Carpatia Divide

Carpatia Divide crosses the whole of the Polish Carpathians in one go, from the wild Bieszczady in the east to the Beskid Śląski in the west. On the way it strings together Beskid Niski, Beskid Sądecki, the Pieniny, the Gorce, Babia Góra and Beskid Żywiecki, climbing so much that the organisers say you go up Everest twice in a few days.

It is a non-stop, self-supported mountain bike race: no marked course, just a GPX track, and riders choose for themselves when to sleep, eat and fix their bikes. The route was built with suspension bikes in mind; it can be ridden on a gravel bike, but the organisers warn it will be harder, with technical descents as the reward for every climb.

Carpatia Divide is run by Polskie Kolarstwo Przygodowe, the team that has organised bikepacking races in Poland since Wisła 1200, and they describe it as their extremely hard one. People say, the organisers add, that if you finish Carpatia you can achieve anything.