The last stage of the Milenio Titan Desert by GAES has been practically a tribute to all the survivors, those Titans who have done many efforts for the "finisher" Jersey. In the last stage, 60 km between Merzouga and Maadid, the Czech Fojtik has won after beating at the sprint Milton Ramos and Pinto.

After crossing the finish line, the Portuguese was exultant for his victory, after a tough week in which has had to overcome the pitfalls of the desert and the attacks of enemies. Pinto achieved his triumph thanks to a spectacular performance in the first stage, where a devastating attack left nailed all his rivals.

With an advantage of 8 minutes and a half over his main opponents, Pinto has been able to regulate and control the race when it was necessary, and suffer on the stage of the dunes, whenMilton Ramos almost turned the classification. Finally he has won the Titan Desert by 2 minutes and 7 seconds with respect to the hispano-hondureno.

"For me to win the Milenio Titan Desert by GAES was very important, I had it as a goal in my career. I think that this is a key point in my career, because with this I'm going to take a very important decision", has said the Portuguese, very happy for the win.

Pinto had some words of thanks to Roberto Heras, who was forced to leave by a collarbone fracture.

The eighth edition of the Milenio Titan Desert by GAES has left big names, such as the Italian Marzio Deho - winner of two stages with 44 years-, the Czech OndrejFojtik - third on the podium - or Claudia Galicia, the incontestable dominating in the women's category.

But, the most important has been to see how all those lovers of mountain biking that are not professional have sacrificed the maximum to achieve his dream and to reach the goal of Maadid. It has been a huge reward after many months of preparation, and an unforgettable experience.

The Milenio Titan Desert by GAES now looks to the future in 2014, where will be again one of the most important races in the world.

Imagine yourself in a place where no one has passed for days, weeks or even years, where water is more valuable than gold. Now imagine yourself taking part in a six-day 600km race from the dunes of the Sahara to the city of Granada. This is the MILLENNIUM TITAN DESERT by Powerade, a race against Mother Nature herself; a race against the limits of common sense; a race only for the strongest; a race for Titans.

THE TITAN DESERT 2011
Nearly 500 riders arrived in Erfoud, Morocco on Sunday morning, May 8th. All day long they went through the administrative checks and verifications for the sixth edition of the MILLENNIUM TITAN DESERT by Powerade. Although temperatures exceeded 35ºC, the riders appeared happy and confident in spite of what was waiting for them during the following days.

The initial stage, between Erfoud and Boudnib, an 87km course, was the first obstacle for the riders. The heat was oppressive in the dunes of Erfoud, and Roberto Heras was able to take advantage of his previous desert experience to accumulate a few minutes of lead over his main rivals. He and his fellow team member, the Portuguese Luís Leao Pinto, managed to break away from the rest of the group, gained ground, and had garnered a lead of 8 minutes when they passed the second check point.

Behind them the rest of the group started to push hard and Heras and his teammate began to suffer from the effort expended. The peloton came up from behind to narrow the lead, and at Water Point 3 their advantage had been reduced to only 3 minutes. Pinto warned Heras that he couldn't keep up the pace and the Spaniard had to cover the last 20 kilometres alone, with Milton Ramos and Triki Beltrán stepping on his heels.

At the finish line, Heras had had managed to maintain an advantage of 56 seconds over Ramos, enough of a lead make him optimistic about the following stages.

During the next four days, Roberto Heras and Milton Ramos played cat and mouse, with similar scores in the timed stages. When Heras began an attack, Milton would follow, and when Milton tried to break away, Heras, Pinto or another member of the lead bunch was there to prevent it.

At the end of the fifth stage, after 500km, only 54 kilometres separated Heras and Ramos. The favourites were ready for the last round in Spain.

The last stage, from Abla to Granada, 110km with a total vertical climb of 2000m, would decide the winner of the race. Before the start of the stage, Roberto positioned his bike right behind Milton, as if to say: You won't get far. But Milton intended to play his last card on one of the big hills in the stage. At Kilometre 60 he attacked and tried to gain a bit of lead when they passed the second check point, but Pinto and Heras caught up with him after a few kilometres. With no more opportunities left for the Spaniard of Honduran origin, he and Heras crossed the line together and the man from Béjar became the winner of the desert ordeal for the third time.

Following the trend in past editions, this year the race attracted more foreign riders and established itself as the most important MTB enduro event organised in Spain. In 2010 foreign riders arrived at the race in force, representing more than 15% of the total number of participants. Out of a total of 335 riders from 16 different countries, Spain was again the most heavily represented country in the event. Even so, there were more than 40 foreign riders at the starting line, breaking all records from previous years. What's more, there was a quantum leap in the quality and preparation of the cyclists. Illustrious names in cycling ventured to compete and cyclists of the stature of Tinker Juarez and Igor Astarloa appeared in the race for the first time.

The big surprise of the race were the two riders from the Czech Republic, Ondrej Fojtik and Martin Horak, who from the first day set a spectacular pace that placed them at the front of the field. Only Roberto Heras was able to stay up with them, displaying all his skills in the mountain stages and taking the lead in the event with two spectacular solo breaks in stages 3 and 4 that put him out in front at the finish line in Ouarzazate. Heras was able to recover from a puncture in the fourth stage which caused him to lose almost 10 minutes and a fall in the fifth and last special stage that endangered the final result. With this victory, Roberto Heras became, with his win in 2008, the first repeat winner in the Nissan Titan Desert.

In the team classification, the Radikal Bikes group, made up of Milton Ramos, Marc Trayter and Oriol Morata, prevailed over Nissan CEE 1 (Central Europe), composed of Ondrej Fojtik, Martin Horak and Peter Hasenfrazt. In third place was Doctore Bike, with Roberto Heras, José Raúl Hernández and Fernando Pérez.

In the women's category, Nuria Lauco also made history by obtaining a second victory in the competition. The woman rider from Granollers was able to prevail over rivals Nuria Espinosa and Nuria Jiménez and finished in a spectacular 89th place in the general individual classification. In addition, Lauco won in the new Duo Mixto category begun in 2010, making up the Madform Aumartrans-Basoli team with Santi Ribot.

A total of 289 participants were able to complete the Nissan Titan Desert 2010. There were a lot of winners in this race, not only those who finished at the head of their classifications, but all those who were able to outdo themselves and complete the entire course, facing the challenge of the desert and overcoming their own limits, following a dream and becoming the Titans of the 2010 edition.

With a new stage between Tazzarine and Ouarzazate included, they crossed rivers, oueds, sand deserts and the mountains of the southern Atlas range, negotiating endless rocks and deep sand. There was a tough marathon stage of 230 kilometres without assistance divided into two difficult days which included almost 90 kilometres of navigation. This really put these intrepid riders to the test and marked a turning point in the general classification with a break by Israel Nuñez which gave him the advantage needed to stay in the lead.

In the women's division, the Andorran Ariadna Tudel left many of the male riders open-mouthed by keeping up with the paceline at all times and turning in an unprecedented performance in the race, winning each and every stage in her category.

In the team classifications CMR-Evolution with Melcior Mauri, stole the victory from under the noses of the Federació Catalana group in the last stage to become the winners in the team category. Chance had a part to play in this upset since one of the members of the Federació Catalana team had a puncture a few kilometres after the start of the last stage and couldn't catch up with the paceline.

In the end, the Nissan Titan Desert demonstrated once again that physical training and mental strength are the most important factors in the race, how luck can be one of the best allies in the desert, and how no one is safe from physical and mechanical problems and orientation errors. These factors, which are so crucial to the final result, can be added to the endless list of reasons contributing to complicated love-hate relationship that participants have with the Titan Desert race.

After a tough race, some of the riders were already subconsciously preparing for the 2010 edition by analysing the mistakes made in 2009 so they won't trip over the same rock. In the desert, experience is like a university degree and the lessons learned all add up.

The overall winner, Roberto Heras, was only one of many protagonists in this fourth edition. Besides Heras, other riders played an important part, such as Joan Llordella, Raúl Hernández, Nuria Lauco, Rafa Pérez. But so did the heat, the sand, the storms and the water. Those who experienced this year's race will take away a lot of indelible memories.

From the sports point of view, the race was dominated from beginning to end by Roberto Heras, who did not, however, have an easy job of it. Contrary to what it might appear, the rider from Béjar suffered a lot to overcome the adversities of the course and keep Joan Llordella, who never gave up the race as lost, at bay. Raúl Hernández also demonstrated his mastery, taking the third and fifth stages to become the rider who won the most stages.

One of the heroines of 2008 was Nuria Lauco, who won the overall women's category after a fierce struggle with her teammates from the Catalan Cycling Federation, Bárbara Teixell and Mercé Pacios.

But the Nissan Titan Desert had a lot of stories that will always remain in the memory of those who experienced it. Stories like that of Jaime Gallego who, at the age of 67 and with the support of his entire town, was the oldest participant in the race, and who won the hearts of all those who shared his suffering and happiness.

Or the story of the tandem made up of Sergi Fernández de Tolosa and Joaquín Sánchez, a blind man from Cádiz who, despite provoking a scare or two, showed that recognition is for the brave.

The performance of riders like Miguel �ngel Heras and Rafa Pérez (who, at the age of 54, won the Master 50 and placed 10th overall), the exemplary navigation of Melcior Mauri and the efforts of Andrés Jiménez and Toño Llorente, who had exchanged dribbling for pedalling, will forever have a place in the race Hall of Fame.

Beyond any doubt the Nissan Titan Desert came of age with its third edition. The race has reached maturity, is recognised all over the world and has sparked the interest of professionals and amateurs alike. No one can question the fact that this is one of the most demanding events on the planet. Any doubters who might remain are invited to see for themselves.

The first stage, which left from Maadid, was a good warm-up for the legs, with nearly forty kilometres in a loop which returned the riders to the Hotel Xaluca. The surprise arrived at night with heavy rains that didn't stop until the small hours of the morning. The race organisation had to cancel the second stage, since it was impossible to complete the course due to the flooding of the oueds surrounding the city of Erfoud.

The route had to be modified over the next few days in order to complete the 5-stage course. Rafa Bosch kept the red leader's jersey until the last stage, where Melcior Mauri, in great shape and discovering the advantages of good navigation, staged a coup and arrived at the finish line in Maadid as the leader of the event, ahead of Miguel Angel Saez and Santi Prat. Isabel Gandia was the first woman to finish.

The event, with all its unexpected inclement weather, demonstrated that it has reached maturity and has become a reference point in the world of mountain biking.

The first day was noteworthy for the speed at which it was run, and a first group of riders already stood out from the rest.

The second and third days were dominated by Pedro Vernis and Josef Ajram, who arrived at the Belle Etoile inn with a chance of disputing the victory in the fourth and final stage, which would take the peloton to the town of Erfoud.

But nobody had counted on a new component in this type of race: navigation. An attack by Pepe Domenech right after the start and a mistake by the lead bunch completely overturned the general classification for a few kilometres. At the end, though, everything was back to normal and, after a spectacular recovery by the riders who had previously dominated the race, Pedro Vernis crossed the finish line in Maadid first and was proclaimed the winner of the first Titan Desert.

He was joined on the podium by Josef Ajram and Mauro Carné, separated by only thirty-seven seconds. Amparo Ausina was the women's winner.