Dirt Tan Bike Club

Of course it would be 2020—gravel racing’s lost year—that the Lincoln Abes would find a racer like Clark Jackson.  “You gotta meet him,” Mike told me. “He’s young—only started riding this year. But he’s all in. And he’s good.” Mike put his friend on a trainer and watched him tap out watts normal cyclists spend … More A Race of Mistaken Identity

As kids, we’re taught to trust that little voice in our heads that runs the brakes. That voice that says, “Maybe this isn’t such a good idea.” That voice keeps us from getting hurt and doing wrong. But as endurance athletes, we learn there are plenty of times we need to tell that voice to … More A Fitter Norm

Most of us learned on Fathers’ Day of Jim Cummins’ firing from the race he fathered. Cummins helped establish the Dirty Kanza back in 2006, and he fostered the race’s explosive growth in the years that followed. In the process, he helped make Emporia, Kan., one of the gravel family’s cultural hometowns. Cummins can take … More A Divorce in the Gravel Family