Interview with Melcior Mauri. Ready for the Titan Desert 2021
Titan Desert 2021 is about to begin. This year it returns to its origins and the destination is none other than Morocco. Melcior Mauri, leading cyclist of the KH7 team, gives us this interview to learn, a little more closely, how the preparations for this extreme race are like.
This year, the KH7 team is made up of cyclists of the stature of Núria Picas, Josep Betalú, Silvia Roura and Abraham Olan.
Preparation of the Titan Desert, by Melcior Mauri
TN – Melcior how do you feel after 12 years training and competing in the Titan Desert?
MM- This will be my 12th TITAN DESERT and the truth is that the first years I personally had a competitive spirit, looking for performance in my participations, managing to win in the 2007 edition, third in 2008 … but in the last editions, I have changed the chip, trying to dedicate myself more to enjoying the experience and managing the team that I assemble every year. Being one more in the race, I can be more attentive to all needs, I enjoy this aspect and will continue to enjoy it.
TN- You return to the Sahara this year. What do you think will change in this edition?
MM- In the Sahara desert, you never know what to expect. but basically it will be like in previous editions, with its most mountainous stages and its stages in the pure desert, where we have to cross dunes with our bicycles.
TN- How do you think having a GPS helps in this race? It is essential and mandatory to carry it.
MM – The organization gives us a few tracks a few days before traveling to Morocco, the coordinates of the obligatory crossing points, and therefore it is vital to use GPS to know where you are at all times.
TN – Your team has real champions and reputed athletes, how were the training sessions?
MM- For the TITAN DESERT every year I build a team, where I try to have runners for the race, and that their objective is to win it or to be among the best. But in the team there are also runners whose only objective is to finish the race. Imagine the range of options we have and that ultimately is the spirit of the team, helping each other to achieve our goal. Each one has trained what he could according to his personal situation. Those who are professionals, training is their job, but those who are looking for an experience and try to finish the race, have to take time from anywhere to have the minimum preparation required by the 6-stage race and more than 100km every day. It is not easy for them to combine it with work, family, etc … They are true TITANS.
TN – How does it feel to lead a team like this?
MM- For me it has become one more part of my work, but it is true that I am passionate about this career, and that I like everything to go well, and that the team members feel well supported by my experience and that of all their companions.
TN – How has the LAND software helped you in the preparation?
MM- For me it is fundamental. One of the things that I do and that I like a lot, is to prepare the official tracks, and alternative tracks and / or cuts that we can make, always respecting the mandatory crossing points that the organization gives us every day. It is here where every afternoon, with my computer and LAND, I prepare the Waypoint routes and all the options I can find to try to navigate off the official track and thus cut some distance. A trim doesn’t always go well, but it’s part of the essence of the TITAN to try.
TN – You have a GPS Cross and Trail 2 bike for this competition. How do you feel about the devices related to security?
MM- For this race the use of GPS is essential, and with this you feel that you are not lost in the middle of the desert, and that at all times you have control of where you are. Since I discovered the GPS I love to go to discover routes, both cycling and hiking, knowing that you control where you are at all times and that if it is not because of the GPS you are lost.
From TwoNav we wish the KH7 team the best of luck. We will explain its stages as the event progresses.