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| Matt Gersib at Trans Iowa v6, Checkpoint 1 (Image by Kevin Wilson) |
Recently Gravel Worlds announced that Matt Gersib was no longer with the event, Matt actually posting this on his social media several hours before that happened. I don't know the reasons why this happened, and honestly, it is none of my business. However; I did want to point out that there was an expression of gratitude noted on social media for Matt's service in the world of gravel events, specifically for the PCL and Gravel Worlds.
Matt's departure from the event sparked comments that were reflective of the other originators of Gravel Worlds, which is remarkable that it took MG leaving to bring that sort of sentiment to the forefront. You can debate what that all may mean, but I did not want to engage in any of that.
For me, Matt Gersib is an embodiment of the prototype gravel person. Engaging, welcoming, and competitive on the road, and an incredible asset off the road and behind the scenes for gravel as a whole. Many people have no idea that Matt, or "MG" as I and many others know him by, was an important figure in the early days of gravel events and product development. His contributions are wide ranging. Matt even wrote reviews for websites and contributed to the writings of others, in the process shaping gravel product for the future, and influencing untold numbers of riders to take to the dusty roads where he himself loved to ride.
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| Matt at the 2018 GTDRI |
Matt has been a huge asset to all who ride gravel, and I say this not because he was a huge asset to me, but because I know Matt hasn't really ever been feted for his accomplishments and contributions to the gravel scene. He deserves to be noted, and he deserves his flowers.
And maybe this is coming a little late, and I probably should have written this long ago. But here it is for all to read. Yes, I call Matt my "brother", and we have a bond that I do not share with anyone else, but even so, I should have written this some time ago. Having something finite like the end of a relationship with Gravel Worlds to motivate me to write this is, perhaps, inexcusable. And to be sure, Matt isn't finished with cycling yet. I think there is more to come, but the time to recognize Matt Gersib for what he has done for gravel is long overdue.
Congratulations on all you have accomplished, Matt! Keep on riding and doing your thing!
New Episode of the Guitar Ted Podcast:
Friday the news was shared in the "FN&V" that Life Time was offering prize money (for Pros only) at Unbound and Leadville, along with the Big Sugar event. Then Gravel Worlds announced that they were going to offer the single largest payday in gravel racing.
I had a few things to say about that in the latest podcast. But I also went on social media to see what other folks were saying.
I found that younger, less experienced gravel riders were okay with it all, or didn't care. The older, the more seasoned the rider, the less they liked it.
And this is really easy to understand. One cannot miss what one has not experienced. Most gravel riders don't know what they don't know. So, while a few may wonder how in the world "big time gravel" would have any appeal, others may wonder what the heck "the spirit of gravel" mumbo-jumbo is about and what is wrong with the way things are.
And within the discourse there are no connections made between these groups of people that would help everyone understand. And to be sure - there are no lines, no borders between these groups. Only a shading from one train of thought to the other. It is messy, and that is why there is some level of questioning about it all.
Yes, people are asking questions. The answers? That part may never come to light. It would take a lot of effort to get everyone on the same page, and in the end, does any of this really matter?
I mean, yes- To some it does matter. A lot. But this ship is huge and a couple of tug boats aren't going to make much of a corrective course change. This whole thing is headed in a direction and it is not going to change significantly from reaching the ultimate end game.
Whatever that is.......
5 comments:
Thanks Brother. I really appreciate the kind words. I’ve never done this to be famous… I just love to ride bikes, and now that I’ve started as a NICA MTB coach, I see my future going new directions. It’s exciting to share my love with kids and help them develop their own love for our sport. The team at Gravel Worlds has big visions for what they want to do with the event, and I believe they will succeed. It just got to be a little too much for me. You know I’m more of a grassroots sort of guy…
Love you, Brother… Thanks again!
All the love and respect in the world to MG and his choice to choose family over and above other things. Always fun to ride with... the trail chats get interesting and twisted quick but it's always a joy for sure. I love that GW finally acknowledged one of the OGs for what they started and what they helped to grow in that event. It's never too late for them to do the same for Corey, Craig, CVO and all the others involved. Something that should have been done about a year ago and something that still needs to be done IMO.
@Rydn9ers - I would have to agree with you there. Extending this to the Gravel Cycling Hall of Fame as well. Both entities seem to have issues figuring out how to honor their past luminaries.
In the case of Gravel Worlds, the solution is simple. Step up to the "mic" and say something. In the case of the GCHoF that is a little more difficult.
In my opinion, the GCHoF Board needs to identify people, places, and things to nominate, then let folks research those and choose accordingly. I've been on the selection committee for the last two elections which has featured "democratic" nominations from anyone that cares to write one up.
The "chaff" we have to sort out that is immaterial to gravel history is amazing. (And I've been told that the Board sorts out even worse noms before we see them!) Add to this the ignorance of many newer-comers to gravel and you get less than optimal choices to vote on.
I've made some noise about this already to the GCHoF Board. We will see if anything changes or if it will be the same-ol-same-ol song and dance. I'm betting it will be the latter and nothing changes. But I hope I'm wrong.
I know that some cyclists are stick and ball sport fans but the GHOF might do well to setup some eligibility requirements for their hall of fame like the MLB and NFL have in place. Things like, must have been "in gravel" for X number of years/seasons, that alone would eliminate the flavor of the month folks that are new to the scene. Let's say you consider 2010 the rise of modern gravel, the GHOF could choose a 10 or 5 year period of gravel racing/promoting on their resume. I don't think that would be all that difficult.
Yeah, something along those lines, perhaps, would make it so that we are celebrating history/contributions rather than notoriety and results in events. Although those things kind of go hand in hand, in some cases.
You may have noted that the GCHoF did make a change to the noms wherein a person writing the nomination must write two paragraphs telling a story. This came out of some of my, (and I am certain others) criticisms of the nominations from past years that were merely a "this person deserves to be in" statement with no data or references as to why, and those entries that were merely lists of accomplishments with zero context attached to them.
My favorite examples are when Joel Dyke was first nominated with a sentence saying "he was the man" and that was it. (!!) and the time I read ten lines of someone's palmares and I had zero idea who the person even was.
Again, I applaud the GCHoF for the willingness to evolve and make things better, but my main criticism stands: That being that no one today knows who Jim Cummings is or who Craig Schmidt is, and that is flat out just wrong. (I could name others, but those are two of the most egregious omissions) So your suggestion makes a lot of sense to me.
Without the GCHoF giving some guidance in terms of the past historically important people, the GCHoF risks becoming a hall for the well-known, recent contributors to gravel who are standing on the shoulders of some folks, without whom they would have had no influence or results whatsoever.
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