Road To Baja - Episode 1

Nov 17, 2009

It was late 2008 when Radek Burkat and Andrew Krynen decided to run the legendary Baja 1000, a spontaneous idea conceived after watching Dana Brown's “Dust to Glory”. Andrew, with little more than a few enduro races in his pocket, and Radek, who had only crossed into moto from down hill mountain biking just a short year and a half earlier, saw the race as one of those notches in life's belt – something that you just have to go out and do.

If the decision to enter was spontaneous, the complexities of the prep work involved with the logistics of actually getting to the start line soon became apparent, and they didn't have much time. Fees had to be paid, equipment had to be purchased, bikes had to be built up, transportation getting to, from and around the Baja had to be worked out, and accommodation had to be found, all in short order. This was just the beginning, there were still plenty of arrangements to be made for the race itself, many of which would have to wait until the team was in the Baja.

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Watch: Episode 2 - Preriding

Watch: Episode 3 - The Race

To think that getting ready for the race would have been possible without the help of others would be unfathomable; Wayne Hodder, Karl Dempsey and the staff at No Limits Motorsports in Squamish B.C. worked long hours on getting the race bike mechanically re-worked. Ian McKill and Owen Kjarsgaard at Rider's Edge Suspension, along with Martin Lamoureux and Patrick Tellier with Elka got the bike's suspension and steering dialed in. Troy Lee Designs, Dakine and Oakley got Radek and Andrew set up with the riding gear they needed to withstand the hours they would spend on the bike in the grueling desert conditions.

So that the effort could be fully documented, Radek asked Ambrose Weingart of mountain biking movie “Back in the Saddle” fame to take part in the adventure and capture it on film. Edited, the film turned out to be an hour long and it seemed to capture the intended spirit of Chainslayer.com, so it was broken down into a three part series and used for the site's launch.

While the second part of the series will be released on November 23rd and the third shortly thereafter, here is the first installment of the three part “Road to Baja”. In it, Radek and Andrew discuss their ambition to run the Baja and detail their mechanical and mental preparation for the race ahead.