I’d been looking forward to Iowa City Gravel all fall. After a summer of race meltdowns, I was ready for a chilly October race in new country. Then Jason at Method went and inflated my excitement north of 120 psi. He had a demo bike fit for a tall guy, and he wondered what I … More Gravel Confidence: Combine comfort and speed racing Donnelly’s new G//C.
There were two neat dings in the tailgate, identically deep and perfectly horizontal, like some kind of metallic snakebite. Above the fang marks was the print of a blunter animal: a rutting bighorn, maybe. In those three dents—two pricks and a punch—you can learn a few things about Mike Marchand. For one: The 2009 Dirty … More Mike Marchand Wants You to Know He’s OK. I Want You to Know He’s Awesome.
This blog’s gravelly focus belies the fact that a big hunk of the unmentioned miles we ride are of the paved flavor. And for every joyful weekend gravel jaunt, there are six or eight urban yawners where I’m just a guy on his way to or from the office. Most of these commutes are indistinguishable … More Gravel’s Gridlock: Riding the country rush hour
There’s no room for anger in Ashton Lambie’s athletic life. But madness is different. With Lambie, a certain madness just scatters around. “In races,” he said, “we call that ‘going yard sale’—when there’s just shit everywhere.” You want examples? In his track cycling discipline, Ashton Lambie is the quickest athlete on Earth. The three fastest … More Like a Broken Record: Ashton Lambie sets (and resets, and sets again) his mad-world record
I talk a good game about how welcoming and fun and chill Lincoln’s gravel scene is. I’ll tell anybody who’ll listen that they need to get over here and see it for themselves. Ride Gravel Worlds. Or the Solstice. Or Sto Mil. Or the Cornhusker State Games. Just get here already. Don’t know anybody over … More Dirt Tan Road Trip
“What’s It Worth to You?” (WIWY) is a question just about every bike racer asks just about every race. For me, the WIWYs typically come about two-thirds in, when the pain turns stale and stuff gets weird. I want to show you a little of the weird that uncurled for me from last weekend’s 10th … More Gravel Worlds 2019: What’s It Worth to You?
Two days before the Cornhusker State Games gravel grinder, I woke on my left side with a start. A fifty-cent piece had somehow wedged itself against the back of my mouth, its grooved edge scratching. My startled consciousness fired off practical questions. How the hell did a coin get back there? And how could I … More The Unracer: Go inside the mind of someone outside the race.
There’s plenty of good gravel news to report. Gravel cycling’s popularity is booming. Events are growing and multiplying. Well-positioned cities—like a Lincoln, a Lawrence, a Little Rock—can now, if they play their cards right, host full seasons of gravel events with triple-digit fields. It’s to the point where even back-roads blogs like this one can … More Tour Divided: When did gravel get so mean?
I’ll go ahead and risk the Jeff Foxworthy comparisons and frame it like this: If you’ve ever thanked the Lord Almighty for the blessing of a putrid, warm, yellow-green mouthful of pickle vinegar … you might be a gravel cyclist. Gravel cycling’s grossest leg cramp remedy is so engrained in my long-ride routine by … More Gravel and the Magic Pickle: Why do cyclists swear by this swill?
To appreciate how much this year’s Solstice 100 meant to me, it helps to understand first how my 2019 Dirty Kanza came to matter so little. Don’t get me wrong. I wanted that DK finish something fierce. But May had unfolded for me in such a way as to make bike racing feel a little … More The Solstice 100: Riding through life’s longest days.
