Extreme cyclist Marko Baloh will be taking part in this year's Race Across America (RAAM), joining his compatriot Jure Robic, last year's winner of what is considered as one of the hardest cycling races in the world.
The two will be among 25 cyclists who signed up for the coast-to-coast 4,920 km race that is characterised by extreme temperature differences and only about ten minutes of sleep per day.
"This year's race will be more difficult than any previous one," Baloh told the press on Tuesday, hopeful that he and his nine-man team will be among the first to brave the San Diego-Atlantic city route.
Baloh, who already raced in RAAM in 2003, said the greatest problem would be blisters on the bottom: everyone has them, the only question is who gets them later.
His team includes nutrition experts, a doctor, masseuse, mechanics and drivers. The bicycle he will be riding is a Slovenian-made Cult, which will weigh in at about nine kilo.
The race starts on 19 June; to clock in an official result, riders have to arrive in Atlantic City by 1 July.
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