My first bikepacking race: Transcordilleras in Colombia on a Scarab Paramo

[@scarabcycles]

It was a pleasure meeting you and racing together! we are sure we will see you soon in Colombia!

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Thank you for all the hospitality. It was a treat to see the operation and ride with the crew.

[@jrwnd99]

So do you get to keep the bike… and the stuffy?!

[@jvillamizard]

Journalism and vlogging at its best, kudos to you. As a Colombian cycling aficionado, thanks for the wonderful portrayal of our country and its beauty.

[@MitchBoyer]

Release the 45 min version! Great video and congrats on the win 🏆

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Hehe. Thanks, Mitch.

[@Acousticmarine678]

Dude, the redshift stem is God sent for us older riders. It saves you a trip to the Dentist after a brutal decent, mine is Lands End gravel road on the Grand Mesa out here on the Western slope.

[@bludog4657]

Congratulations Ben! Good times and awesome memories.

[@doughills8024]

For what it's worth as a guy with numerous shoulder mishaps in my past I will give a thumbs up to the Redshift stem. The odd flat tire feeling disappears after you ride it for a little while. It's not a fork suspension system but it does take the worst of the sting out of hard hits when riding gravel. Just my $.02. I want a ride kit.

[@yumyumhungry]

Second that. My Salsa Cutthroat with 2.2 in tires and a redshift stem makes for a very comfortable efficient machine for that type of bikepacking.

[@Jace_Roams]

Thanks for the comprehensive look at this race. Great video!

[@alexben927]

Met you once at Unbound, love this kind of story telling content. Thanks and keep it up, 🤙.

[@GHinWI]

That bike is solid class. The world needs more cool paint jobs on bikes.

[@davidparsons6517]

Great video Ben. You’re definitely on your game on a gravel bike and in front of the camera!!

[@EmmanuelNataf]

Congrats on the win! So far all my gravel ultras in Europe have had some harsh descents leading to numb fingers and some neck pain - it became a lot easier when I installed a Redshift stem but I'm now looking into a bike with a Rudy fork. Kills the look but will definitely be worth it over long distances.

[@ianboylan91]

Really enjoyed your film and storytelling, Ben. And the bike is stunning - I’m looking forward to the factory tour.

[@CourtneyHump]

Kudos for adding the “what I’d change” feedback to the content. The Scarabs looks awesome! Really want to consider one for my next build.

[@foxjam]

Digging these Colombia videos. It's easy to tell how much you enjoyed it.

[@thapr12nv]

I'm actually getting a Scarab road bike, should be done in 1-2 months! cant wait!

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Sweet. Scarab factory tour video is next in the editing queue.

[@VIVIANARUIZ-z8q]

Welcome to Colombia!!! Have fun!!!😀😀😀

[@Griff-q3f]

ENJOYING THE RIDE ! Delaney for the win, loving the dream. Sweet bike great video…

[@AverageJoesOutdoor]

Dig all your stuff you put out Ben! Another stellar race review 🤘

[@nataacevedo57]

Bienvenido a Colombia!! :D

[@valenju69]

Great piece! Psyched that you chose a colombian bike to ride. The 3-dayer sounds about right! All the Best.

[@hank9176]

Make another video with the stories and bloopers You keep things so simple yet interesting Keep up the good work

[@markreams3192]

Columbia is on my bucket list

[@aaarauz1]

Colombia. The locals are pretty sensitive to that. :)

[@Sergio_Math]

Great video Ben! It's definitely cool to see you ride our backyard. You're welcome anytime! You definitely need to ride the area around the first stages of the 8 day version of the race, as well as the gravel roads close to the capital. Different flavor, same beauty. Kudos on the win too! Your setup was spot on, but I would have added the Redshift stem for sure. I love mine. Last year's transcordilleras went from 40 degrees C valleys up to 0 C páramos. It was definitely more difficult to pack, as you needed way more layers than this year's mostly tropical affair.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Thanks, Sergio. O to 40 is nuts! That is a lot of gear in the bags. I was happy to have it easy, temperature-wise. What an amazing place to ride bikes. ♥️

[@neilashton9459]

Well done Ben and super interesting videos from Columbia and Scarab. I feel you on those rough descents - washboards and boulders are brutal at high speed. You want more come to NC / GA as we lots of those 😉

[@edt459]

Please consider making a video outlining your travel logistics to/from Colombia. ¡Gracias para todo!

[@bluegreymtb3350]

Vive COLOMBIA

[@palicar]

Looks like a ton of fun!

[@rorywalsh7799]

Looks incredible, thanks 😃

[@harrylook7810]

I've been looking forward to this video and really enjoyed it.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Glad you enjoyed it.

[@JRmntain]

Thank you really enjoyed this

[@fenderperry]

Congrats

[@migatron7359]

Great vid! Amazing place to ride! 45 minute version would’ve been great… 😊

[@PAbloDONADO]

Hello Ben, let me congratulate you for doing so many things at once. How can one convey the essence of gravel in Colombia, make videos, enjoy, and win the race? No idea… anyways thank you for the excellent report and for appreciating our country from a unique perspective. Cheers!

[@fredrichards3998]

Great video Ben. Really enjoyed it. 👏👏

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Glad you enjoyed it. I sure did!

[@dalanlevins7433]

Awesome video!

[@lazlo2511]

Way too short… LOL. Extended highlights please! Well Done, I’ve seen enough second places. You have bonded with that bike on home soil. BTW, legend has it, you must defend that title in 2025!

[@armarac]

Nice video man ! It was a pleasure meeting you in Santa Fe and you definitely need to come and ride 8-days or why not non-stop !!

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Thanks, Armando. Was great to meet you too. 8-day, maaaaaybe. Nonstop is crazy town. 😁

[@timdixo]

Redshift stem or the Vecnum stem would be a game changer.

[@stevevarga8621]

Great trip and great video. I loved the paint job on that bike, it reminds me of that Italian guy whose name I can’t remember at the moment. On another note I finally get to have my ‘I told you so’ moment. Your roadie sensibilities have consistently pushed you to the narrowest tires, tallest gearing and a flat out rejection of any form of suspension. How’d that work out for you? Can you imagine how much nicer your adventure would have been with larger more comfortable tires, some suspension, and lower gearing? A lot better. You would have been laughing on all the descents and hammering all the other rough parts. Oh and extrapolate all that over the longer 8 day event. Smoother is faster on bikes too.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Dario Pegoretti is the name you're looking for.

[@examinethose]

that bike looks primo

[@emilioc700]

Great video. Maybe worth a "More stories from Trans Cordillera" video.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

More is coming, for sure. 👍

[@LyThiHa80]

It's amazing, the route is interesting, and so are you

[@Neil-lh8fq]

Enjoyable video and Columbia looks a lot of fun. I’m curious about your opinion on the 1x set-up used (GRX 44T 10-51T) and how it compares to your experience using a 2x. Would you consider it a good option for an all-road bike, or would you still go 2x?

[@flamencoguru]

Nice video and journey! Thanks! Perhaps a suspension step would have been in order for the race. how many days were you in Colombia? Thanks again!

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Thank you. Just shy of a week. Keen to go back with the fam asap.

[@johnpeachell1644]

Thanks for the video! Do you think a suspension fork would be reasonable or is the huge amount of climbing not worth the extra weight?

[@jonhairsine6340]

Great video. Curious about you off-bike shoes - what brand are they? Thanks

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Bert! From Bogota: thebertshoe.com

[@Nas-Uu]

Congratulations Ben! A quick question, what saddle did you go for? I am going to do unbound gravel 😢and any advice on a good saddle would be highly appreciated 😊!

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

I used a PRO model that is pretty good. I have loved the Specialized Power Elaston for Unbound, and also used the stock saddle on the Giant Revolt. Saddle fit is personal, so if you already have a saddle you love, use that! A little padding won’t hurt, but a shape that agrees with you is the most important part.

[@stevekelly6544]

I want to hear your thoughts on that beautiful Scarab you have been riding….

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Coming up. Thanks.

[@bobbymoses]

@@TheRidewithBenDelaney Any updates on this front?

[@Mumu14-y6x]

Did you get to bring home the bike?

[@whatthehoeck]

Sounds like bigger tires would have been nice for the rough surfaces?

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

💯

[@aandres87]

how does scarab feels? I am getting an Apuna and very nervous about the process

[@richardwhitehead4684]

What models are the Ortlieb bags? They look almost perfect.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Seatpack 7L and Framepack 4L. www.ortlieb.com/en_us/products/bike/bikepacking?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA0PuuBhBsEiwAS7fsNXimxwhhShDEAcnBgFDjw-J0JanXTKjK2xpDE--s_NQg284nkK98ShoCPFUQAvD_BwE

[@richardwhitehead4684]

@@TheRidewithBenDelaney thanks, Ben.

[@mellissanash7517]

Why didn't you go with e Scarab bike that could fit 55mm tires so you can go with that same setup in 50mm f and 45mm r for extra comfort.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Good question! Because when I got going on that frame to use for building and testing GRX, I had no idea that I would be going to Colombia.

[@mellissanash7517]

Ah that makes sense.

[@fabianb5594]

How did you like the Scarab bike? Did it feel heavier and slower than a carbon one?

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

It's certainly heavier, but once you're up and rolling I don't know if it is demonstrably slower than carbon.

[@testalino]

What are those shoes in the seat bag?

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

thebertshoe.com/

[@LR6092]

What is the costs for this event? I did a conversion and it said $5 cdn 🤔

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

3-day is $180USD; 8-day $400USD; $2,200USD for the VIP supported 8-day where Altos carries your stuff for you but you're not shown in the race results.

[@LR6092]

@TheRidewithBenDelaney wow that's great pricing. I'll have to keep this in mind for next year

[@LR6092]

@@TheRidewithBenDelaney and the course length is the same no matter the day length you choose?

[@frccustomguns7859]

Was the Zia symbol something from Colombia or from your time in NM?

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

I asked them to add the Zia (where I am from) to the Campesina design (where they are from). Their semi custom paint program offers templates that you can tweak with color choice and little add-ons.

[@buzzman4860]

Looked fun. But why was that guy doing shots of mouthwash?

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Aguardiente. That may nor may not have been involved in me leaving one of my GoPro cameras behind at the afterparty and not realizing it until I was a 3hr bus ride away…

[@elmccor6298]

You look like a kid in a candy shop!

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

True.

[@SergioCristancho]

450

[@volition5559]

I have a lot of respect for Ben and his journalistic career given I've watched / listened for quite some time. However, I feel there's something 'off' with this Transcordilleras race. Perhaps it's entirely down to my cynicism, but, there's something, I don't know, odd, about about a bunch of rich white people descending upon an entirely different culture, in an entirely different part of the world, just for the sake of racing through its rural zones and then leaving. I can't, as of this moment, exactly annunciate what it is I find odd about it besides the obvious, but I feel it's worth discussing. As a latin-american myself, it's a bit cringe-worthy to see people co-opt the culture /language, albeit in harmless good faith, when taken up by the feeling of awe in presence of the experience. Even in the most generous reading of its 'benefit' ie money to the regions,- there are many complex cultural reasons much of the map doesn't look like a carbon copy of Emporia, Kansas. Capitalism is cultural, and not everyone is on board. My overly-verbose point (which I am sure will be received poorly) is; global bikepack racing- is it really a positive to the places it is now going, given the fast, uncaring dynamic of race series and the economic conditions in which it is born from?

[@taylorkruse]

This is a Colombian event, run by Colombians, sponsored by more than a few Colombian companies, and attended in vast large part by Colombians. And, Ben was there riding a bicycle made in Colombia. A quick check of the participant list shows relatively few competitors from outside of the country, in the scheme of the whole event. Your criticism of sports/racing/tourism etc as a whole might be valid, and should be a concern of anyone recreating in diverse parts of the world, but it's an over simplification to assume this is just "rich white people co-opting the culture," a statement also ignores the diversity that exists within Colombia. Adventure is part of cycling and bike racing for many people, and I see no examples of Ben being anything other than respectful, appreciative, and struck by the experience of being in Colombia. Bicycles let us travel in one of the most respectful and low impact ways possible, worldwide. My limited experience shows that Colombians love their country, and love sharing it with others, just like the community in Emporia (who also host participants from all over the world). Your criticisms come from a real place, but I think in this context it might be best to ask the people who experience the event what they think.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Definitely worth a discussion. Thanks for laying out your thoughts here. There are certainly potential downsides in parachuting into other regions for a bike race - whether in your own country or someone else’s. Similarly, not every town is on board with a bike race, regardless of country. Ultimately I believe that going other places and meeting other people is a positive thing. What is the alternative? Stay only in our own neighborhood, speak only to people who look/think/speak like you, and splinter the world into various ‘other’ groups? That, for me, is the road to ruin for individuals and for cultures. I try to be gracious and not the ugly American, but I am sure I fall short. I tell you what, though, I am grateful for the folks I met and I am keen to go again.

[@robbchastain3036]

Okay, so not taking your comment poorly or as anything bad, I will pipe up with a few thoughts and I will share from my perspective of being a now-64-year-old cyclist who, back in late 1974, went from being a typical California 15-year-old to being an American teen in Frankfurt, West Germany because of my father's job change. And I was there for nearly three years and, once I shook off the shock of the move after a few days, I absolutely loved living in Europe and commuting to school every single day on a German-made 10-speed and even my thumbnail is an homage to that experience, it was snapped in early '75 as I was riding my Sting-Ray and missing my crazy bike-riding friends in California. Yet, and this was cool, German kids would walk over from their apartment complex--I lived at the Drake-Edwards Housing Area--and watch me do my jumping and wheelie thing for a half-hour or so. And long story short, I so enjoyed living in Frankfurt that I moved back about five years later and, tho' it has been decades since I have visited, I really want to ride and ride the roads of Germany again one of these days. And, big picture, that is the conundrum, no? Lots of us here in the States are like, these days, eh, too many risks to travel and vacation out of the country, better to stay home and not bother. And there is no question that I understand that, look at what happened to that retired American couple on their boat in the Caribbean last week. Still, we are all enriched, one way or another, by meeting and mingling in events such as this one in this video by Ben, I think. And tourism dollars do count for a local economy, not that those are the most important thing but everyone needs to make a living and a bunch of hungry riders stopping for a snack surely helps. And they'll all be gone within days, chatting about the sights and people and roads for a long time afterwards, maybe with plans to return or maybe not, just a one-off. So I say, welcome the visitors, the tourists, the bike riders on their fancy bikes and about that, anyone can have a fancy bike with a bit of resourcefulness. And that is the maddening thing to me, the hype and fib that only a 15-grand bike is up for the ride. It doesn't have to be that way and thankfully, presenters such as Ben are pushing back against that by showing that there are alternatives, such as his made-in-Colombia steel frame. And that's not to say that cycling is free, per se, just that it remains an affordable sport with a little common sense and savvy shopping and wheeling and dealing. So all that to say that I think it is a beautiful sight, visitors and locals riding the dirt roads of Colombia together and stopping for a snack or two along the way. And perhaps some on-lookers will be inspired to get on a bike themselves and experience the same tourist joy. And funny, when I lived in DC, a German friend and his brother came over for a week of tourism and I put them up, of course, and they were kooks about all the monuments and museums, more so than me. But that tourism, outsiders are there for just a minute and they want to see everything. 😀

[@cparrett1]

There's also a real economic impact at the stores, restaurants, hotels, etc that the riders are stopping out during the race, and because the race runs through such rural areas, these are often small businesses owned by locals. Surely supporting small and locally owned businesses while riding a bike across the country is a better form of tourism than people staying at the Marriot in Cartagena to party and eat at expensive restaurants, no?

[@volition5559]

@@cparrett1 yes. What I’ll try to do is respond to all the above including your comments in saying this: I think these are all well-taken points. These events are not inherently bad, nor do they have sweepingly general negative impact. However, i think history is rife with the kind of rationale i see above. Positive, planar economic impact is wholly, unimpeachably good despite evidence evident in the natural/ cultural world that it is far more complex than that. I’d also like to add that this is simply a touchpoint for a growing trend. Ben is far from the first or last to do these races, and i think, buy and large, he does them in good faith. My question is/ pushback is a heartfelt examination of westerners coming in, guided by Colombians or not, and exploiting an already largely exploited nation that doesn’t have the means to benefit the majority if and when these events do come through. A kind of cultural tourism that centralizes the wealth of this experience, as opposed to sharing it. I could be off base, but that is my thought with this race, and a heck of a lot of other event/ races in general. Contrast these commodified experiences with more traditional bike touring and the impact is significantly different. There are always a million profit driven reasons to say yes, without ever really considering the true impact until it’s too late. I guarantee you the people signing up are not thinking about that. And why should they. Maybe just being redundant, but I’m interrogating, perhaps wrongly, the concept and drive behind this experiential tourism in certain parts of the world.

[@galenkehler]

Full sus. Way faster and wouldnt beat you up