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The Dust-Up: Will Unchained Bring About a Road Cycling Revival? Is That a Good Thing?

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The Dust-Up: Will Unchained Bring About a Road Cycling Revival? Is That a Good Thing?

Like its predecessor, Drive to Survive, the new Netflix Unchained series seeks to humanize the World Tour’s automaton-seeming athletes that make up professional road cycling’s peloton. But as the exploding gravel scene in the U.S. faces “growing pains,” Nic Morales wonders if the effects of Unchained’s inevitable popularity will remain culturally abstract, or if they will serve to usher in an era of Road 2.0 on America’s gravel roads. Read on for Nic’s reaction to the series in this latest installment of The Dust-Up, our ongoing opinion column.

Sarah Sturm: The Traka

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Sarah Sturm: The Traka

Traveling overseas to race 360 kilometers in the midst of the demanding schedule of the Lifetime Grand Prix might not sound like the best strategy from a strict performance standpoint. Sarah Sturm writes about what else fed her motivation to line up for Europe’s most popular gravel race and why toeing the line at The Traka in Girona was, actually, exactly what she needed. Read on for Sarah’s reflections, a film by Benjamin Kraushaar and Dylan Stucki, and photos by Alex Roszko from her very long day.

The Races Will Go On: No Date Changes in Store for the 2023 Downieville Classic or Lost and Found Gravel

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The Races Will Go On: No Date Changes in Store for the 2023 Downieville Classic or Lost and Found Gravel

It may still look like winter in the High Sierra, but the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship has summer on the mind and is counting down the days until the Downieville Classic and the Lost and Found Gravel Festival, presented by Cervélo, one of the nonprofit’s biggest fundraisers of the year. Lost and Found will still take place on June 3 in Portola, despite the exceptionally snowy winter and late arrival of spring in the Lost Sierra…

Leading By Example: The Mid South Non-Binary Race Rundown

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Leading By Example: The Mid South Non-Binary Race Rundown

The Mid South has offered a non-binary competitive category since their socially-distanced event in 2022. This year’s race saw a new course record, along with highlights in the Mid South double and singlespeed categories! Sally Turner, former journalist and current Event Manager for the Stillwater  gravel season opener, shares a recap of how the day shook out for the non-binary field!

Don’t Talk About the Weather: The Mid South 2023

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Don’t Talk About the Weather: The Mid South 2023

The Mid South is infamous for its weather, which is banned from conversation by the staff in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Instead, the good people at The Mid South put all of their energy into providing an incredible experience for every single type of cyclist and person. Arguably the most welcoming and inclusive event on the calendar, it has cultivated a special community in the increasingly corporate world of gravel. Oh, and as for this year’s race the unmentionable weather was perfect.

The 2022 TransRockies Gravel Royale

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The 2022 TransRockies Gravel Royale

TransRockies has become an institution in the stage racing world: they have been around since the beginning. In late August, the inaugural Gravel Royale was their first foray into the world of gravel racing. The edition of the truly off-tarmac event makes sense, as the main critique of TransRockies in years past has been riders complaining about too many gravel roads. Sounds like they’ve just been honing the course for a real gravel throw down! After the four stages, Rob Britton of Victoria, BA and Rach McBride of Vancouver, BC took the top step in the Elite Men’s and Women’s categories, respectively. What follows is Barry Wicks‘ rider journal from each of the four days which gives a stream of consciousness account, followed by his interviews with other competitors. Each interview maintained the same format and consisted of just three questions designed to skip the small talk: What is your favorite color? What are you reading right now? What is the meaning of life? Enjoy the ride!

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2022 FoCo Fondo Recap Video

The 2022 FoCo Fondo featured some of Northern Colorado’s incredible mixed surface and gravel road riding with multiple expertly-curated routes ranging from 12 to 145 miles. All while fostering an inclusive and accommodating environment for a diverse group of riders.

Glorious Groads for All: The 2022 FoCo Fondo

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Glorious Groads for All: The 2022 FoCo Fondo

All year long, gravel races and events seem to pop up in towns across the US. With its approachability, it’s no surprise that “gravel” has become so popular with cyclists in disciplines spanning the continuum between mountain and road riding. IMO, the most successful of these races are the ones that embrace and exemplify the values and character of the communities in which they are based. Having lived in Fort Collins, CO for nearly fifteen years, the FoCo Fondo is a special one for me, as it shows off some of Northern Colorado’s incredible mixed surface riding with multiple expertly-curated routes while also fostering an inclusive and comfortable environment for a diverse group of riders.

A few weeks ago, at the tail end of a trip to the Choice City, I jumped in a course car with locals Peter Discoe and Taylor Kruse to document the event.

Change, Mourning, Love, Humility & Happiness: Stories from UNBOUND Gravel 2022

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Change, Mourning, Love, Humility & Happiness: Stories from UNBOUND Gravel 2022

It’s been over a decade since I’d been to Emporia to help establish Unbound Gravel’s Crew For Hire program. The world is a great deal different now. Having spoken at length with Kristi Mohn about things like generational change I was curious to see what, if any, of those changes had taken place in not just Emporia but also in the Unbound Gravel event itself. There was also the tragic passing of Moriah Wilson, the induction of the first class of the Gravel Hall of Fame, and a variety of other things going on that really made this year’s Unbound Gravel more significant than most.

Every day that I spent in Emporia had its own moments that showed me something new and unexpected. There were signs of the massive changes the cycling community, industry, and Emporia itself are going through. I witnessed grief, loss, love, and more. Throughout everything, there was one common theme: People who were doing the best they could.

Pines and Puddles: The Return of The Croatan Buck Fifty Cycling Event

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Pines and Puddles: The Return of The Croatan Buck Fifty Cycling Event

Each visit to the Croatan National Forest leaves me a little more enamored with its leggy pines and dirt lanes. The properties bordering the forest with their wooden barns and houses are often centuries-old, their tin roofs rusting from the continuous salty breath of the Atlantic Ocean. The early spring smoke lingers amongst the pine trunks from controlled burns like a ghost. It is haunting as it is soothing in the early morning sun—Dogs bark in response to a rooster crow. The water of the inlets lays black and calm but even in its most still hours, the forest whirs with insects in tinnitus effect. I can’t help but feel that I have entered through some portal into a Faulkner novel.

The Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship Brings Back Lost & Found in 2022

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The Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship Brings Back Lost & Found in 2022

2020 and 2021 brought about many canceled events, of which our beloved Lost & Found gravel race in Portola, California. The Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship just announced that Lost & Found is returning for 2022:

“Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship has announced that the Lost and Found Gravel Festival will return in 2022, in partnership with long-time cycling production team, Breakaway Promotions. Lost and Found will run on June 4th, 2022, and the proposed routes will feature a 101 mile route with 8,100 feet of elevation gain. Shorter 39 mile and 61-mile routes are also available.

The City of Portola contacted SBTS and encouraged the event taking place following a tough 2021. The festival provided an economic boost to the region each year it was held, and the town was ready to get the race going again. In the summer and fall of 2021, the Dixie Fire burned much of the Lost Sierra and created dangerous air quality for months. It was the largest single wildfire in state history. Lost and Found looks to rise from these ashes and create a positive financial impact on the community of Portola in 2022.”

Registration opens in March, so stay tuned and keep an eye peeled on Lost and Found for more updates as events warrant.

358 Hard Miles: 26 Hours, 55 Minutes – Lael Wilcox at the 2021 Unbound XL

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358 Hard Miles: 26 Hours, 55 Minutes – Lael Wilcox at the 2021 Unbound XL

“You just dance up those climbs. It’s amazing to watch.”

“Thank you.”

These are some of the only words we’ve exchanged, despite riding together for the past ten hours. It’s a few more hours before I learn that his name is Dave. That’s ultra-endurance. Sometimes you talk and sometimes you don’t, but it’s still great to have company riding through the night. I later find out that Dave is in his 50s and from Wisconsin. He must outweigh me by a good 50-80lbs and most of it is muscle. He’s a powerhouse on the flats and I’m light up the climbs. He groans and says “shit” a lot, but when the lady at the gas station asks if we’re having fun, he says, “we’re having the time of our lives.” And we really are. It’s hot and humid and hard as hell, but there’s so much beauty out there. Beauty in the sunset and the sunrise and the warm night— the cows and the fields, the open expanses.

Four Gravel Stages in the Masai Mara Wildlife Reserve: the 2021 Migration Gravel Race Recap

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Four Gravel Stages in the Masai Mara Wildlife Reserve: the 2021 Migration Gravel Race Recap

A week ago, 61 contestants battled it out over 4 stages through the Masai Mara wildlife reserve, during the inaugural Migration Gravel Race in Kenya. While an epic adventure in itself, there’s more to this race than meets the eye. The MGR is one of the prongs of the Amani project, aimed at creating more race opportunities for East African cyclists to measure themselves with the best on an international level.

What better way to do so than to bring in the very best? With the attendance of 2021 Unbound-winner Ian Boswell and runner-up Laurens ten Dam (who claimed the victory at MGR), the bar has been set for future editions. Sule Kangangi, Kenyan pro cyclist and coordinator of Amani’s activities in Kenya, and 2021 Unbound winner Ian Boswell share their thoughts on this unique first edition.

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I Absorb Things Better at Speed: Fail 4 Migration Gravel Race Teaser

One of our contributors, Ryan Le Garrec, just took part in the Migration Gravel Race last week in Kenya. It is a 650 km off-road stage race with 8000 meters climbing in the Massai Mara. The grueling but rewarding course attracted lots of riders from all over the world. Among them was Unbound winner and second, Ian Boswell and Laurens Ten Dam. But more importantly, the race took pride in featuring local talents, riders from Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda.

The race organization wants to have an impact on African cyclists representation in gravel and road races around the world.