Sitting in the shadow of the towering Peak Lenin, Checkpoint One at Topol Camp feels like a real refuge. At 3,600 meters, the yellow tents stand against the wind, the alpine lakes reflect the mountains above, and riders arrive carrying stories from the road.

It’s just over 300 kilometers into the route, but already they’ve faced long hike-a-bikes, icy river crossings, and the reality of altitude. Some pressed on through the night, others chose to wait for safer water levels in the morning. For a few, sickness and fatigue turned CP1 into the natural end of their race. For most, it was a welcome pause — a place to eat, rest, and carry on.

From Robin Gemperle, first to arrive, to Camila Guaritá rolling in with just minutes before the cut-off, the voices in this episode capture the contrasts of those first days. Relief, doubt, joy, exhaustion, and the little things that keep you moving forward. A Simon & Garfunkel song hummed on the trail, a pocket full of condensed milk, the warmth of a yurt, the simple pleasure of a hot shower. The road from here stretches into the unknown: several hundred kilometers of tarmac before the next major hike-a-bike, and the decisions riders make now will shape the days ahead.

Riders featured in this episode:

• Andy Peterson - Cap 14
• Dennis Stegemann - Cap 55
• Leanne Bentley - Cap 116
• Tori Riemersma - Cap 200
• Thomas Quirk - Cap 194
• Robin Gemperle - Cap 165
• Alex McCormack - Cap 8
• Anatole Naimi - Cap 10
• Chris Burkard - Cap 69
• James & Kirsty - Caps 315 A&B
• Simon Petley - Cap 177
• Roz Osborne - Cap 171
• Anne Hutmacher - Cap 303A
• Ignacio Pellejero - Cap 86
• Johannes Santen - Cap 98
• Marius & Wililam - Caps 317 A&B
• Marlin Peterson - Cap 126
• Nat Anderson - Cap 319A
• Karen Jennings - Cap 107
• Guillaume Lallement - Cap 78
• Sami Sauri - Cap 174
• Camila Guaritá - Cap 30

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Production and hosting by Mel Webb

Sound design by Ben Crannell

Music by Batyrkan

Cover image by Stephen Shelesky

Thanks to our race partners Albion, Pertex, Tailfin, Styrkr and Julbo. 

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