resulting in an unfortunate crash. Luckily, he reports “only missing some skin”, but his bike was badly damaged and rendered unrideable. Pavel is understandably frustrated, though I’m sure he will be back to ride another day. Heal up well!

Not long after that, cap 17 [Michał Czubkowski](https://www.instagram.com/czupki/)’s derailleur broke. He didn’t want to continue on a single gear and decided to scratch as well. In the course of the afternoon, cap 92 Frank Scholler was stopped by a mechanical problem, too.

On Instagram, pair 124 rider [Natalia Rudzka](https://www.instagram.com/farbenka95/) has been seen pedalling with only one leg.

![One leg](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7ooLiFpj6PEhBq7ZCFKvIo/aff9b9e9d22f241c83d9cc5e7dd00f06/onelegged.png)
Source: [@toszbar](https://www.instagram.com/toszbar/)

The caption of the post roughly translates to “Sometimes something stops working, but you have to keep on going.” I have no further information about that situation, but it's is definitely the right spirit. As of now, she is definitely still going strong and on course for CP1 together with her partner.

During a rainy patch, cap 38 [Felix Heine](https://www.instagram.com/felixheine/) crashed on the wet road and cracked his handlebar. That didn’t stop him though. He somehow managed to ride to Gorlice and bought a new handlebar. In the meantime, he has already passed CP1 and is nearing the end of the parcours. 

![Felix's broken handlebar](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6h9jiGQuc1vKHDlVsv9F12/90362adc24ef9e1d473b68042267833d/Felix_Heine_handlebar.jpg)
Source: Pawel Pulawski

Bartek Wieczorek is enjoying his route choices. Who says you have to stick to tarmac?

![Creative route choices](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4hdYUtH93HNuWrzQx0XF8B/4a3c68a6208a561525eb4f0e7db29d94/bartekwieczorek.png)
Source: [@bartekwieczorek](https://www.instagram.com/bartekwieczorek/)

### Checkpoint stories
Speaking of rough stuff: Nobody on this race will be able to avoid it, even with the best route planning. That is because Piko has made sure that all the riders experience some Slovakian gravel on the mandatory CP1 parcours. The very first kilometers on Slovakian ground are unpaved, and that’s a downhill stretch, meaning riders have to be especially careful. Fiona Kolbinger and Brendan Cassidy both suffered punctures here. Only Krystian Jakubek was reportedly enjoying this section, probably because he was able to gain at least two positions.

![Krystian at the start](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/325y0VKSxarPp4GdEs05AS/ee54b3555365fdd5f63d7667eb54c1d7/ADR06775-01.jpeg)

To make things worse, there’s another gravel section waiting for the riders on this parcours, just before Ruska Volova. Piko calls that one “quite tough”, which can only be an understatement. 

![Adam Bialek](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/qDZ6AcfhujEiPWZ35sfm4/e103a0d325b9cf480e2a69fc530304c5/DSC01493.JPG)

Escaping the gravel unscathed, Adam Bialek reached the checkpoint first, after 10 hours and 28 minutes of riding. Hot on his heels were Björn Lenhard and Paul Niehoff. Both arrived within 10 minutes of the leader. But Adam was already out the door again. Björn enjoyed a quick Kofola and left swiftly, to make the most of the remaining daylight. Paul Niehoff stayed just a little bit longer. It was his first stop since leaving Krakow.

![Björn Lenhard](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1LHhzf89GgSV9OaRtJGvS0/7da2545e2568fb6786e38aadc1984f5e/ADR07505-01.jpeg)

The leading pair at the checkpoint was the German team of Hannes Gruebner and Robert Huke, cap 119. They managed to stay in a positive mood and are going to take it easy on the gravel sections. Which if you ask me, is a very good idea.

Philipp Hanneck suffered no less than 5 punctures, all on that first gravel section down from Ruske Sedlo into Slovakia. 

![Philipp Hanneck](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5NHPZJghFM7OGbJdhNrVLQ/0ee0c94d7e8eac6490c26f7fc69ae0cb/Philipp_Hanneck.jpg)
Source: Pawel Pulawski

This is Philipp at CP1 applying his very last patch. This one just has to hold, as there are really no possibilities to find any spares in these remote mountains. I’d say he deserves some good luck now. Thumbs up for still smiling! Update: Philipp made it through the second gravel section and successfully completed the CP1 parcours!

The king of punctures though (surely that’s a title no one actually wants) is Arno Burgi with the count of 8. He had to stop about every two kilometers and said he never was that frustrated. I did meet the man on last year’s race and find it quite difficult to imagine him being frustrated at all, so that’s really saying something.

![Into the night](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/445OBEwjM2bO26SuCua2T7/d0a09b5c1c3472caae6ec071b1409627/ADR07889-01.jpeg)

As we get ready to sleep in our warm beds, many of the riders are not even thinking of stopping anytime soon. The night will surely hold some surprises. Adam Bialek and Björn Lenhard seem to be opening a bit of a gap to their chasers right now, but a lot can, and will, still happen. Paul Niehoff and Krystian Jakubek are not far behind them, so is the chasing bunch of about 10 more riders including the current top three female riders Fiona Kolbinger, Joanna Rumińska-Pietrzyk and Claudia Decker. More on that tomorrow. Have a good night everybody!

![Sleep everywhere](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7cOmKNAejfv3YGs6EYowO/b307186d43f178b2c694bb8d8d4ee8b0/DSC01723.JPG)

Photos: [Adrian Crapciu](https://www.instagram.com/adriancrapciu/) and [Tadek Ciechanowski](https://www.instagram.com/tadekciechanowski/)

Text: [Jesko von Werthern](https://www.instagram.com/jesko_werthern/)

Not much more than 24 hours have passed since the start in Krakow, but the stories from the road could already fill a book. No worries, I’ll try to keep this update relatively short. While most of us were sleeping, the dots moved further across Slovakia and Poland.

Fiona Kolbinger seems to have taken about four hours of rest at what might be a chapel or possibly a cemetery. We hope she got some sleep and wasn’t just patching tyres, like so many other people. As the sun rises over the Tatras mountains, she is now closely followed by Joanna Rumińska-Pietrzyk. Joanna rode all night and isn’t showing signs of stopping anytime soon.

![Fiona Kolbinger](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7L28sv1S692Ug3eKEM8YVY/7deaf1d3dee2afd9e902c24af2cff6f1/DSC07577.JPG)

![Joanna Rumińska-Pietrzyk](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2bdzMIx3RSoOAQPJp2KZnd/a148b23111cceebb3607bac2436ad63a/ADR07658-01.jpeg)

Cap 14 Alexander Bosch had some tracker issues yesterday, but is still going strong. He slept in a ditch just 10 kilometers before CP1 despite having booked a room there earlier. Somewhat traumatized from the gravel section, he wasn’t sure if there would be more treacherous roads ahead and decided to play it safe. Though some might argue with this definition of safe, considering the Národný park Poloniny is home to brown bears, lynxes and wolves.

![Watch out for lurking photographers, too](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/0mhQ9GrXayUxqY3OI9E2K/6b724fa0608b5c594bae42d51c30b835/ADR07837-01.jpeg)

Due to his eight punctures yesterday, Arno Burgi is out of spare tubes. His dynamo isn’t working either and the navigation device suffered due to the heavy rain. After checking in at CP1 he decided to sleep there until sunrise and is now hoping for a better day. Almost any day would be better than his first. Good luck Arno! 

![Dangerous wild life](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2crkzSJMFjA9QG5DlSz1UJ/1102ed6038aadfab95ec54fef235c3da/goats.png)
Source: [Ewa Modrakowska](https://www.instagram.com/odeszliodstolu/)

Punctures remain the theme of this ride. I woke up to the news of cap 49 Waldemar Kędyś scratching. He left his spare inner tubes in Krakow. The patches don’t work and after a full night of riding without sleep, he just can not work his way out of this. In the Slovakian mountains near CP1, you won’t find shops or services, not even mobile signal – nothing to help a desperate rider with mechanical problems.

![Planning the next steps](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7xxkoWcRUzM4bPQlaBHn2l/33cc4c755ec3a2cf445303843f121617/ADR07956-01.jpeg)

![Yep, definitely a theme](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1K0tm0dAFVjsFVREXwArbn/96ebb6180e19dffc39dca28055b2d14d/puncture_Anna_Malecka.png)
Source: [Anna Malecka](https://www.instagram.com/wspodnicynaszosie/)

The night at CP1 was relatively quiet. Between midnight and 4 in the morning, the volunteers even got some well deserved rest. It was cap 40 Wojciech Florek who started what promises to be a steady stream of riders arriving throughout the day. Many riders have the checkpoint firmly in their sights now. It closes at 4 pm this afternoon.

![Sleep everywhere](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3p5f9jb6gGpBXGw7iIFzh3/e0088823af9989d961f8624af2454adf/ADR07942-01.jpeg)

### Plot twist
Meanwhile, Adam Bialek reached Checkpoint 2 in the Beskid Sadecki. Once again, he was back on the road in no time. No wait, that’s not even a road! He decided to take the direct way from CP2 south towards the Slovakian border. This is basically a hiking trail. His progress immediately slowed to walking speed. In an interesting turn of events, his chaser Björn Lenhard decided to take the safer, but longer way, turning back at the top of mountain and riding around it. This looks to be a deciding moment at the front.

![Watching these dots](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/52i3HmODG0SDHU2Hm9jK5Z/370af2934ad5a8d6b65c45f6e5a099c2/DSC01787.JPG)

With Paul Niehoff, Krystian Jakubek, Martin Haubold and Mariusz Cukierski, the first chasing group is now firmly establishing.

After scrambling down the hiking trail, Adam seems to have found a good rideable surface and picked up speed. If this daring gamble pays off (and it looks like it will), he could open a huge gap right here. His next target is the longest parcours of the race leading up to CP3, including some very cruel climbs and – you might have guessed it – a “quite difficult” gravel section. Oh boy. Stay tuned.

![The chase is on](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/oMTPnwI5HLg01LRg6mbow/03cf5e7d8df41a2467223117277b2ad6/ADR06932-01.jpeg)

Photos: [Adrian Crapciu](https://www.instagram.com/adriancrapciu/) and [Tadek Ciechanowski](https://www.instagram.com/tadekciechanowski/)

Text: [Jesko von Werthern](https://www.instagram.com/jesko_werthern/)


It’s been such an eventful day, I'm not even sure where to begin!

### Stories of the day
So, let's start at the back. I’m very happy to report that all remaining riders made it to CP1 before the afternoon cut-off. A special shout goes to pair 120, [Magda Hasiak](https://www.instagram.com/whenyouarehappy_/) and [Marcel Gawron](https://www.instagram.com/poltugalczyk/), who timed their arrival just about perfectly. 

![Happy faces at CP1](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4ZLgUrLbW0K2PsE820vHIh/d0ae43b595e5d81f0195bfa398f19052/DSC02028.JPG)
Make sure to follow these two on Instagram, they seem to be having a lot of fun out there.

Cap 20 Joseph Dorsett was peacefully sleeping in the woods when he was woken up by a wild boar. Meanwhile, cap 87 [Andrew Philipps](https://www.instagram.com/thenight_train/) faced a lot of adversity in the form of saddle sores and a broken chain, but never lost his humour and isn't that what really counts?

![There is hope.](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2DWdgiRidj98Olau3zL5GY/8c824e62164496d5d80f367bffbb4518/nivea.png)
Source: [Andrew Philipps](https://www.instagram.com/thenight_train/)

Philipp Hanneck and Arno Burgi are still competing in the puncture department. While Arno was leading 8:5 last night, Philipp managed to pick up ten (!) more snakebites along the way today. He is currently pacing in circles around Nowy Sącz, looking for some fresh tubes.

![Give the man some tubes already](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4K0NBKMJVAVZrvKeGsueub/6416793dc0cf1717bec746c5e4830559/Philipp.png)
Source: followmychallenge.com

I didn’t hear anything from Arno today, but judging by his progress, he’s just fine and happy for Philipp to take the lead in that particular competition.

### Pave your own path
A great source of entertainment are the creative route choices by some riders. I do realize it's easy for me to be amused from the comfort of my desk, but see for yourself.

![The caption does it for me.](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3Ny0YFHtbkbLjHOi9E2scJ/ca5237e8bf33221b1524f54ca7b3b290/sudokistrouting.png)
Source: [@sudokist](https://www.instagram.com/sudokist/)

!["I chose a terrible shortcut"](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2KZ8JnWdL7zHE9zOjPs01M/960d17904662e60b102dbf5df79ccb3c/klarmess_routing.png)
Source: [Marcel Łukasiewicz](https://www.instagram.com/klarmess/)

![Race through grass](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4clnWJrDD7fDpnr2lQGjDR/250415b85735697d850bed0a93460601/bikechitectrouting.png)
Source: [Tomek Zatorski](https://www.instagram.com/bikechitect/)

It happens to even the most experienced racers. That’s just the thing with shortcuts – sometimes they work and sometimes they go wrong.

![Gravel shortcut gone wrong](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7xicPVpAcry7sWpzaGTTAE/dfb561cad4b2babe08b86108ec4ceae3/ultratiggergravel.png)
Source: [Krystian Jakubek](https://www.instagram.com/ultratigger/)

### Party in the front
Meanwhile at the pointy end of the race, the pace is still blistering high. After his daring stunt taking a hiking trail down from CP2, Adam has increased his lead on a furiously chasing Björn Lenhard.

![Adam Bialek](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4ApR8pLCMgLHFaFkb8e39R/829fc817327510308a32a1f47854284d/matbir05-3483.jpg)

![Björn Lenhard](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4B56efB8UGy7b6hYe8YIQg/8a3bb6c4e6776ce295b7fecfefaa0045/ADR08256-01.jpeg)

A number of other riders followed in Adam’s footsteps and took the risky shortcut. Even though it includes some walking and even carrying the bike, for most it is still faster than riding around. “Until something bad happens” (quote Piko Pulawski). Poor Mariusz Cukierski found out the hard way. He somehow managed to break his shoe on that trail. 

![Collateral damage](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/dYRu3MsGGjmbUsiGInQ22/c6c32817b8283b8db088aebeca56b874/Mariusz_Cukierski_shoe.jpg)
Source: Mariusz Cukierski

After trying to fix it with duct tape and riding a lengthy detour to look for replacements, Mariusz eventually had to admit defeat when he realized his pedals were also broken. 

Most of the afternoon, the leaders were busy with tackling the spectacular and difficult CP3 parcours towards Čertovica, the highest paved pass of Slovakia. The 12 kilometer climb to the actual checkpoint is not the hardest part of this section – that would be the mandatory detour to the summit of Kráľova hoľa at 1,946 meters above sea level. The scenery in these mighty mountains is simply too hard for me to describe with words, so just look at these fantastic shots by race photographer Adrian Crapciu. 

![Stunning](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4ojtcYPysVeHbPB0X7cJPr/b34ec08cdf6d94babf051b3228debe2f/ADR08582-01.jpeg)

![...](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6U1RWH2jO37wlAhlakjyWT/bfb24fb2abf8928cf43017cc314055dd/ADR08235-01.jpeg)

![I can't even](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3PfRsNDzADboMYFPaRFAIi/ee4e21ea6404bbcf1c67d36ea1b102dc/ADR08414-01.jpeg)

It was here that Björn Lenhard announced his plan of robbing a certain fast food restaurant in Liptovský Mikuláš. They won’t know what hit them!

![Hungry work](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3MsZtOkwJdZbjE1zz20K2A/45fc01a19e86f048321df5d71b70d4bb/_DSC7553.JPG)

It’s hard to believe that some riders are already heading towards the Czech Republic and CP4. As the sun sets for a second time since the start, it’s possible that we already have a winner tomorrow. In any case, this race is far from over. Except for the unlucky ones.

### Scratch report
Several riders had to call it quits today.

- As mentioned above: Mariusz Cukierski, broken shoe and pedal.
- Cap 56 Grzegorz Kowal suffered from the cold temperatures in Poloniny National Park. He was not prepared to take that risk another time in the Tatras mountains.
- Cap 94, Łukasz Sieczkowski experienced problems with the achilles heel, understandable given the amount of steep climbing on this course.
- Cap 76, Bartek Wieczorek suffered the same fate as Łukasz.
- Cap 75, Peter Weiss. I couldn’t find out the reason, but most importantly, he is okay and on his way home.

Chapeau for all your efforts!

### Fuel
Finally, let’s talk about the topic that is constantly on every riders' mind. Food!

![Double helping for Fiona](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4nWw5p1CD00GPEQkI1XvDa/4a60b77daa03f5c330eb26c3922f8ce8/_DSC7772.JPG)

With the insane amounts of calories burned, food is just so very important. Without energy, the riders wouldn’t be able to turn the pedals. Some people go as far as saying that ultra races are really just eating competitions with a bit of pedalling in between. 

![The (in)famous 7 days "croissant"](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/67OntQlMksWQcBkQ1cCISz/183ccdf3ca4c8f11a8b2a3b6f844db7b/coffeeriderfood4.png)
Source: [@coffeerider.cc](https://www.instagram.com/coffeerider.cc/)

You really cannot be a picky eater and just have to make do with whatever you can get your hands on. Often the options are limited.

![Snacks!](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/LDcg3SxC5Akap7laC2Crj/7bd163d066329efd9a9e14e81c5c6afd/DSC01824.JPG)

Two-time RTPL finisher Tomas Dvorak knows this very well.

![Carb up](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2klGGwJsE4BdZZACHX8Qi/0442bb33554de88093de4cd08fe8bce8/todvorafood.png)
Source: [Tomas Dvorak](https://www.instagram.com/todvora/)

![Eat everything](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6lAk6qNlCA65TRBaRHPlp4/268162af45bea1bd134944f207c8c443/sudokistfood.png)
Source: [@sudokist](https://www.instagram.com/sudokist/)

![Sit-down meal](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3IrNUWclNAllAqKUPlmoez/3a92ff4369f9d2ce4306c3174d06bc4e/foodfoodfood.png)
Source: [@ketorider](https://www.instagram.com/ketorider/)

![Obligatory gas station hot dog](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/rmIVlNpO0yF00HjFVmf9m/9df074c537c61338cd18afc2f08592c2/gas_station_hot_dog.png)
Source: [@ketorider](https://www.instagram.com/ketorider/?hl=de)

And after all that food, don't forget to take a little nap.

![Zzz](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3uXaOAr60wqvUZBd8G3dPP/7380f9d01eaab05d288f3eff64d86b8a/coffeeridernap.png)
Source: [@coffeerider.cc](https://www.instagram.com/coffeerider.cc/)

Photos: [Małgorzata Michalik](https://www.biteofme.com/), [Mateusz Birecki](https://birecki.photos), [Tadek Ciechanowski](https://www.instagram.com/tadekciechanowski/) and [Adrian Crapciu](https://www.instagram.com/adriancrapciu/)

Text: [Jesko von Werthern](https://www.instagram.com/jesko_werthern/)


Good morning! We are now about 54 hours into the Race Through Poland.

![Rise and shine](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/H7r0BOtXbqswxlGIk7Ycf/f7f3b89343023cffbb1daf5e30a8b137/_DSC8048.JPG)

The difficulties of the race and not least the brutal CP3 parcours clearly take a big toll on the riders. Krystian Jakubek, Paul Niehoff and Martin Haubold all secured a room to get some much needed sleep at CP3. It looks like this was a wise decision, as all three are now charging towards the Czech border in pursuit of the two leaders.

![Krystian Jakubek](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1Qe8x454nr1C0wKK7LtBa2/1c2fa451caa0ddce394513af2cf76ce2/matbir05-3817.jpg)

All that Björn Lenhard wanted to do after completing the gruelling CP3 parcours was visit a fast food restaurant.

![Björn Lenhard at CP3](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7tN0pLTsD5mW8dpgB7OGNw/adbdbb4a7bb366649c5ef33cbff40a5b/matbir05-3604.jpg)

However, he was slowed down by some more unexpected climbs before the town of Liptovský Mikuláš and the end of the parcours. The restaurant in question was just closing its doors as he arrived and wouldn’t serve him anymore. If they only knew just how much food Björn was going to order, I’m sure they would have made an exception. Your loss, McDonald’s! Instead of the greasy fast food he had craved so much, Björn had to do with another gas station dinner, followed by a couple hours of rough rest on a football pitch in Liptovský Trnovec. After such a hard night, he now has to watch his back, as the chasing trio are closing in quickly.

![Rocky road](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3LHqnnw7uaWSg7FBGZA4eT/76f0a7b67164715af5ba6aa60fdc07c1/_DSC8124.JPG)

When Adam Bialek looks over his shoulder, he sees nothing but empty road. The gap he created is pretty substantial now as he approaches CP4. It looks like he got the race firmly in his grasp, but it’s still a long way with no less than two parcours. We know that Piko likes to throw in a few surprises, so I’m sure it won’t be easy rolling. Adam must be pretty tired by now, so here’s hoping he can keep it together. 

![Adam Bialek at CP3](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6U2oYdZprG7RS5amhN9jko/830c08187e595fa6e59f012ad50da67b/matbir05-3509.jpg)

The race website describes the CP4 parcours as follows:
“*The fourth control point is located in the hearth of Orlické hory, a mountain range laying on the border between Poland and the Chech Republic.
Riders will be traversing the whole range being on the height of over 1000 m.a.s.l. for quite a while. These roads are quiet, without any traffic. Nearly forgotten tarmac roads, with old and mysterious fortifications all over the place, makes this place pretty unique. It is here, on the top of these mountains, where you can actually hear the universe.*”

Wow! I wonder if Adam can hear the universe already.

![Mountain roads](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2F0ZRkW9jvyhquZaJHNL2o/9bb3a3f77a62544dea2a6269ef2d7920/ADR08085-01.jpeg)

On a lighter note, Arno Burgi only had two flat tires yesterday. He even managed to descend the now world famous Bialek route (aka the shoe-destroying gravel shortcut) from CP2 without picking up a single flat this morning!

Meanwhile, cap 44 Michał Wolff has climbed parts of the gruelling Kráľova hoľa twice. There were speculations whether he enjoyed the 10.6 average gradient a little bit too much, so he wanted to ride more of it. But no, the explanation is simply that he had lost his phone and went back to recover it. On what is possibly the hardest climb of the whole race, of all places.

Keep an eye on these dots!

![Enjoying the view](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1RzzYY9RMTtgjkEsiPRSlX/745e33f5edc2edd1d827d0d97b591023/_DSC8140.JPG)

Photos: [Mateusz Birecki](https://birecki.photos), [Małgorzata Michalik](https://www.biteofme.com/) and [Adrian Crapciu](http://adriancrapciu.com/)

Text: [Jesko von Werthern](https://www.instagram.com/jesko_werthern/)

The unstoppable Adam Bialek almost beat the media car to CP4. I’m not even joking, it was actually close. Remarkably, he is still in good spirits and has energy left to joke around with the volunteers. Apparently he mentioned plans of a power nap, but nobody seems to believe him. Napping or not, Adam is confident that he can finish the race in under 3 days. That would mean a finish before 5 am tomorrow morning, so you better set an early alarm. 

![Adam Bialek at CP4](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/lUbhSyZ0bVY9dX4aL9EGY/31dd575178744bb455cc6a226e898c88/DSC07979.JPG)

In a somewhat spectacular maneuver, Krystian Jakubek took a northern route via Racibòrz towards the CP4 parcours. It might be slightly longer than other people’s routes, but it’s definitely less hilly. He has made up serious ground on Björn Lenhard as well as opening up a gap to Martin Haubold and Paul Niehoff in doing so. Judging by his morning shopping, I don’t think Krystian is planning on another stop before the finish line. Will he be able to catch Björn?

![Rocket Fuel](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4sbTpZ9OLW7hJehliwfoq/5e7d03d16679a4a010a453edf23693bf/ultratiggerfood.png)
Source: [Krystian Jakubek](https://www.instagram.com/ultratigger/)

Just behind these top 5, Fiona Kolbinger and Brendan Cassidy have been constantly leapfrogging each other for most of the morning. They were even seen riding side by side for a little bit. It wasn’t until the late afternoon that Fiona was able to put some distance into Brendan. She is now sitting in sixth position chasing Paul Niehoff. 

![Fiona Kolbinger](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3xkKaMWcGiWLRncte1RniO/c3551daa1117d55ed4cfa948980b0ab9/matbir05-4067.jpg)

![Brendan Cassidy](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1jMMFwEeES8pVEVAnZ6jTS/531459128ce0a14169f9d77d6127e54b/matbir05-3931.jpg)

![Side by side](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1dhneFhs2GeNZoFhKuyajy/3ccb893e796e59d136f14af3d212dfbe/matbir05-4003.jpg)

Karol Kamyczek is putting in an amazing ride, constantly making up positions as he goes along. He is breaking into the top ten tonight.

![Karol Kamyczek](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/9r0a3t1Twuk7Y28FVQCMy/e6860db314e4977dd1e4d30dd927eb6f/DSC02454.JPG)

Joanna Rumińska-Pietrzyk is consistently covering a whole lot of ground. She has already made short work of the feared CP3 parcours and is currently riding within the top twenty.

![Joanna Rumińska-Pietrzyk](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2lthRdpIAKYpHtvsGmh1zg/1dc274a6bb41fd99bcc801f1867a87e7/_DSC7911.JPG)

Both Claudia Decker and Valérie Dumangin reached the top of CP3 tonight. Claudia is now descending the mountain in the dark.

![Claudia Decker](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1GEhiB0Q9D3E8bWJNBGWUC/5a633c310c9effbe9f71c87fe476cfea/matbir05-4353.jpg)

![Valérie Dumangin](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2XKbbjz6yWgEJGQ5BGT58B/92387ed2220929e692803c22d477c597/matbir05-4386.jpg)

As Arno Burgi’s puncture count goes up to 15, the man is still smiling!
![Arno Burgi](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/66wezNx7DFM9pGkcz0HJv1/b868c01123901470b7f7dfbf29d73d29/arnoflat.jpg)
Source: Arno Burgi

Róża Szczucka wore her cleats down, but that doesn’t seem to stop her forward progress. Somehow she is still riding and attacking CP3.

![Worn out](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/Tf72TZymUxpAmlkOw4fTs/ceb66418afb489aaa32028e2df15235b/rozasztucnacleats.png)
Source: [@sztucznaroza](https://www.instagram.com/sztucznaroza/)

![Róża Szczucka](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5c2Rdh8u5p8PuS22S4HYzX/a40d2afd7ac198800ee4db76c580466b/matbir05-4423.jpg)

Pair 125 [Joanna Jopkiewicz](https://www.instagram.com/joanka_na_kole/) and [Anastasiya Ankhim](https://www.instagram.com/ankhlm/) were fighting their way up to CP2 in the early morning. It was reported that unlike most riders, they refused to get off and walk even in the steepest sections. The two seem unstoppable, as they are already storming up the next parcours to CP3 this evening.

![Pair 125](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4ZwSf5Nw1iUqQtyblQ8T7e/746c5df1e5124a504cf0a4a9cbba71bd/_DSC7113.JPG)

Pair 116, Małgorzata Szwaracka and Grzegorz Szamrowicz, got some good recovery sleep after a hard day yesterday. On the CP2 parcours this morning, they were full of energy and enjoying the landscape.

![Pair 116](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7KfqASCDg6qmEvyTa0DHMD/78a1e95e8e9ddb033d0d3b61ac6623bd/pair116by_MaciekKordas.jpg)
Source: Maciek Kordas

Just a few hours later, [this post](https://www.facebook.com/100006735398068/posts/3425195851048228/) surfaced… 

![Rocky...](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6Ey9UqBbWSXDzRkzRFPgyY/1ff447f7efa51f8f228b6f0c82515a17/routingfb.png)
Source: Grzegorz Szamrowicz on Facebook

### The chase for CP2
It was an emotional day on the CP2 parcours as many riders kept fighting to reach the top of Przehyba before the 2 pm cut-off time. Especially the quest of pair 122, [Ewa Modrakowska](https://www.instagram.com/odeszliodstolu/) and [Magdalena Sobczak](https://www.instagram.com/_madziastic_/), turned out to be a real thriller. Everybody was willing them on as their dots inched ever closer to the top, all while the clock was ticking without mercy. It was touch and go whether they would make it. With an unbelievable three minutes to spare, the heroic pair managed to bag the last official race stamp of CP2.

![Pair 122](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3FrpxWjIWwpNQX3BYJcAAW/098393ae0b742771c6b5347ad8526a61/_DSC8231.JPG)

![I'm not crying, you are!](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6Tmt7Zo8TmbVPYzpIYdfIo/4030ce4b3ee43886ae2532ea7cf8ca5e/_DSC8360.JPG)

The checkpoint is now closed, but riders can still self-validate. 

### Scratch report
As the fatigue and strain on the riders is accumulating, it’s to be expected that the list of non-finishers is only getting longer each day. Here we go.
- Cap 31 Piotr Gdowski has had one flat too many. His tyre is ripped and he doesn’t want to carry that risk into the Low Tatras.
- Cap 49 Waldemar Kędyś fell victim to punctures as well.
- Cap 61 Marcel Łukasiewicz is out with a knee injury.
- Cap 91 Bastian Schneider also suffered knee pain from all the steep climbing. He is now riding to the finish on a flatter route.
- Cap 54 [Anna Małecka](https://www.instagram.com/wspodnicynaszosie/)’s game is over, unfortunately. We will miss the photos of her nicely decorated handlebars. 

![Game over :(](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7ikihiyLv0enTzxhiW5CbK/e9a7028b93e73308354164d4bfa9bd68/annamaleckadnf.png)

![Handlebar decorations](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5UEKvi9OOMZKqbCzLYW4r5/57eddbeff0efe13ef2a1d3358d5febec/annamaleckacockpit1.png)

![Handlebar decorations 2](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/2BpfG2tNopmUjwxZkbjRjx/0ddf24aeb78704248ee95778e9fe18ab/annamaleckacockpit2.png)
Source: [Anna Małecka](https://www.instagram.com/wspodnicynaszosie/)

Like Bastian, she is going to ride to the finish regardless, just not on the race route.

- Pair 123 is out due to a mechanical problem.

Then we have the special case of the three split pairs: Hannes Gruebner of pair 119 scratched, but his partner Robert Huke keeps on riding. He will try to reach the finish alone. The same goes for pair 118: Dariusz Świtała scratched, Rafał Jeleń fights on alone.
Marcel Gawron of pair 120 had to succumb to saddle sores. Pair partner Magda intends to ride on alone. These riders cannot be classified in the solo category, because they started as a pair. But they can still become finishers!

![Keep pushing](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5leS23DYeYTUy6LPA0G1QF/30db9b8df329bd5c0ac79bf37dd41b35/matbir05-4614.jpg)

Finally, enjoy these classic route choices.

![Just lovely](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/3FJF2vguRs15WLi9XwDgTS/10672f4771a24c895ac317e844a216dd/dragomirtiteirouting.png)
Source: [@dragomir_titei](https://www.instagram.com/dragomir_titei/)

![It's fine.](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7AxbLnQASNoL6plcKCtoDi/670f697a2407d1b4a2c23180e5b43ca4/sudokistrouting.png)
Source: [@sudokist](https://www.instagram.com/sudokist/)

!["Explorer of alternative paths" according to his instagram bio.](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/19fEyYfXxou2MYm0URvR8m/721bd0dc6fc58d2ed2d77b6a1a3655fa/todvorarouting1.png)

Photos: [Tadek Ciechanowski](https://www.instagram.com/tadekciechanowski/), [Mateusz Birecki](https://www.instagram.com/birecki.photos/) and [Małgorzata Michalik](https://www.instagram.com/bite.of.me/)

Text: [Jesko von Werthern](https://www.instagram.com/jesko_werthern/)

The defending champion was quoted as saying that this edition was much more demanding than the previous one. Adam took the lead on day one and never gave it away. It took him only 2 days and 23 hours to complete his route of 1,484 kilometers with 21,210 meters of elevation – over some of the most demanding mountain roads of Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, including plenty of difficult off-road sections.

![Adam, first man.](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/CRoYx3DvvcnPN4FuJvt9W/d11d5c738c1ffce432c9bd7db29f281b/DSC02699.JPG)

Due to a daring route choice after CP2, where he descended the mountain via a risky hiking trail, he opened up a gap to his chasers that nobody was able to close anymore. He was later quoted as saying taking this detour was the worst decision at that time, as it could have easily gone wrong.

![Arrival in the rain](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1R42bmJEUnwMt8VGL98dEX/748646aaf5c6e209038b75d8a15203a6/DSC02685.JPG)

There was a bit of a scare last night when Adam first entered the finish parcours, but then backtracked onto a parallel route, rejoining the parcours further up the road. The crew went to investigate and found that the narrow cycle lane through the forest between the towns of Szczytna and Karłów was blocked by a lot of felled trees due to a recent storm. This was possibly the same storm that riders got caught in during the morning of day 1. Works to remove the trees had already begun, but not completed. As the rules of the race state, it is a rider’s duty to find a detour in case of a road blockage, so that’s what Adam did.

![Road block](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/1EmXlWUpvH2ixZz4ACRWTQ/685ab5732b2c4c0f4be49851f51b4ac0/20220524_002905.jpg)
Source: Piko Pulawski

With only 15 minutes of sleep since the start in Krakow, it’s understood that Adam is now catching some well deserved rest in the wonderful Przystanek Raj, a small tourist pension in the Kłodzko Valley that serves as the race finish.

![Off to sleep](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5Zj8xqG3ljw1nLAirqb87/c0f05f0b50efda21782b99579f5b0d28/DSC02799.JPG)

Björn Lenhard takes second and Krystian Jakubek is expected to claim the third spot. Meanwhile, Fiona Kolbinger overtook Paul Niehoff during the night and is now riding in fifth position behind Martin Haubold. More on that later today.

The winner is home safe and sound, but that doesn’t mean the race is over – far from it! Every single rider will keep fighting to reach that finish line, so stay tuned.

![Przystanek Raj](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/6ySBYfMCDDlvm0ZtX9yv9p/1053d76977c30edd65fa9bc92c53c9cf/DSC02768.JPG)

Photos: [Tadek Ciechanowski](https://www.instagram.com/tadekciechanowski/)

Text: [Jesko von Werthern](https://www.instagram.com/jesko_werthern/)

The fourth edition of Race Through Poland returns to crossing borders once again with the start and finish in Poland and the 4 checkpoints and parcours in Slovakia, Poland and Czech Republic.

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