Race up “La Cuchilla” at GFNY Bogota
GFNY, the global endurance sport series, is coming to
Bogota, Colombia on July 17, 2022!
The Course
The GFNY Bogota course starts and finishes in the charming town of Guatavita, at an elevation of 2725m. You’ll warm up your legs as you make your way to Sesquile, a nearby colonial town, and back, over a relatively flat 40km. You’ll enjoy the beautiful views of Guatavita Lake and lush greenery covering the rolling hills of the Bogota savanna.
The course then takes a left turn onto Calle 8, which is the beginning of the first major challenge: La Cuchilla, from Guasca. Starting at 2625m, this 14km-long ascent will 735m of climbing wow you with beautiful, rich, green Andes mountain views and numerous switchbacks. The scenery will help distract you from the challenge in your legs and lungs as you make your way to La Cuchilla’s summit at 3360m.
Once at the top of Cuchilla, put on your jacket or vest for the descent. The medium distance riders turn around and head back to the finish line in Guatavita, while the long distance riders take on the fast and beautiful descent down the other side of La Cuchilla, which is arguably the most beautiful part of the course.
The 20km descent will provide some recovery, but will drop you to the lowest point of the course, at 2390m. From this side, the La Cuchilla climb will be that same 20km you just descended and 1025m of climbing.
Once you reach the summit of La Cuchilla, it’s just 25km until the finish line in Guatavita, but the race is not over yet. The 14km descent will make you work, with its turns and switchbacks. At the bottom of the descent, find a group to cover the fast, flat, and straight 7kms before the final challenge of the day. The final 3km climb to the finish line in Guatavita has a manageable 3.4% average, but after racing almost 120km with 2500m, the climb will put a sting in your legs. There will be a total of 6 fully stocked aid stations on the race course, especially at the top of La Cuchilla.
Back in Guatavita, a festive post-race celebration with finisher medals, music and awards awaits. Check out the local crafts market and all that Guatavita has prepared for GFNY Bogota athletes to celebrate your accomplishments on this amazing day.
Long Route – 121 Km / 2565m+
Medium Route – 81 Km / 1475m+
About Bogota
Bogota is the capital of and largest city in Colombia. It’s a place of convergence for people from all around the country, making it diverse and multicultural, the “melting pot” of Colombia. This diversity drives a fascinating cultural, culinary and social way of life that makes for an exciting and memorable visit that you’ll want to repeat.
Within Bogota, the past and present come together from the commanding Andes mountains, to the colonial architecture to the modern high-rises with trendy decor. And you’ll enjoy this unique combination as part of your GFNY Bogota race: the pre-race expo takes place in Bogota, but it’s the nature outside Bogota that you’ll enjoy as part of the race course, including the famous La Cuchilla mountain at above 3000m altitude.
About Guatavita
Guatavita, the host town of the start & finish festivities for GFNY Bogota, is a 1hr drive from Bogota and is an architectural heritage site. With its colonial architecture, cobble streets, crafts market and Central Square, take some time in the days before the race to combine a course recon ride with sightseeing this charming town.
GFNY Perks
THE JERSEY
All riders receive the official GFNY race jersey, which is mandatory attire at the race. The jersey is designed in NYC and Made in Italy.
FINISHER MEDAL
Every GFNY Bogota finisher receives a medal, no matter which distance they complete. All finishers also earn a “Finish” towards their 3×2022 GFNY medal or the 10x lifetime medal. Go to gfny.com/medals for more information on GFNY’s multi-finisher medals.
GFNY WORLD
The top 10% of finishers in all age groups riding the long course qualify for the front corral start at the GFNY World Championship NYC.
Getting There
Bogota’s El Dorado International Airport (BOG) is the central hub of Colombia. It’s a modern airport with Duty Free shopping, free Wifi, money exchange and a handful of restaurants and bars. With daily International and domestic flights from many major cities around the world, you will find traveling to Bogota to be an easy trip. Some of the main airlines that fly into Bogota include:
- United Airlines
- American Airlines
- Delta
- Spirit
- Copa Airlines
- AeroMexico
- Avianca
- Wingo
*All foreign travelers need to fill out a small online form before entering the country as per immigration policy.
Tag: LatAm
