What had you accomplished by 17? Not what dreams did you have, but what dreams had you already made come true?
One thing I know for sure: You weren’t the youngest person ever to complete the Bikepacking Triple Crown…unless your name is Cruz Blue.
When I was 17, I spent most of my time skateboarding, avoiding homework, and chasing girls. Not exactly my finest years, but I’d argue my experience was probably more closely aligned with that of the average teenage boy than Cruz’s was.
Over the past year, Cruz has quietly been making a lot of noise in the bikepacking world. He has no social media, no blog, and no YouTube channel. He seems motivated almost entirely by a sense of adventure and what he calls youthful ignorance. So, unless you’ve been paying close attention, you may not have realized that a star was rising in Flagstaff, Arizona.
Cruz comes from an adventurous family and grew up inspired to seek out adventures of his own. For him, racing is simply another form of adventure. He isn’t particularly concerned with times, watts, records, or results—but he does place a premium on finishing.
His only DNF came in 2025, when he attempted the Arizona Trail Race 800 as an individual time trial at just 16 years old. But let’s back up a little.
Cruz entered his first bikepacking race in 2024 at age 15. Just two short years later, he finds himself among an elite group of athletes credited with completing the Bikepacking Triple Crown.
A brief history of his racing career:
Age 15
Pinyons and Pines — 2d 15h 53m — 14th overall
Age 16
AZTR 800 ITT — DNF
Pinyons and Pines — 2d 7h 23m — 10th overall
AZTR 800 ITT — 17d 7h 42m — Youngest solo AZTR 800 finisher
Age 17
Pinyons and Pines — 3d 5h 19m — 17th overall
Tour Divide — 19d 11h 6m
Colorado Trail Race — 6d 17h 49m — Youngest-ever CTR finisher
In less than 10 months, Cruz completed the Arizona Trail Race 800, Tour Divide, and Colorado Trail Race, becoming the youngest person ever credited with completing what we call the Bikepacking Triple Crown.
Technically, the formal Triple Crown Challenge requires completing all three races within the same calendar year. Cruz completed his within a rolling one-year period. But the keepers of the records at Bikepacking.net officially list him as the youngest Triple Crown finisher, and who am I to argue!
The results, however, are only a small part of Cruz’s story.
The real story is Cruz himself – and it’s his to tell.
On today’s episode, I have the privilege of getting to know one of our sport’s youngest athletes, who has quietly been making a whole lot of noise.
EPISODE SPONSORS
Old Man Mountain & Robert Axel Project = use code mountainsordeath for 15% off
Central Texas Showdown = code ctsordeath for 15% off
West Texas Showdown = code wtsordeath for 15% off
NEW PATRONS 🫶🏻
Gabe Dillon
Jarran Zen
Support the show at www.Patreon.com/BikesorDeath
