This past weekend Sofiane Sehili became the 2022 Tour Divide winner with a time of 14d 16h 36. This concluded a journey that started 8 years ago when Sofiane toured the Tour Divide for the first time. He would return in 2016 to race it for the first time and claim a very respectable 3rd place, while Mike Hall would go on to win and set a new course record in the process. A record that stands to this day. In 2019 Sofiane came back to try again. Everything was looking promising as he was leading the race and contending with Mike Hall’s record until a massive snow storm stopped him in his track, forcing his return to Brush Mountain Lodge and taking him out of the race. He and I recorded an episode for the podcast while he was still at the Brush Mountain Lodge, you can listen to that one here.
Sofiane is no stranger to winning ultra endurance cycling events and there was no doubt what was on his mind when he towed the lie at this years 2022 Tour Divide start, Win, that was the only mission. Mike Hall’s record wasn’t on the table this year as fire danger caused a reroute, but as Sofiane will tell you, it’s not about the record for him, he just wants to keep the promise he made to 32 year old him, to Win the Tour Divide.
While Sofiane was accomplishing one of his goals, I was accomplishing mine as well. For years I’ve dream of being at the finish line of the Tour Divide and be able to capture those raw moments that can only come after completing a race of this magnitude. This year the stars aligned and I was able to be there at the finish line with Sofiane and a smattering of mostly locals. I then gave him a ride to the Bike Ranch in Hachita, NM where we shared a room. As a fan of the sport, and Sofiane, this was a dream come true and it only deepened my love for this sport, community, and for Sofiane as an athlete and ambassador of the sport.
EPISODE SPONSORS
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🎉 New Patrons 🎉
Jeremy Chesler
Huckansawyer (Kevin)
Join him won’t you? This weeks episode includes over an hour of raw conversations between Sofiane and I, available only to Patrons!
