Day #1 How it all started

A group of cyclists, seen from behind, are lined up at the starting arch of the "1000 Miles Adventure" bikepacking race. The large black inflatable arch has "1000 MILES ADVENTURE by Jan Kopka" in white and pink lettering at the top. Below this, a yellow banner with "START" in bold black letters spans the arch. Behind the starting line, flags of various countries are visible. The cyclists wear helmets and backpacks, with some having head-mounted cameras. The atmosphere appears to be a busy, pre-race gathering.

1000 Miles Adventure is a 1600 kilometres long race for bikes, feet or kickbikes through Slovak and Czech mountains. Everyone is on their own—you have to carry your own food and drinks, find a place to rest and sleep. Racers have to follow a GPS path and have to hand all tracked data to the organisers at the end of the race, so they can check that they didn’t cheat. And this is my story of how I struggled on the road and faced a lot of challenges and dangers.

It is weird how fast the time can be. I registered for 1000 Miles Adventure on the first of January, paid big money for the starting fee and suddenly I was finishing my last preparations. Yes, it was half a year, but the passage of time can be tricky. I bought a bike at the end of April and I had to learn how to use it really fast. Disc brakes, hydraulics or suspension fork were as close to me as pizza to conservative aborigines.

My desperate efforts to take care of my bike were more ridiculous than they were helpful. But I did make some progress. On the 17th of May I have biked more than a 100km for the first time in my life. It was on a nice road without any rough terrain. A lot of work was still ahead of me.

When I biked 250 kilometres in two days for the first time, I wasn’t able to sit on the bike again for several days. It was one month before the start of the race and I was in big trouble.

The last moment, the best moment

I started buying bike equipment and clothes like the desperate man I was. Literally in the last minute. For example, I tried the shoes I used during the race twice and didn’t try my light jacket even once. Let’s just say that I did everything in the way it shouldn’t have been done. I’d rather not tell you about how I bought something on the day I was leaving.

This is an overhead shot of bikepacking gear spread out on a wooden floor, next to a partially visible bicycle wheel on the left.

The gear is organized into different sections. On the far left, a black and white long-sleeved cycling jersey with a bright yellow zipper is laid flat. Behind it are folded dark cycling shorts.

In the center, a collection of smaller items includes two clear water bottles with black tops, various toiletries (creams, sprays, a roll-on deodorant), and a row of small, shiny metal objects, possibly tools or spare parts. A blue Osprey backpack is visible in the background, leaning against a brown wooden door.

To the right, a black Coleman sleeping bag or dry bag, tightly rolled and secured with red straps, is positioned next to a multi-colored cycling helmet with a white, black, and yellow pattern. Beneath the helmet and sleeping bag are a small red bottle, a black flashlight, and some folded dark clothing and gloves, including a pair of red and black cycling gloves.

In the background, a white wall with an electrical outlet is visible. The overall impression is of gear being prepared or unpacked for a bikepacking trip. — I lacked quality gear and good camera.

I had to prepare the bike first and make sure that it isn’t going to get damaged during transport. I didn’t have any emotional connection to this bike so I basically didn’t care. I just used a little bit of bubble wrap and threw my bike onto the overloaded train.

The loading of bikes was in the afternoon and us, cyclists, got on the train at night. A long journey was ahead of us. People were drinking in coupés and discussing how they upgraded their bikes. I could only say how I bought it…

A group of germans got bamboozled so hard that we had doubts if they will manage it to the start of the race. They needed to get a lot of calm sleep. I can say I did. Not because I drank a lot, but because the bed in the sleeping car was very comfortable and I slept til late morning. It was for the last time, because during the race, there will be no time for such a thing as nice sleep.

The start of 1000 Miles Adventure is closing

All of us were late for start, because we took Czech Railways and they are always late. It’s some kind of a national thing. And because 80% of racers took that train, the start of the race was delayed by one hour. We had plenty of time to unpack our bikes, load equipment on them and register ourselves. We got an indispensable part of equipment—a bell—against bears. They made a photo of us, so they can identify our dead bodies later…

A group of cyclists and a few other individuals are gathered around an open door of a blue train car, seemingly loading bikes and gear. Two men in cycling attire and helmets are visible inside the train, with one helping to load items. A man in a bright green backpack and helmet is positioned on the ground, holding a bicycle wheel and helping to load boxes. Next to him, another man with a green backpack is also assisting. On the far left, a person with a blue backpack is partially visible. A woman with short blonde hair and sunglasses, wearing a white tank top, stands in the foreground, looking towards the train. On the far right, a man with long hair, wearing a dark t-shirt and shorts, is leaning against the train, hands on his hips. The side of the train car has "České" written on it, indicating it's a Czech train. The scene suggests a bikepacking group preparing to depart or having just arrived. — Bikes unloading

We were getting instructions shortly before the race—you are racing on your own responsibility … blah blah blah … be afraid of bears, gipsies and woodsmen … blah blah blah … be careful … blah blah blah … no, the safety was really important. No one wanted dead bodies on the route.

Racers were prepared on start, they listened to some epic music for a bit, then BANG and we could get on track. First, we had to cross a very narrow bridge where only one racer can get through. I almost fell into a brook there, but I managed it somehow. It would be a shame…

Easy peasy

I was biking. It was a nice road, down from a hill, no need to use legs… I couldn’t appreciate it at that time. Everything changed after about 15 kilometres. The downhill turned to steep uphill and first racers started to push their bikes. I fought with the hill bravely. Then came the rocky downhill. It was really hard for me because I never trained on such rough terrain. Many of the racers overtook me and I could only see the dust from their bikes. I used my brakes all the time, but I wasn’t falling from my bike.

Suddenly, I realised that my navigation no longer records the track. It is crucial for the race because I somehow have to prove that I stayed on the track. I tried to change the batteries but I wasn’t even able to turn on the device, which was as reliable as Windows Vista. I swore. I swore a lot. I tried another set of batteries. More swearing. So, I was sitting on that bench in front of a church and I was telling myself that this is it. This is the end of it all. Then it hit me. I used batteries with reversed polarity. I was able to get back on track very soon. These confusions are just typical for me.

And then the night came

I entered the woods at the end of the evening. I had to use my headlight and I hoped, that there is a minimal amount of bears. I was alone most of the time and it was pretty scary. Just a few times I saw some strong lights as some other bikers overtook me. I envied them because they saw very well what’s on the track. My light was very weak and I could see only a few meters ahead of me. But there was one advantage—I could bike a little faster because I didn’t see how bad the terrain was.

I left the woods at about nine o’clock and went back to civilisation. I slept on grass in Trnava pri Laborci. I was scared that someone would rob me or pour gasoline over me and set me on fire. I hoped that I will forget these feelings.

I was falling asleep with a thought that finishing 1000 Miles Adventure wouldn’t be so hard. I was wrong.