Can you really enjoy the delights of a new country when you’re racing through it at high speed on a stage race? There’s only one way to find out…
Words Franky Simmons Photography As Credited
If you have been lucky enough to have ridden mountain bikes on a foreign holiday you will know the joy that can come from exploring completely new trails, admiring amazing scenery and imbibing tasty local food and drink after a ride in the sunshine. Perhaps you’ve experienced the thrill of racing, either as part of a team in a 24-hour race, in full-face enduro, or maybe just on virtual social platforms. But what if racing mountain bikes could also be a riding holiday? What a great excuse to head for some early spring weather relief and fresh trails. With that idea in mind, we signed up to the 4Islands cross-country stage race in Croatia.
What is the 4Islands race?
Held in April each year, the 4Islands race in Croatia takes riders across four of the main islands in the Kvarner region at the northern end of the Adriatic. The area is close to the wine-producing Istrian peninsula and is formed of pine-covered isles that nestle in crystal-clear azure seas from which exceptional seafood emerges onto plates at harbourside restaurants. Add in low rainfall, warm springtime temperatures (usually) and easy access via budget airline flights, then the box marked ‘holiday’ is well and truly ticked. That just leaves the question of the riding opportunities.
The 4Islands race is a ‘mid-distance’ stage race event at nearly 300km and 6,000m of climbing over five days: four race stages plus a short prologue. Most importantly the trails are fabulous – challenging, but rideable with epic scenery that ranges from mountain meadows and pine forests to dusty trails skimming along the edge of that azure water.
Your race fee is all-inclusive, so you don’t have to plan for or fund accommodation, food or transfers within the race. You turn up, ride, repair/refuel and repeat. It is a pairs team race and for the 2023 edition, it was officially a UCI Cross-Country, Marathon, Stage, Class 1 event. Hence it attracted a strong field of the world’s top team riders, but was equally welcoming to chancers like my race partner Gee and me.
Arriving for the race
We arrived on a late afternoon flight from Manchester via Zagreb, driving over the Velika Kapela mountains and on to the island of Krk through a brief snowstorm. We thought we’d left winter behind, but down at sea level the next morning it remained cool. Better weather was forecast later, so we spent some time exploring Baška, the start town for the race. It turned out to be a small fishing/tourist beachfront town and harbour in a state of pre-season quiet. Annual maintenance of cafés was underway with workers swinging paintbrushes casting confident glances as the grey clouds started to lighten.
The atmosphere was amiable back at the hotel as exotically formed carbon race bikes were liberated from bike bags. The etiquette, of course, is to coo admiringly at the other rides, nodding appreciatively to hide the fact that you hope they’ve brought the wrong equipment. You earnestly want your bike to be common enough so that you don’t feel like you brought a spoon to a knife fight, but at the same time you hope to have made a unique choice that will yield a magical advantage. I spied a few other Yeti SB100s so I felt my choice of bike was OK, while Gee’s Orbea Oiz was clearly the ride of choice for a lot of European cross-country racers. Almost without exception Eagle AXS was the preferred drivetrain, although plenty of people seemed to be running a 28T ring up front while we were both on 32T. Again, Gee’s choice was bang on trend when it came to tyres (Maxxis Ikon front and rear), while my Maxxis Aspen up front and Ardent Race caused a bit of chin stroking.
After a brief spin to check the bikes were mechanically sound, we headed to registration where, along with our number boards we picked up a free 4Islands cycling top (race cut… hmm), a set of daily race profile top tube stickers (navigation is all about up and down in cross-country racing), an emergency GPS transponder (just in case), and a set of tags (for riders, for bike bags and for ‘strip-stop’ bags). Our bike bags were tagged and handed over to be transported to the finish line and our strip-stop bags were dropped at the start line each day so we’d have warm clothing at the end of each stage.
The prologue sprint
Next morning when we lined up for the prologue, a UCI official checked that our numbers were properly attached – a detail which reminded us that this was going to be a proper race. The prologue is critical if you are a serious racer as it determines your start position in the main event. Of course, if you are imposters like us, this is just a fun sprint race and a chance to gauge how good or evil the organisers have been. A key attraction of racing is that it provides the perfect means of finding the best tracks in an area. Local course directors always want to show off their finest trail features. We were keen to see what they had laid on for us.
The first kilometre of the race is a feature unique to 4Islands, an energy-sapping blast along a shingle beach. This took just five minutes of the fifty we spent on the prologue course, but felt like an eternity as our wheels spun hopelessly beneath us. The only satisfaction was seeing the pair in front of us also suffering, although somehow the pair behind were gaining.
Off the beach at last, a rocky section with steep falls to the ocean on one side claimed someone’s derailleur and, just 2km into race, he had to shoulder his bike. We dropped down a flowing descent through pine trees before blasting along dry stone walled lanes and up a series of short, sharp climbs on tarmac and loose track. The steepest section was all rocks and became a walk-up due to trail traffic, but after that it was down a fast techy trail before a riverside blast to the start/finish. Lungs screaming, we skidded to a halt over the finish line – we’d only completed 2% of the race, but it felt like we’d given 100%.
The beach start isn’t the only unique feature of 4Islands. Alongside the superb free post-ride meal of burgers and veggie wraps we picked up a drink from the café truck which travelled with the race dispensing excellent coffee, cold beer and curious (but tasty) Croatian isotonic drinks, all free of charge.
Mountain bike cross-country stage racing is a niche sport and if you ride a few events, you will run into familiar faces. Relaxing in the race village as the sun broke through, we chatted with Chloe Cross who we’d met at the BC Bike Race in Canada. Chloe was in third position in the mixed pairs, while we were pleased not to be in the slowest start group and thankful to still have rear mechs attached to our bikes.
Stage one…
The next morning brought us sunshine and a busy breakfast buffet as 400 riders and race support staff readied themselves for the 78km and 1,800m of climbing that lay ahead. Bikes were retrieved from the secure bike park and checked while sneaking an obligatory espresso from the riders’ bar before a nervous wee and entering our assigned starting pen. Bouncing dance music was paused with 30 seconds to go; at 10 seconds the hushed silence was broken by a chorus of beeps, snaps and vrrrrs as GPS units started, cleats were clipped and cranks rotated ready for maximum power. Once the air horn had wailed, the music cranked back up and off we went.
Stage one of the race proper took us along Baška harbour and up steep forested climbs high above the bay. A procession formed as the race snaked its way along a balcony trail that winched up onto a lunar surface style plateau. Loose gravel dropped us into Vrbnik where the first feed station came around quicker than we needed. It was temping to spin through and start the next climbing section, but alongside the usual fare of gels, fruit and isotonics, were stalls from local farmers. We might have been racing, but the chance to scoff a few samples of amazing quality olive oil and local hard cheese was not to be missed.
The mid-section of the stage was hard going – long climbs and a couple of steep descents offered up views of the mainland before turning back towards Baška and a final brutal climb up a narrow gully that culminated in a fast and extended technical descent. For us, conditions were not dissimilar to riding in places like the Peak District, but plenty of riders were opting to walk down over the rockiest sections. The downhill trend continued all the way back to the start/finish and we felt in good condition as we crossed the line.
Rides deposited with the bike wash crew, we grabbed some recovery kebabs and a drink from the refreshment truck. The hotel had a pool and spa, so I chilled out and let the hot tub massage five hours of riding out of my legs. We took advantage of the all-you-can-eat dinner buffet and then packed to be ready early for the next day as it promised another of 4Islands unique features – the ferry start.
Bikes on deck!
A short coach ride took us to the local port for a 90-minute sail in the sunshine with the race start line DJs belting out ’80s classics on deck. Once docked at the island of Rab, Millennium Falcon-style ramps opened on the car deck and revealed our bikes stashed below. Over the next three days, the ferry was our floating bike park, hosting the workshop crews who were kept busy from day one. The ship also formed the starting grid, with riders lined up on the car deck awaiting a blast of the funnel horn to get things underway.
Stage two was a similar distance to the opener, but with less climbing. The convoluted route wound across the island through pine forests and vineyards punctuated by trails carved out by local clubs. The final stretch of the day brought us at high speed into the town of Rab itself. We rode fast down marble steps and through narrow streets, placing total faith in the race marshals as we raced round blind corners and across piazzas. With the day’s end in sight, I called to Gee to jump on my rear wheel as I pulled past a pair of Germans on the final straight. Fit to puke as I crossed the line, I looked over my shoulder to see Gee trundling through the finish arch. His cassette was wobbling like a drunk ballerina, loosened when he’d taken an aggressive line over a steep drop instead of the wide line down a ramp which had been provided.
We fixed the cassette while munching on the finish line meal and, thinking all was in order, headed to the hotel. The dinner buffet included free wine on tap, so we relaxed with a glass of red, looking out across Paradise Beach, which we’d ridden past at the start of the day.
Queen’s gambit
Another early morning sunny cruise took us to Cres, our third island. With 90km of riding and over 2,000m of climbing, the Queen stage looked brutal on paper, and bikes needed to be in top condition as it included some of the roughest descending of the race.
When we retrieved Gee’s bike from below decks, it was clear that his back end was in a bad way. We’d fixed the cassette the day before, but, in our fatigue, missed a snapped bolt in his rear shock. With 15 minutes to the ship’s horn the race mechanics began searching through their stores for a spare. The proper part wasn’t to be found, but they dug out a bolt that sort of fitted. It wasn’t pretty and it rattled, but it was the best available and we chanced a start.
Nervous of the bush-fix, we rode steady. For me it was a joy to hurtle down steep rocky tracks, but for Gee the experience was tempered by checking the bolt was firm after each of the many descents. Seven hours from the start, I needed a lift as we ground up the last hill. A Glen Campbell classic came to mind and I started singing improvised lyrics to match the rocks around us. I belted out “like a limestone cowboy…”, and a Peruvian rider alongside smiled and joined in. We chatted to take our minds off the climb with me explaining how similar the trails felt to the best UK trails, while he said the climbs in this race were mercifully short compared to races back in his homeland.
Nearly the end
No ferry start for stage four as the final island of Lošinj could be reached by bridge. With a bit more time available pre-race we soaked up the start line atmosphere while grabbing a harbourside coffee. The closing stage was only 45km with just 1,000m of climbing, starting with a spin along a twisting promenade cantilevered out over the water’s edge. Our group left the start line about ten minutes after the pro-riders and as we came round one of the bends the reality of racing was brought into stark focus. Lying on the ground, surrounded by paramedics, was Chloe from Canada. A crash on a flat concrete path had taken her from podium to hospital.
We were surplus to the crash site, so we raced on, climbing to radio masts high above the town which marked the start of a series of downhill courses. Our route avoided the ramps and jumps, but did include the most gruelling climb of the race. It took me nearly 19 minutes to ride up the 1.4km track which exceeded a gradient of 25% in places. The fastest pro did it in eight minutes…
It’s quite extraordinary that complete outsiders are allowed to race on the same day and at the same time as professionals. For us, racing is about chasing whatever pair is ahead of us and trying to stave off the inevitable overtake when we can. On the descents we’d done well because the loose limestone boulders were familiar territory. Climbing, we could survive as the maximum height-gain per climb was only 450m. Combined, that made 4Islands a challenge, but something riders from the UK and many other locations can readily train for.
After crossing the finish line together, Gee and I exchanged our GPS transponder for medals and watched the rest of the field come in through the bottom of glasses filled with cold beer (still no charge). We were relieved to finish and to discover that while Chloe’s race had been ended by a 15mm displacement fracture of her C1 vertebrae, she’d escaped spinal damage. She is now back in Canada recuperating.
The 4Islands tagline is ’Conquer The Rocks’, but it’s known by the mechanics as ’The Bike Smasher’. It is undoubtedly and unashamedly tough, but far from impossible. The race showcases the islands brilliantly. We enjoyed basking in sunshine on ferries, great hotels with excellent facilities, fabulous views and a culture of good food, wine and cold beer. If that sounds like a holiday, well it was. But, on top of that, most of all, the race showcased what this corner of Croatia has to offer mountain bikers – brilliant trails, fun descending without endless climbs, and a warm welcome. You could easily explore it on your own, but why not try racing it for yourself?
