"Over the Alps on a fatbike? No one would ever do that!" This would probably be the common reaction of the majority of mountain bikers in Germany to the idea of a fatbike transalp. But the idea is actually only logical.
The fat bike is regarded by its fans as a direct development of the original idea of the mountain bike. A rigid frame, two wheels with fat tyres. Back to the roots. And that's it. At least that's the basic idea. Except that the tyres on fat bikes are twice as thick as on normal mountain bikes. But it was clear that the first Fatbike-Transalp had to take place on the first ever Transalp route, the Urtransalp - also known as the Heckmair route.
Andi Heckmair himself gave the starting signal. 25 years ago, he was the first person to cross the Alps on a mountain bike on the journey from Oberstdorf to Riva del Garda. The Heckmair route named after him is 410 kilometres long and covers an altitude difference of 11500 metres. Not an easy tour on a mountain bike. All the more difficult with a fatbike. However, anyone who has ever ridden one knows that it is not as heavy and sluggish as it looks.
The only problems: two flat tyres and bad weather
On 28 June they finally set off. Matthias Buße and Daniel Schneider set off on Specialized Fatbikes on a tour that was far more important than a normal Transalp. It was intended to prove that fatbikes are not the sluggish, heavy, enthusiast's bikes that they are commonly thought to be, but on the contrary offer an astonishing range of use and versatility. With its high passes and difficult trail descents on one side and long road stages and carrying passages on the other, the Heckmair route was perfect for this from the point of view of the two pioneers.
For six days, the fatbike heroes battled their way over road and gravel, through sun, rain and fresh snow. The only problems: two flat tyres and bad weather. Every evening, Schneider and Busse reported on what they had experienced during the day on a blog. There is even a short video summary of each day on the Fatbike-Transalp website.
After almost a week on monster rollers on arrival in Riva del Garda, they realised that it is not only possible but also sensible to cross the Alps on fatbikes. Matthias Buße and Daniel Schneider have impressively disproved the idea that fatbikes are only good for riding to the ice cream parlour or as an eye-catcher on which you can only ride a maximum of ten kilometres at a time. And who knows how long it will be before the first biker finishes the Transalp race on a fatbike. In any case, the foundations have now been laid.
The daily reports and videos mentioned are available at www.fatbike-transalp.de to see.
The best pictures of the Fatbike-Transalp here in our photo gallery:
Adrian Kaether
Editor
