Reilly Amabassador Carolina Kappes completed the Cantii Way, 235km in 12 hours 59 minutes total time, and with this achieved the Female Fastest Known Time.
Keep reading to find out more.
Fastest Female on the Cantii Way
It's awesome to get this, or it should be, but it doesn’t feel like a big achievement not because of my time, but because I was the first woman to attempt it. There had been no recorded attempts from a woman before. That’s something I’d really love to see change* because these challenges are fun, exciting, and more accessible than people might think.
For those who haven’t heard of FKTs, they’re essentially a leaderboard for specific routes, solo efforts where the fastest known time makes the leaderboard. Overall, Seasonal, and women’s standings.
*this FKT has since been tacken by another woman! Which is excellent news as I am so keen to see more women taking on these challenges.
Why representation matters (and makes it more fun)
I’ve seen first-hand how much more fun these challenges become when more people get involved.
I used to hold a QOM in Richmond Park, a slightly ridiculous one: 90km without leaving the ballet loop, if you left the loop you lost it as it is a Strava segment. For a long time, no other women had attempted it, so I had the QOM by default. I kept encouraging women. Eventually, someone did, someone took the QOM. Then I went back and took it again. This month she came back for it. And suddenly, what was once just a solo effort became a game. Something fun, competitive, and shared. We don’t know each other, there are “domestiques” involved now haha but good fun regardless. That’s what I’d love to see more of in the female FKTs. No empty leaderboards, but names, attempts, and a bit of back-and-forth who’s the fastest. As the men get, this same route someone got it in February and lost it in March, and slowly you are a little community of people having a go at this public routes. Because the challenge isn’t just the route, it’s the people who show up for it.
Cantil Way Route is 235km paved and unpaved.
The Cantii Way is 235km, advertised as 84% paved and 16% unpaved. I chose my Reilly Gradient, unsure how rough those off-road sections would be, and I’m very glad I did.
Early on, I hit a muddy stretch which evolved into a trail filled with sharp rocks. I ended up with a puncture. Honestly, I didn’t mind. My Panaracers had survived over 5000km, including two ultra events in Chile, one of them the 800km Across Andes, so I couldn’t complain.
One big lesson: 84% paved does not mean road. A huge portion of the route was pedestrian paths, which meant weaving through walkers and dogs instead of gaining time. That said, it was incredibly scenic and mostly traffic-free, definitely a route I’d recommend not just for a day effort, but even as a relaxed bikepacking trip with plenty of cafés and pubs along the way.
I carried most of my food, stopped once at a café and later at a chippy by the coast.
Cantii Way - My plan (or lack of one)
I had been thinking about attempting an FKT for a while, but couldn’t decide which route to go for. When I realised some had no female attempts at all, I decided to stop overthinking.
On Friday morning, I messaged the latest rider on the leaderboard (got no reply), prepped my bike and nutrition, and just committed, booked the 6:40am train to Ashford.
10km ride to the station, Train, 10 miles to Wye (the start) and I was rolling at around 8am. Done by 9pm, on the train around 9:30pm
The ride itself was peaceful and varied: Viking trails, views of the White Cliffs of Dover, forests, and coastal huts.
The toughest moment came near the end: Exhausted and in the dark I got to what seems to be the most memorable picture from all those that attempt it in winter: 5kms of deep, unavoidable puddles about 20km from the finish. I sacrificed one cold, wet foot to avoid being completely soaked. Later on when my message got a reply about the route I learned it was a wise decision.
In the end those are the moments that stick, the harder bits that make the story.
What’s next for ultra athlete, Carolina
I'm tackling Shipwrights Way and hoping that I will be the first female FKT on that route too.
I am also fully focused on my biggest ultra yet - The Transibérica which is an unsupported road cycling challenge. Participants design and follow their own route, passing through various mandatory checkpoints. The next edition will start in Oudenaarde (Belgium) and end in Bilbao, passing through Luxembourg, Switzerland, and France. The estimated route for this edition is around 3,000 km and 48,000 m.
