Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 15 • Kok-Ayrik Pass to Cholpon Ata

Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 15
August 26, 2023
Kok-Ayrik Pass to Cholpon Ata - 36 Miles
Start 6:58 AM Finish 4:06 PM
Total Duration 9:08
Moving Time 4:07
Stopped Time 5:01
Ascent 2,755' 
Descent 7,347'
Slept at 5,310' elevation (hotel - bed)
Race Total 1,175 Miles

more to come

Camped in the middle of the track up Kok-Ayrik Pass

Marco approaches while I'm still packing

Endless boulder fields

Endless boulder fields

The badly damaged track up Kok-Ayrik Pass

The overlapping switchbacks became difficult to navigate

The plume Thistles resembled fairy monsters

A look back down the valley

The badly damaged track up Kok-Ayrik Pass

Snow-capped mountains adjacent to the pass

First view of the Arch at Kok-Ayrik Pass

View from near the top of the pass

Me and Köves at the top of 12,614' Kok-Ayrik Pass

At  the top of 12,614' Kok-Ayrik Pass

Intense fog on the south side of Kok-Ayrik Pass

View of Issyk Kul as I descended Kok-Ayrik Pass towards Cholpon Ata

Welcome to Cholpon Ata!


Arriving at the finish! (photo by Danil Usmanov)


Well deserved beer (photo by Danil Usmanov)


Shaking hands with Nelson (photo by Danil Usmanov)


Getting a hug from Peter (photo by Danil Usmanov)


My poor ravaged knee (photo by Danil Usmanov)

The SRMR Finish Line!

Completed SRMR brevet card

Map / Elevation Profile



⥢ prev -home- next ⥤




Location: Cholpon Ata, Kyrgyzstan

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 1 • Karakol to outside of Enilchek

Image
Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 1  August 12, 2023 Karakol to outside of Enilchek - 121 Miles Start 9:08 AM Finish 11:05 PM Total Duration 13:56 Moving Time 12:04 Stopped Time 1:52 Ascent 8,591’  Descent 5,179’ Slept at 9,120' elevation (shack - floor) Race Total 121 Miles Details at: https://ridewithgps.com/trips/131208720 https://srmr2023.maprogress.com/ Adjacent to the Karakol Yurt Lodge was a bar called The Hut. Last night being Friday it was chocked full of people and noisy. In addition, a large group of Koreans who were staying at the lodge had gathered in the courtyard and departed for an excursion at 2:30AM. My ear plugs had been ineffective and I had taken an Ambien to sleep. I woke up at 6:30AM before my alarm. Jono was already up and reported that one of the small lodge kittens had pooped in his bed. We had an early breakfast consisting of porridge, omelets, cheese slices, salad, bread, and marmalade along with tea. I was packed and ready to go, and was itching to get...
Read more

Table of Contents

• Introduction • Table of Contents • Getting to Bishkek   • Shakeout Ride to Elevation Part 1   • Shakeout Ride to Elevation Part 2   • Final Preparations • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 1 Karakol to outside of Enilchek • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 2 outside of Enilchek to Lipenka • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 3 Lipenka to Arabel Plateau • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 4 Arabel Plateau to Big Malyy Naryn River Bend • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 5 Big Malyy Naryn River Bend to Bosogo • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 6 Bosogo to Key-Aygyr • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 7 Key-Aygyr to 41°2'33" N 75°4'25" E • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 8 41°2'33" N 75°4'25" E to Dzhergetal • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 9 Dzhergetal to Dyudyumel • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 10 Dyudyumel to Kichi Ak-Kolot • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 11 Kichi Ak-Kolot to Ak-Talaa • Silk Road Mountain Race - Day 12 Ak-Talaa to Koshoy • Silk Roa...
Read more

Introduction

Image
Welcome to my most extreme adventure, and my first Ultra, The 2023 Edition of The Silk Road Mountain Race . My trail name is Rusty Crank, and I'll be racing with cap #92. I'm an artist and college professor from Brooklyn, NY. In 2018 I rode the TransAm and it completely changed my life. The following summer I rode the Northern Tier. January 2020 I cycled the Carretara Austral in Patagonia, and then that summer, as COVID and political protests raged, I pedaled from Brooklyn to Astoria Oregon. The following spring I rode the first segment of the Southern Tier and later that summer the Western Express. The Great Divide had become a goal, but the Canadian border was closed because of COVID. January 2022 I rode from Mazatlan to Mexico City, and that spring I did the second Southern Tier segment. Summer of 2022 I finally rode the complete Great Divide from Antelope Wells, NM to Jasper, AB. January 2023 I cycled from Mexico City to Oaxaca, and this past June I completed the Southern T...
Read more