We caught up with Bryan Gensits, the champion of the first edition of this extraordinary race, to hear more about his experience.

1. Can you share a little about your background and running journey?

I started running seriously in 2019 while completing my M.Sc. and living in Bhutan to prepare for the GlobalLimits race there. I had been a very recreational runner in my life up to that point, but had always been intrigued by ultramarathons and knew I'd want to participate in one at some point in my life. I had no idea what I was doing then, but just started increasing milage and found some unexpected early success that year. Then covid hit and I moved back to the USA- running took a backseat to starting a career and other parts of life for a few years. In the last year, I have been able to devote the time I would like to to running again while training a bit more seriously to compete at a higher level in races that I hope will allow me to travel to parts of the world I wouldn't normally get to go.

2. How did you enjoy the country and the challenges of this course?

I really enjoyed the variety of running Uzbekistan offered. The first three days took us through exceptionally stunning mountain scenery and running through remote villages. Stages 4 and 5 were a different kind of beauty: expansive and desolate desert landscapes where one felt truly alone with the task at hand. Each day gave us unique cultural experiences and natural landscapes. The isolation of some of the villages we ran through and intrigue of the locals was very special, I have traveled a fair amount and rural Uzbekistan is as remote of a place as I can imagine - largely unseen by outsiders.

3. What kind of training helped you succeed in this event?

Logging as much relatively low intensity volume as I could was key to my success in Uzbekistan. For stage racing, I really work to incorporate back to back long runs most weeks during my training block. This could include a marathon distance run one day followed by a 25km run the next day. The distance covered over those two days is great training, but getting comfortable running strongly on tired muscles is where I think the greatest benefit is. In addition to these runs, I raced a 50k and a 6hour race in preparation. The 6 hour race took place in the last week of March in Texas and I ran 64.3km in about five and a half hours in an attempt to simulate what I'd experience on the long day in Uzbekistan. Making my training simulate as much of what I thought I'd experience during the race was

4. Was there anything that caught you off guard?

I was caught off guard with how much I enjoyed my time not racing in Uzbekistan. I got to run in and explore Samarkand, Bukhara, and Tashkent. Each city was extremely clean, safe, and enjoyable to spend a bit of time in before and after the race. Each far exceeded my expectations. Getting to see life frozen in time such as semi-nomadic goat herders and then see a modern city with some unique Uzbek flair was very surprising and enjoyable.

5. Any plans to join another GlobalLimits race?

Yes, I will be running the inaugural Peaks of the Balkans race in September and am hoping to also join São Tomé in 2026 (it seems I will need to run 5 GlobalLimits races before getting the coveted Heritage Site Runner distinction).