After 14 days, 16 hours, and 36 minutes. Sofiane became the 2022 winner of The Tour Divide. 

The Tour Divide is thought to be the hardest ultra-endurance race on the planet. 2,754 miles, with over 200,000ft of elevation, from Canada to the Mexican Border. Traversing the length of the Rocky Mountains. Combine this with the harsh weather conditions, and the odd Bear encounter, and you have an extreme test of both body and mind.

It wouldn’t be the first time that the Frenchman has attempted to win The Tour Divide. This win is the conclusion of an eight year journey, that saw Sofiane take on the route for the first time in 2016, where he finished third.

A few years later, in 2019, Sofiane returned to The Tour Divide with the aim of beating the course record. He led from the start, and was on track to beat the record when a massive storm front came in covering the route in snow, and stopping him in his tracks.

Fast forward to 2022, Sofiane was back with one aim. To win The Tour Divide 2022. Sadly, there was no record on offer this time around as the course was re-routed due to wild fires. 

Onboard his Rapide HT with rigid forks, Sofiane led from the off. Braving some of the harshest conditions in The Tour Divide Race's history. Riding through freezing cold wind and rain, to scorching hot heat. Not to mention ‘the peanut butter mud’, which saw him walking for miles through thick, ankle deep mud toward the finish line. 

Above Sofiane's race rig - a Rapide HT frame with rigid forks. 

“I'm a stubborn individual and when I set my mind on something, I just won't let go,” Sofian wrote on Instagram. “I did it. Not to show the world. Not to prove doubters wrong. Just to keep a promise I made to myself. Because these are the most important." Sofiane Sehili. 

You can listen to a pretty cool podcast by Bikes or Death that covers Sofiane's crazy ride here.