Discovering Oaxaca: 5 Years of TranSierra Norte
As fall starts rolling in the South Central Mexican Mountains, the soil gets moist, mornings get colder and the forests get ready for a yearly celebration of life on two wheels. If you roam about in Oaxaca City around these times, you will find the scent of orange and purple flowers, skulls made out of sugar, and “papel picado,” a colorful paper decoration. This is when riders from all over the world travel, to subliminally celebrate life on two wheels, slicing through soft, deep, organic, high-altitude Oaxacan soil. But how did this riding area get so popular?
TranSierra Norte started as a dream; finding a way to share the Sierra Norte region of Oaxaca, Mexico with the world. This mountainous region showcases huge mountains with deep rainforests, scrubs, and a variety of soil characteristics through elevation changes. When Alvaro Gutierrez, Alberto Rasgado, and Diego Sada joined forces, they didn't understand the power of the project they were putting together. Using Diego's experience organizing Mountain Bike races and setting up timing systems, Beto's knowledge of the Sierra Norte and trail-building skills, and Alvaro´s attitude and networking abilities. TranSierra Norte was born and the first edition of the race in 2017 was a big success, hosting international racers like Marco Osborne.
Marco Osborne has won a few stages on Mexican Soil. Just a few.
The 3 founders of TranSierra Norte. Left to Right: Alberto, Diego, and Alvaro.
Fast forward 6 years and Oaxaca is now one of the most popular riding destinations in North America. But what is it that makes the trails in Oaxaca so unique? Is it the thousands of vertical feet of elevation? The perfectly warm, year-round weather? Or the Off-The bike cultural and gastronomic assets that the region conserves, even after the industrial revolution and globalization. It is hard to say, but the combination of culture, terrain, and weather does offer a unique experience, especially for North Americans or Europeans looking to escape the colder weather and experience the tightest of corners in Mexico.
There is something special about the trails in Oaxaca, the Sierra Norte region has steep mountains with deep coniferous tree forests, different soil compositions, magueyes, and pine needles. The Treeline goes all the way up while the lower elevation sections are typically wide open with dryer dirt, shrubs, and rockier terrain. This creates a “reverse-alpine” effect as the higher elevation terrain has softer dirt while the lower sections of the mountains typically consist of rock, fast straights, and steep chutes. The construction of these trail networks dates back thousands of years ago, the Zapotecas used trails to navigate their way through the mountain systems to connect one community to the other. Certainly, these millenary trails need re-purposing to be rideable, but some of the original routes are still used to this day.
Head Trail Builder and local legend Beto carrying “El Toro”. Beto was born and raised in Oaxaca and discovered cycling later in his life after getting married. He got involved in some local events and then entered an XC race. After trying out Mountain Biking in that race, he started exploring the depths of the Sierra Norte. Today, Beto has a busy lifestyle in between trail building, and guiding riders from all over the world, having ridden with legendary names like Kurt Storge and Geoff Gulevich His signature smile, and positive attitude are contagious and if you ever talk to him, he will make sure you laugh.
One of the biggest challenges when it comes to building trails in Mexico is dealing with different landowners and territories. People in smaller communities still hold some ideals from “El Zapatismo” a political movement started by Emiliano Zapata during the Mexican Revolution. This movement was all about protecting land for workers and striving for equal opportunities in agriculture. These prevalent ideals often create a barrier as some communities are not necessarily willing to open their territories, let alone allow bicycles on them.
Carlos “Pachas” is one of TranSierra Norte's Trail Builders and guides. Growing up in Tehuacán Puebla, Pachas was a passionate cowboy, until he discovered Downhill Mountain Biking. Ever since then, he has dedicated his life to building trails in the South Central Mexico Area and helping out at events. Traveling to races, and riding areas to build more and more trails to ride.
Luckily, over the last few years, a lot of trails have been built in the different riding areas. Most of these trails have been built and are constantly maintained by TranSierra Norte for the race, or for the year-round tours TSN and other local companies offer. The TranSierra Crew has been able to develop different areas like La Cumbre Ixtepeji, Benito Juarez, San Agustin Etla, and San Pablo. This has been possible by communicating and collaborating with local communities, helping with the collection of trail fees, teaching basic trail-building techniques to locals, putting in some big dig days, supporting local businesses like convenience stores or restaurants, and bringing new people to the trails. Some communities are more open than others, nonetheless, the positive impact mountain biking has had in small communities is noticeable. Some of the small ecotourism centers have now upgraded their infrastructure and services offered. looks like things do not seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
If you have ridden “La impossible” or just driven to Ixtepeji, you have probably met Doña Tere, a local hard-working woman that runs a small convenience store and restaurant. She is always smiling and is very grateful to all the riders that go visit her shop.
The 5th anniversary of the TranSierra Norte race was held in October 2023, happening just before Dia de Muertos. New and returning racers from all over the world gathered to experience a week of blind racing in fresh-cut tracks, exploring places most tourists could not even imagine. Although there were a few shuttles and supported segments during the race, TranSierra Norte is mostly a backcountry experience. Some days of racing might have more than 2,500 meters of vertical drop on physically demanding, challenging terrain. Once off the bike, traditional flavors, drinks, and music keep the riders in check. Celebrating life and embracing death, as it will eventually come. The Day of the Dead celebration is a big element during the race as the faster riders in each category have to carry a skull during the entire day of racing. To celebrate 5 years of TranSierra Norte, the event was concluded with a symbolic lucha libre wrestling performance.
Alvaro Handing the skull to Cecilia Campuzano.
Throughout history, humans have overcome challenges and endured tough situations. Past ventures have shaped our current reality and influenced our actions. The development of riding areas in Mexico has been a combination of history, culture, passion, and hard work. Even though the progression toward more sophisticated infrastructure is still far away, it seems like the future is bright for Mountain Biking in Mexico. This is just one of the many stories of dreams that became a reality, with passion, love and commitment.
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Words and film Photography by Juan Francisco Garza Elenes
Juan Francisco Garza Elenes
Growing up surrounded by volcanoes and rolling hills in South Central Mexico, Juan got involved in the national riding scene at a young age. After high school, he relocated to British Columbia, Canada, just to ride the dirt he dreamed of as a kid. Currently enjoying life on two wheels between Vancouver Island, and the Sea-To-Sky corridor.
