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Svein Tuft just finished the 1,040-kilometer BC Epic 1000 event in British Columbia in 2 days and 3 hours, setting a new fastest known time in the process. We intercepted him at the Kootenay Lake Ferry yesterday to snap some photos and see how he was doing…
While Canada’s BC Epic 1000 might not have as much notoriety as the Tour Divide or other ultra-endurance races, it’s shaping up to be one of the most anticipated events each year here in British Columbia. The first grand depart was in 2016, following a roughly 1,040-kilometer route between Merritt and Fernie along old decommissioned rail grades, gravel roads, and a touch of pavement. It’s a spectacular ride, but those who have ridden it all agree its pleasant rail trail grades are deceivingly difficult. It’s certainly no walk in the park, but every year more and more riders show up for the grand depart.
This year, over 70 riders are participating in the 2024 BC Epic 1000. Most ride eastbound from Merritt, but a small group started from Fernie. There is only one singlespeeder, and 14 riders have already scratched from the event. Among the fastest riders signed up is ex-pro road racer Svein Tuft, whom we’ve featured on the website several times. Apparently, his days of racing aren’t entirely behind him, and he took an early lead at this year’s event and held onto first place throughout the entire route, finishing this morning with a time of 2 days and 3 hours (2d:3h).
Svein beat Tom Hainisch’s 2019 record by a whopping 16 hours and Rob Britton’s 2022 ITT time by six hours, and became the first BC Epic 1000 rider to reach the Kootenay Lake Ferry on day two, setting himself up for an unimaginably fast time. I happened to be in the area yesterday and took the ferry with Svein, hoping to record a conversation, but in reality, he wasn’t talking much. It’s also worth noting that this was Svein’s first time participating in the BC Epic 1000.
He was complaining of knee pain and struggling to walk. He eventually climbed into his emergency bivvy for a quick nap on the ferry before tackling the infamous Gray Creek Pass. At one point he turned to me and said, “This riding all night thing is completely fucked up.” Just before I met Svein at the ferry, it was dumping rain in Nelson, and the thought of climbing up over 2,000 meters (6560 feet) seemed pretty intimidating. It looks like he had a brief break on the other side, got up and over the pass before dark, and resupplied at a gas station in Kimberly before pushing on.
Svein rolled into Fernie this morning, taking first place at the 2024 BC Epic 1000 and setting a new fastest known time (FKT). He is followed by Mike Martin and Owen Vermeulen, who are approximately 200 kilometers behind him, and they’ll be battling it out for second place later today. Congrats, Svein!
Head over to the BC Epic 1000 event page to follow along live.
Further Reading
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