Months of hard training, unexpected setbacks just before the start, sleepless nights – and, ultimately, a tremendous achievement. The team of runners representing HKS Forge, joined by one colleague from EG and several friends, successfully completed the prestigious Od Tatier k Dunaju 2026 relay race. Although the journey from Jasná to Bratislava brought its fair share of unexpected complications, the entire team crossed the finish line with pure joy. And there was plenty to celebrate: they beat last year’s time by almost two hours!

Drama Before the Starting Gun Had Even Fired

Putting together a team for a race of this magnitude is a management challenge in itself. The original plan was clear: to build a strong core team around eight HKS Forge employees. But sporting fortunes can change quickly.

Two key runners had to withdraw due to injury, while a third was ruled out by unavoidable work commitments. The biggest setback came when the only woman on the team was involved in a cycling accident just a few days before the race. The team captain had to act fast, urgently finding replacements for no fewer than four runners.

The final line-up consisted of 12 determined men, including five HKS Forge employees and one colleague from EG.

Four Legs Each – and the Weather to Contend With

The rules of the toughest, flagship Full category leave little room for compromise. Each of the 12 runners had to complete exactly four legs, amounting to 48 demanding relay stages across Slovakia.

The first half of the race was particularly challenging mentally. The weather in the Tatra region was changeable and cold, with occasional showers. Overnight temperatures dropped to a chilly 6°C, which, combined with growing muscle fatigue, seriously tested the team’s resilience.

The second half of the route was much kinder to the runners. Conditions stabilised, and pleasantly warm weather accompanied them all the way to the finish.

The ‘Captain Factor’ – and a Pair of Reflective Straps

The final time could perhaps have been even better, but relay races have a habit of producing stories of their own – often ones that become much funnier in hindsight. The team encountered several delays along the way which the lads can laugh about now, although they certainly sent adrenaline levels soaring at the time:

  • A 13-minute logistical delay: One of the support cars failed to reach a relay handover point in time. The reason? A necessary fuel stop followed by an unplanned encounter with the police. The officers checked the team’s documents and carried out an alcohol test – fortunately, they were not checking their speed. Captain Griflík earned himself some good-natured criticism for this particular logistical mishap.
  • An unexpected extra run: The captain himself added a little extra distance to the race after losing his bearings in Liptovský Mikuláš. By the time he found the correct route again, he had clocked up an additional 1.2 kilometres.
  • The wrong ‘baton’: One particularly memorable moment came at a relay changeover, when an exhausted runner, caught up in the heat of the moment, handed his teammate his sweaty reflective straps instead of the GPS tracker. A few precious seconds passed before the team realised exactly what their colleague had set off running with.

Friendly Rivalry on the Road – and a Huge Achievement at the Finish

One thing the lads certainly never lacked was team spirit. Journeys between relay points were filled with enthusiastic encouragement – and plenty of friendly rivalry. The crews of the individual cars competed over whose runners were faster and which group would deliver the better performance on the road.

That healthy competition kept everyone pushing forward all the way to the banks of the Danube in Bratislava.

And the final statistics speak for themselves. The team crossed the finish line in 48 hours, 13 minutes and 5 seconds. Compared with their 2025 result of 50:12:22, this represents a remarkable improvement of 1 hour and 59 minutes.

Competing against 84 teams from across Slovakia, the HKS Forge team secured an excellent 41st place overall. Even more impressively, the lads finished in a fantastic 7th place in the elite and most demanding Full category.

A huge congratulations goes to every member of the team for representing HKS Forge so brilliantly. Their determination, resilience and outstanding team spirit turned a pre-race crisis into a record-breaking sporting achievement!