Home again after placing 21st overall and second woman to finish on this year’s Silk Road Mountain Race, adventure cyclist and photographer Sami Sauri reflects on the before, the during and the after. Conversationally candid and quick to laugh, Sami unpicks what it takes to complete such an epic challenge, how focusing on fun might just be her secret superpower, and why crossing the finish line helped foster a true sense of self belief.
cyclespeak
You’ve been back home from Kyrgyzstan for a couple of weeks now. How are you feeling?
Sami
It’s funny that the recovery was better than ever. There was so much hike-a-bike that my body never seemed to get that stressed in either discipline. I rode my bike, I pushed my bike, I carried my bike, I almost went swimming with my bike on some of the river crossings [laughs].
cyclespeak
The Silk Road Mountain Race is such a daunting event and on many peoples’ bucket list. What made you commit to racing it this year?
Sami
Rather than race, I was simply aiming to complete it. And even though I was mentored by James Hayden who talked me through equipment choices and training regimes, I was focusing pretty much on just finishing. Because racing is a whole other level and it wasn’t until day three or four that it even seemed a possibility.
cyclespeak
So what shifted in your outlook?
Sami
I was watching the dots when I could get a signal and that’s when I started to think that maybe I could place fairly well. But saying that, it was still an adventure and I was carrying a couple of digital cameras and one, quite heavy, analogue to document the experience.
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cyclespeak
You’re a very experienced adventure cyclist but did you still have to double down on your preparation for Silk?
Sami
Absolutely. And I was pretty scared about a lot of things because my background is fixed gear and fast gravel racing. So yes, I needed a few tips and tricks to get me through the race; to have the knowledge to make the right decisions at the right time.
cyclespeak
Because the event can be quite brutal?
Sami
I viewed this as more of a survival race and I wanted to control as much as possible in an environment where things can get very quickly out of control.
cyclespeak
You were riding your Rose hardtail with a Tailfin luggage system. In hindsight a good choice?
Sami
I wouldn’t change anything from that setup. The bike was amazing and Tailfin made me a custom camera bag that attached to my aero bars.
cyclespeak
And riding a hardtail rather than opting for a full suspension bike?
Sami
By nature, I enjoy technical terrain and I’m comfortable descending. And a hardtail is lighter when you’re climbing and gives you so much more space in the triangle for luggage options.
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cyclespeak
Going from your Instagram posts, it was an achievement in itself to even arrive in Kyrgyzstan? Delayed flights, a forgotten wallet; can you talk me through this rollercoaster ride?
Sami
It wasn’t a delayed flight, it was the delayed brain of Sami [laughs].
cyclespeak
It was?
Sami
I’d booked my flights to arrive early in Kyrgyzstan so I could join two friends on a bike packing trip on the Celestial Divide route. But I guess I had a lot going on pre-travelling—I was embedded with SRAM during the Tour de France Femmes—so when I got home it was quite a rush to get everything packed up. So much faffing around sorting out bags and lights and everything else I would need. But finally everything was ready, I booked my bus ticket to the airport, my neighbour dropped me off at the bus stop, I arrived at the airport, but then couldn’t find my flight on the departures board. So I asked at the information desk only to be told that the flight was the next day and I’d arrived a day early.
cyclespeak
So it was back home?
Sami
That’s right. Up the valley to Chamonix—a pretty fruitless five hour round trip—but at least it allowed me to attach the new saddle that Selle San Marco had sent me which arrived later that day. So, every cloud as they say.
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cyclespeak
And then back to the airport the next day.
Sami
I’d contacted my friends in Kyrgyzstan to tell them to start their trip without me and I would catch them up. But then—because I’d been rushing around so much—I realised that I’d left my wallet behind. Luckily I always travel with a card in my passport but it’s a credit card which doesn’t always work if you want to withdraw local currency.
cyclespeak
I’m guessing Kyrgyzstan is one of those countries?
Sami
Correct. So after landing, I had no money and no idea where my friends were. But I did have the route and set out before bumping into two other friends—I mean, what are the odds—so we made a new plan and off we went.
cyclespeak
When you did finally roll up at the Silk start line—ahead of you 1,900 km of rugged terrain and 30,000 m of elevation—what was going through your head?
Sami
Two things, I guess. The first being there’s no way back in the sense that your choices are made and you need to keep moving. It’s not like you can just pop back and grab a jacket if you feel a chill. You’ve got what you’ve got and those decisions are made way before the race gets underway.
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cyclespeak
And the second?
Sami
Throughout all of this mentoring with James, one of the things he talked about was having a mantra. Something that would help carry me to the finish.
cyclespeak
And what did you decide on?
Sami
My mantra was if you go further, you will see more. Because riding with a camera, that’s what motivates me to do these adventures.
cyclespeak
What sleep strategy had you decided on? Because there’s a school of thought that if you rest a little longer, you race faster; as opposed to little sleep but a slower pace?
Sami
I’m not super experienced at racing ultras so I’m still working this one out. When I raced Across Andes—which is much shorter than Silk—I found that two hours rest a night worked well. But going without sleep for 24 hours at Bright Midnight paid off so badly.
cyclespeak
And Silk?
Sami
It’s so long that you simply have to sleep; you have to be rested enough to make the right choices at the right moment. So there wasn’t a 24 hour period that I didn’t clock some sleep. But I’m not going to lie, I completely freestyled it [laughs].
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cyclespeak
Which looked like?
Sami
Between three and four hours rest a day. But that was sometimes tricky to manage with it being so cold at night that it was difficult to keep warm if you weren’t moving.
cyclespeak
So if you had to choose between a tent, bivvy, guest house or giant water pipe?
Sami
The giant water pipe would have been a pretty good choice—I was very comfortable—but it just funnelled the wind and made my emergency blanket flap around too much. And the guest houses are wonderful for quality food and sleep but they take too much time because everyone is so welcoming and it feels rude to just rush off without having a conversation. And because you’re translating everything back and forth on your phone it can take forever.
cyclespeak
So maybe the tent?
Sami
That was good but, again, it takes a little time to get set up and some nights I just couldn’t be bothered and went straight for the bivvy. Which is quick but has issues with condensation—especially if you double it with the foil blanket—so you can end up feeling wet on the inside. So, to answer your question, maybe a combination is what works best?
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cyclespeak
How tricky was it to fuel your race? Did you carry much food or were you relying on roadside provisions?
Sami
You can’t rely on anything [laughs].
cyclespeak
You can’t?
Sami
It might say resupply in the road book but that doesn’t necessarily mean a shop. And if there is a shop, it doesn’t mean there’s a vast choice of things to eat. It just means that you’re going to get something. But that still leaves you with stretches of 400 km without any food options. And due to the difficulty of the terrain, that’s equivalent to two days of riding. Which is why I call it a survival race and not a bike race because there were times when I was running out of food and having to ration my M&Ms to one every half an hour. And then when you do finally reach a town with a supermarket, the bag of food you buy is bigger than your body. Or at least it was in my case [laughs].
cyclespeak
I’ve seen pictures from Silk of competitors enjoying an ice cream.
Sami
Not for me.
cyclespeak
Not even the one?
Sami
There are two reasons why not. First, we were pretty high up—our average elevation was higher this year—so it wasn’t as hot as previous editions. And second, I was warned against eating ice cream because the electricity supply is a little inconsistent which means the freezers are constantly thawing and refreezing. But maybe I was overthinking the whole thing [smiles].
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cyclespeak
You had a series of tricky river crossings to contend with including wading through waist deep water and some pretty sketchy bridges. I’m guessing quite challenging obstacles?
Sami
One of the main bridges in that particular area collapsed only a day or two before the race started so I walked rather than rode over all of them.
cyclespeak
And the river crossings?
Sami
I had a couple of situations where I thought I would get swept away. So I learnt to wait until other riders were there so I wasn’t crossing alone. And in some cases, people had to camp out overnight to wait and cross in the morning when they could see what they were doing.
cyclespeak
I’m assuming the water is super cold?
Sami
Very, very cold [laughs].
cyclespeak
So if there’s no bridge, are you carrying your bike or pushing it through the water?
Sami
Most of the time you carry it across your shoulders. And sometimes you cross with someone else and you can help each other. But whatever the situation, it was always pretty sketchy.
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cyclespeak
Was the extreme elevation difficult to manage?
Sami
I do think a lot of people had problems with that. And I guess because I live in Chamonix, it maybe didn’t affect me quite as much. But I still had a bleeding nose and cough whenever we were above 3500 m which made sleeping sometimes difficult. So if you live and train at sea level, you can see why it can make things difficult and the altitude needs to be taken seriously. It’s no joke.
cyclespeak
You were the second woman to finish and placed 21st overall. And this was your debut Silk Road Mountain Race. Was it a case of instant euphoria arriving at the finish in Karakol or did it take a while to sink in?
Sami
It’s still sinking in [laughs]. Especially because it’s probably the best result in my racing career. And who would have thought I’d be even close to finishing second in Silk? Especially as I was going to Kyrgyzstan for the adventure and to take photographs. Which is what I did.
cyclespeak
Was that your superpower and part of the reason you placed so highly? The fact that you didn’t enter Silk with the view of chasing a result?
Sami
It’s honestly hard to say. I faff around so much in these races and stop for everything. I photograph flowers and the people I meet. I eat pizza on top of a hill and take in the view. But maybe you’re right. Maybe it’s this mindset that makes a difference?
cyclespeak
One incident that you did post about was an upsetting nighttime encounter with a boy and his dogs. But generally speaking, your interactions with the local population were very positive?
Sami
Yes, absolutely. The people in Kyrgyzstan are amazing and that was just a random encounter in an area near to the border. And I wasn’t the only person to run into a little difficulty there. But for the vast majority of the race, I never even thought about my own personal safety.
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cyclespeak
So how vulnerable do you feel on events such as these?
Sami
Strangely it was more when I was in or around a city. Somewhere that’s more touristy. When I was out on my own in the wilderness—where you might imagine you’d feel vulnerable—that’s where I felt the safest.
cyclespeak
In a certain way, you were joined on the race by all your dot watchers and by their messages of support. During difficult moments, are you aware of this and does it make a difference?
Sami
My friend Corina took over my Instagram account during the race so—day to day—I really wasn’t that aware of what people were saying. But when I did have a connection and could see all the messages, it was really a quite amazing feeling.
cyclespeak
You mentioned your personal mantra if you go further, you will see more. So is it possible to sum up what you did see?
Sami
You know, it’s funny. I took photos every day and when I look at them now—only a few weeks later—I can’t remember this or that place. Almost like it was so intense, with so many things happening, that I can only recall the hardest bits and some of the best moments. But the bits in between? It almost feels like my mind has deleted them.
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cyclespeak
So has this experience changed you?
Sami
I guess the honest answer is that I never thought I could finish something this big. So maybe now I have the reassurance that, yes, I can. And moving forward, the longer the event the better? And all of this came after a very difficult start to the year so it helps to have a sense of belief in yourself. Because before, maybe that was something I lacked?
cyclespeak
So maybe it’s answered some questions? And possibly posed some new ones?
Sami
I guess so [smiles].
cyclespeak
I think what sets you apart—and I truly believe this—is that you enter these extreme events with the goal of having fun. You’re racing Silk and carrying three cameras which just doesn’t line up with the vast majority of the other competitors. And it’s that, which makes your approach so unique and so refreshing.
Sami
Which is how I arrived at my Adventure More project which combines my love for photography and riding my bike. Something I want to do more of.
cyclespeak
When it came time to leave Kyrgyzstan, were you ready or was there an element of sadness at saying goodbye?
Sami
I think because I’d arrived early to go bike packing and had seen maybe more of the country than some of the other competitors, I was ready to go home and spend some time with my boyfriend and see my friends in real life and not just over a video call on my phone. And I was looking forward to having my plate of pasta with Parmigiana that I always have when I return home.
cyclespeak
Every time?
Sami
Yes, every time [laughs].
Feature image by kind permission of Stephen Shelesky / All other photography credited individually
cyclespeak 