After three days of rain and a chilly turn of events here in Southern Germany, the start of the TransAlpine race’s was welcomed with a sunny, albeit chilly morning. Today, with my teammate Stuart Lotherington of London, England and I will tackle one of the hardest races in the world – to cross the steepest and toughest 240km of the Alps, crossing 4 countries in 8 days for a total elevation increase of 15,442 meters (nearly the equivalent of two Everests in 8 days – whew!).