Felix Walchshofer: The historic 2 Year Road to Challenge Roth

The Pacing and Racing Podcast

I think just about everyone has been there by now where they opened their email or social media and saw the headline that their biggest race of the year has been postponed or canceled. I know I’ve been there with Challenge Roth and I know it’s been hard for so many people out there. I mean think of the Olympic athletes that we’ve had on this show alone that have been battling fiercely for years to get into peak fitness like Katie Zaferes and Henri Schoeman and Taylor Spivey.

It’s unbelievable to think of the ripple effect, but a lot of us tend to think about the athletes but we don’t realize the work behind the scenes to put on these events have been severely affected also.

That’s why I invited back on my good friend Felix Walcshofer from Challenge Roth to chat with us about what it’s like being a family-run event that has had to offer free cancellation to 5000+ athletes and how an event like this weathers this type of storm. Because remember, they put out tens of thousands of dollars in preparation for this event and this essentially is annual income for many of the Challenge Roth team.

This was a topic that always crosses my mind. I am eager and super optimistic to race Challenge Roth in 2021 but I couldn’t help but shed some light on some sacrifices this event team has made for us to have 2021 a possibility. Not only that, but I wanted to share some of Felix’s stories about how this 2 year build to the Road to Roth also comes with many new and exciting opportunities.

From discussion on race event cancellations, to supportive communities, to incredible stories from our favourite athletes like Jan Frodeno, Anne Haug and so much more. We’ll share all of this and more with you in today’s chat so without further ado, let’s get into it!