Lael, on a quick test ride in Tecate to check all systems last night. To her right, is the US/MX border.

Lael Wilcox departed the public plaza in the center of Tecate this morning at 5:12AM, beginning a timed ride on the Baja Divide in an attempt to establish a fastest known time (FKT) on the route. Lael is riding a Specialized Fuse with 29×2.6” Schwalbe Nobby Nic tires for this ride, further customized with a 100mm RockShox SID RLC fork and Cirrus Cycles BodyFloat seatpost, along with her well-used Revelate framebag, Viscacha seatpack, Mag Tank, and oversized Jerry Can. She aims to finish at the plaza in San Jose del Cabo— over 1500 miles away— in a time of about 10-12 days. Learn more about the details of an FKT attempt on the Records page of the Baja Divide website.

This morning, two local riders and our friend Salvador from FASS Bike in Vicente Guerrero joined us in the plaza in Tecate. After a few quick photos, Lael was off into the clear, starry morning. The first day includes substantial elevation gain and some decent quality backcountry roads.

The Baja Divide is a free route resource and is open to ride at any time, at any pace that pleases the rider. The route was conceived and researched by Nicholas Carman and Lael Wilcox during the 2015-16 winter season and was published in the summer of 2016. In the last year, Lael has already ridden the length of the peninsula three times. This is her fourth ride. Learn more about the complete 1700 mile route at www.bajadivide.com.

Follow Lael’s Baja Divide FKT attempt at Trackleaders.com.