Mountain Races Roundtable

Presentations on the Atlas, Hellenic, and Silk Road Mountain races, and a Q&A period with local Atlantic cyclists. Set against the backdrop of some of the world’s most rugged and breathtaking terrain, the Mountain Races take riders on unforgettable adventures in unexpected places. They are as beautiful as they are tough. The races are single stage — the clock doesn’t stop from when riders start until they reach the finish line. This means that everything is part of the race: eating, sleeping, stopping, etc. Riders are provided with information on resupply points and technical difficulties on the course, but beyond that they are on their own. On Wednesday November 25th, join us in the Lindsay's Children Room at the Halifax Central Library at 6:30pm (doors open at 6:00pm) to hear from local riders who've taken on these races. This interactive evening will have them share their experiences, and allow time for questions and a roundtable discussion. Plus, an exciting announcement for endurance racing here in Nova Scotia! This event will be free to the public thanks to sponsors Trailblazer Physio, and Patagonia Halifax will have a couple of door prizes for raffle! Erika Bout - Silk Road Mountain Race "Erika loves being outdoors and is drawn to experiences that get her out of her comfort zone. She enjoys human-powered adventures of all kinds but has more recently taken to the bike as a way to experience new-to-her places. In 2024, she completed her first bikepacking trip around the Gaspé Peninsula, followed by her first solo trip through Norway the following year. She completed the Silk Road Mountain Race in Kyrgyzstan this past August as a rookie to ultra racing, although she still considers herself a mostly recreational cyclist. She’s lived in Sweden for the past 2 years while completing her masters degree, and is looking forward to going on adventures a little closer to home as she's recently returned to Canada." Kevin Belyea - Hellenic Mountain Race “The Farther You Go – The More You Will See: Finding Ultra Cycling in My 50s” Kevin Belyea is a Rothesay, NB father of three, husband, and business owner who became a bikepacker in his late forties and has spent the last eight years chasing progressively harder ultra-endurance events - from Vermont and Alberta to Iceland and the mountains of Greece. He’s not the fastest person in any of these events and makes no claim to being a professional athlete. What drives him is simpler than that: the challenge of pushing outside his comfort zone by doing hard things. Alex MacLean - Atlas Mountain Race "Now with a handful of ultras under his belt, Alex's journey into ultra bikepacking racing began in 2023 when he bought his first adult bike from Facebook Marketplace. A Kona Rove AL/DL, little did he know it would take him to places such as California and New Zealand, let alone plant the seed for bigger adventures abroad in Morocco, Greece, and Switzerland. Before this interest snowballed, he dipped his toes into bikepacking with a three-day trip from Halifax to Lunenburg and back. Next on his radar is either the High Land Trail 550 or the Trans Balkan Race, and one day he'd love to do a trip in Kyrgiztan, though he's unsure if that should be done in touring or race mode."