Lukas Eisele and Hannes Noller delivered outstanding performances at 'The Traka'

Girona, Spain, has long been considered the epicentre of the European gravel scene, and the annual Traka event is the highlight of the racing calendar. This year, two employees from our R&D department lined up at the start line to compete in different races. Lukas Eisele, a mechanic in our R&D department, had set his sights on the prestigious 325-kilometre route with 3,600 metres of climbing, while product manager Hannes Noller had his sights firmly set on the 560-kilometre adventure distance with 9,500 metres of climbing. The unusually warm temperatures and extremely dusty tracks demanded the utmost physical endurance and maximum resilience from our colleagues.

With the clear tactical aim of finding a strong group early on for the fast flat sections, Lukas took to the start line. On his custom-built SILEX fitted with 50-millimetre-wide tyres for Catalonia's rough gravel tracks, he got off to a flying start.

However, he was forced to make an unscheduled stop due to a technical problem during the race and had to let his group get away. In attempting to close the gap alone, he had to use up valuable reserves. With the longest climb of the day still to come, along with another 100 kilometres, the race turned into a mental ‘tour de force’.

In the final third of the race, his performance stabilised again. After an official race time of 11 hours, 46 minutes and 49 seconds, Lukas crossed the finish line in Girona, securing an impressive 77th place in the professional field.

For Hannes, the 560-kilometre adventure race on his SILEX — which had been tuned for the event with the Picobello team build — marked the start of the 2026 ultra-racing season. The first half of the route, with an elevation gain of almost 6,000 metres, took him over four long climbs into the Pyrenees. Hannes found his rhythm early on and made good progress. After 13 hours of riding and 12 minutes of downtime, the mountains were behind him as darkness fell.

However, the toughest section of the race was yet to come. "Nine hours of darkness in early May are a mental discipline in their own right," said Hannes after the race. Nevertheless, with short refill stops at public fountains and a steady pace, he successfully made it through the night. As the first light of day broke, he still had 200 kilometres ahead of him, including an arduous 80-kilometre flat section against a headwind. On paper, this was an advantage; in reality, it was the toughest section of the day.

After 31 hours and 32 minutes, Hannes crossed the finish line on Saturday afternoon in an impressive 47th position. The rugged terrain, steep climbs and sheer length of the race had demanded everything from him.

The entire MERIDA team congratulates Lukas and Hannes on this outstanding performance! We are already looking forward to more race highlights later in the year.

Photo credit: @fffabi.f