MTB racing on the Silk Road of Kyrgystan

Kit list: Silk Road Mountain Race

By Pete McNeil

Faced with 1700km across the wild trails and remote mountain roads of Kyrgystan. Pete McNeil loaded up his Broken Road with Alpkit luggage and kit. The terrain varied from fast gravel and washboard trails, through to technical single track and quite a bit of hike-a-bike on steep ground.

Pete took a conservative kit choice based on his experience and packed more than many other riders. In the end this approach paid off, securing him 8th place in 11.5 days with only a third of the field finishing. Many other riders had opted for drop bar gravel bikes while Pete chose to race on his Broken Road. He decided to prioritise comfort on uneven ground over out-and-out speed on the gravel sections. Giving him the ability to keep pedalling for longer before having to get off and push when the going got particularly rough and steep.


Here is a full breakdown of his kit for the race to help you plan your own long distance epics. We've separated it into each bag to give you an idea of how to load up your bike.

Clothing:

Seatpack:

Frame Bag:

Cockpit and top tube bags:

  • Food for the day
  • Arm warmers
  • Suncream
  • Chamois cream
  • Spare batteries
  • Qark
  • Camera
  • Phone
  • Backup paper maps
  • Tracker
  • GPS

Bar roll:

Sonder Broken Road

  • SRAM SX Eagle 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Recon Silver RL fork
  • Sonder Nova 29" UK Made wheelset

£1,499.00 or from £26 /month
Buy Now. Be Riding in 10 days.
  • Shimano Deore M6100 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Recon Silver RL fork
  • Sonder Nova 29" UK Made wheelset

£1,599.00 or from £28 /month
Buy Now. Be Riding in 10 days.
  • SRAM NX Eagle 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Recon Silver RL fork
  • Sonder Nova 29" UK Made wheelset

£1,699.00 or from £30 /month
Buy Now. Be Riding in 10 days.
  • Shimano SLX M7100 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Recon Silver RL fork
  • Sonder Nova 29" UK Made wheelset

£1,699.00 or from £30 /month
Buy Now. Deliveries from 21 October.
  • SRAM GX Eagle 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Reba RL fork
  • Sonder Alpha 29" UK Made wheelset

£2,299.00 or from £40 /month
Buy Now. Be Riding in 10 days.
  • Shimano XT M8100 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Reba RL fork
  • Sonder Alpha 29" UK Made wheelset

£2,299.00 or from £40 /month
Buy Now. Be Riding in 10 days.
  • SRAM GX Eagle AXS 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Reba RL fork
  • Sonder Alpha 29" UK Made wheelset

£2,799.00 or from £48 /month
Buy Now. Be Riding in 10 days.
  • 4130 Chromoly frame
  • Optimised for 29 and 27.5" wheels
  • Full set of rack and cage mounts
£699.00 or from £12 /month
Buy Now. In stock for same day despatch.
  • SRAM SX Eagle 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Recon Silver RL fork
  • Sonder Nova 29" UK Made wheelset

£1,949.00 or from £34 /month
Buy Now. Be Riding in 10 days.
  • Shimano Deore M6100 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Recon Silver RL fork
  • Sonder Nova 29" UK Made wheelset

£2,099.00 or from £36 /month
Buy Now. Be Riding in 10 days.
  • SRAM NX Eagle 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Recon Silver RL fork
  • Sonder Nova 29" UK Made wheelset

£2,149.00 or from £37 /month
Buy Now. Be Riding in 10 days.
  • Shimano SLX M7100 12-speed groupset
  • RockShox Recon Silver RL fork
  • Sonder Nova 29" UK Made wheelset

£2,299.00 or from £40 /month
Buy Now. Deliveries from 21 October.

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