There is something about Colombia that calls you back. For the third year in a row, First Endurance athletes Zack and Whitney Allison (Bike Sports) headed to the Andes to tackle Transcordilleras—an 8-day bikepacking race that is as much a test of spirit as it is of fitness.
For Whitney, the return was golden. She secured two stage wins and her third overall women’s title, an achievement carved out of over 43 hours of racing and 2,345 TSS. But beyond the stats and the podiums lies a deeper experience: a shifting course that reveals a side of the country most never see.
Whitney narrates the journey in her own words alongside the stunning photography of Pipe Cano (@pipecano_photo), Steve Tae (@stevetae), and the Transcordilleras team. We invite you to step into the intoxicating beauty of the high Andes.
It Begins
There were 110 of us at the start line this year, including nine women—five of whom were local Colombians. I love that Transcordilleras is a mass start: you have pros, e-bike riders, self-supported racers, and those using the bag service all rolling out together. It creates this unique community where people of all different backgrounds and abilities share an incredible, grueling experience in some of the most remote corners of the country.
The Hospitality
Cycling is deeply woven into the culture here, and the hospitality is unlike anywhere else. Some of my favorite memories from the last three years are the small encounters like restocking at tiendas in tiny towns or buying a cold drink from someone’s front porch. I often wonder what it looks like to the locals to see a stream of cyclists with all their gear passing through such remote regions.
The Landscape
It’s hard to keep from letting out audible oohs and ahhs multiple times each stage. The mountains are simply stunning. This year felt especially vibrant, with so many waterfalls appearing as we rode through the jungles and crossed through many rivers.
Fueling through the Heat
It was significantly warmer this year than last, making tienda stops essential for refilling liquids and keeping our core temperatures from spiraling. While you can’t carry eight days of hydration and fuel in your bags, we made sure to bring MultiV Pro, HALO, and OptygenHP to cover our micronutrient bases for the entire trip.
Unexpected Neighbors
A few of the stages took us along the marshy wetlands of the Magdalena River, and we also rode through the region where the descendants of Pablo Escobar’s escaped hippos have become a local and dangerous nuisance. I would not have minded a sighting, though only from a safe distance and in the right context.
Crossing the Magdalena
We had to take the ferry across the Magdalena River to reach the start of Stage 3. I guess there’s a first time for everything, and it was definitely a unique way to begin the day.
The Terrain
The mountainous terrain in Colombia is relentless. The climbs are so steep that altered gearing is essential unless you plan on doing a lot of hiking. I modified my Shimano setup with a 42T Wolftooth chainring on my Dura-Ace power meter and a 10-51 cassette on my XTR rear derailleur. Our biggest climbing day was Stage 5, which packed 8,100 feet of ascent into just 54 miles.
Resilience, Inspiration and Creativity
Motorbikes and scooters are used for everything in Colombia. Living in the United States, we have so many expectations of how things should be, but the creativity and resilience required to get things done here is incredibly impressive and inspiring.
Colombia’s Spring Colors
It’s been a very wet spring in Colombia. This is Zack during Stage 2, wearing what started the day as a brand new white Castelli jersey. The end of every stage was always a long process of washing and chores just to get our gear back in order for the next morning.
The Regions
Looking back on the last three years of different routes, I love seeing the map of where we have been in Colombia. We certainly haven’t seen it all, but moving between small towns and villages each stage has allowed us to experience the shifting vibes, colors, and flavors that make every region so distinct.
The Locals
Sometimes we were surrounded by coffee and banana farms, and then the landscape would shift into ranching and cattle country. The cows in Colombia definitely give you a different stare than the ones back home. Perhaps it’s because they have never seen a bicycle before in these remote areas. Most of them have very little fur, and I would imagine they have never felt a day of cold weather in their lives.
Together
On the rare occasion that Zack and I are in the same group, there’s little to no drafting since we are almost always on a crazy steep climb or white knuckle descent. Instead, he likes to sing me a song or buzz my tire. It was nice to see him having so much fun this year, which just might have had something to do with him not having to donate his bike and ride borrowed equipment across the country like he did last year. Seen here, Zack is mumbling about how good he used to be at road, crits, and track sprinting, only to find himself on a 30k dirt climb at 9,000 feet in Colombia.
Queen Stage
I suffered mightily through the queen stage trying to distance Natalia Franco, a fellow ENVE athlete that I used to race against on the road. This is me completely spent, trying to formulate a strategy for the next day while Zack discovers muddy snacks left behind in his mustache. That might have contributed to his GI issues and a few emergency stops for a “code brown” in the jungle the following morning, but we will never know for sure.
Finish in Yopal
This year we finished in the town of Yopal, making it past the Andes and into the Casanare region where it was an average of 95*, super humid, and pancake flat. This was my first experience seeing anything flat in Colombia. I was at the peak of my high hormone phase and really struggling to dissipate heat- I just focused on mitigating losses on the final stage, knowing I had accomplished my goal of the GC win. I beelined straight to the closest tienda after the finish line to find all the cold beverages!
The Growth of the Women’s Field
In the end, it was great to grab the overall win. During the first few days, Natalia Franco started aggressively with four stage wins, and there was close racing between us for most of those stages with Maddy, Sara, and Nicole right there. It is great to see more women jump into such an incredibly hard adventure race. I went all-in with an aggressive strategy on Stage 5, which started with a 6,000 foot climb and spent most of the day above 10,000 feet, allowing me to gain significant time. I was also able to win Stage 6 and expand my lead. With eight days of tough terrain, weather, and competition, there is a lot of strategy involved. You have to make decisions on certain stages that you might pay for later, but those two big rides allowed me to focus on mitigating losses during the final two very hot stages. Natalia ended up fighting illness during the last couple of stages, and Maddy, ever consistent, won the final two stages to move into second. Especially during your first Transcordilleras, the learning curve, race flow, and daily chores take a ton out of you. Just finishing all eight stages is a feat. Having these women to race is a testament to the growing level of competition in the gravel space. In the end, seven of the nine women starters completed the event.
Falling in Love with Colombia
One of the most asked questions I get is whether I would go back to Transcordilleras. For the last three years, the answer has been an absolute yes. The experience, the people you meet, and the places you see change your perspective on how the world works, how people live, and what truly matters. Every Colombian I meet, from those in the race to the people in the villages we ride through, wants you to fall in love with their country, and I have. To Jose, Jose, and Mauricio, thank you for showing me Colombia and using the bike as the catalyst. If eight days is simply not possible for you but you love the idea, Transcordilleras also offers a three day version, usually held in August, that brings that same magic.
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