Gravel Grinder News: Spotted Horse, Iowa Gravel Classic Changes

 Plus News On Guitar Ted's Gravel Cycling Hall of Fame Vote and A Debut Bike From Salsa Cycles.

News broke on Facebook, January 23rd, that revealed future changes in the Iowa gravel racing calendar. Relentless Events LLC announced that it was turning over the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra and the Iowa Gravel Classic to Cole and Kelsi Ledbetter, effective immediately. 

Relentless Events LLC stated in the Facebook posting that "Relentless Events LLC will continue to exist, but Iowa Wind and Rock will be the only event we will be promoting at this time."

Relentless Events LLC also had been running the Tour of Central Iowa, formerly known as the 24hrs of Cumming. An announcement was made on that event's Facebook page as well stating,"After much discussion, we have decided that Tour of Central Iowa will cease operations in 2024." 

Furthermore; Sarah Cooper, of Relentless Events LLC, announced on the same day that she is stepping away from event promoting saying, "I have had almost a year exactly to wrap my head around stepping away from race directing." Adding that, "I will be at Iowa Wind & Rock in a different capacity this year and for as many years as I am needed and am able."

The Ledbetters also have held their own gravel event, the Redfield Rock & Roll, for several years. That event is scheduled for September 7th, 2024, according to that event's Facebook page. The addition of the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra and the Iowa Gravel Classic would bring the amount of events under their auspices to three, along with the weekly gravel group rides that Cole Ledbetter promotes. 

Nebraska News: As an aside, it was also announced this past week that the Bohemian StoMil was ending its run of events effective immediately as well. 

Comments: This change is interesting in that we may be seeing the end of an era. The people behind Relentless Events LLC, Sarah Cooper, Dori Jansma, and Steve Fuller are all from the original school of gravel which insists on navigation by cue sheets, self-reliance/support, and smaller, more individually focused event experiences. The Facebook post indicated that "You can expect changes as Cole and Kelsi work to make these events their own." 

What exactly those changes will be are yet to be revealed, but the way the events were run is harder to do and especially with the yearly course changes at the Spotted Horse, it is a daunting task to run an event that way. The event's locations, again, especially with regard to the Spotted Horse, being in South-Central Iowa, make event production a bit tougher from the standpoint of where the Ledbetters live just North of the Des Moines metro. 

In my opinion, I would expect some changes to come for these two events. The loss of the Tour of Central Iowa maybe isn't so sharply felt since we have several more Iowa based gravel events than were around when the 24hrs of Cumming started. And it should be noted that the new events from the Iowa Gravel series, CORE4, and other regional gravel events have been taking away dates, and therefore people from being able to go to some of the older events on the calendar. 

It is also noteworthy that the Relentless team is focusing solely on Iowa Wind and Rock for now. Potentially this event could end up being a kind of "unicorn" in the gravel scene as its format and distance continues to make it very different from anything else out there, with the possible exception of the Spotted Horse, which is shorter in distance, but was a similarly run event. But now the Spotted Horse may be changing up, so IWAR may end as a lone example of the early school of gravel. How Sarah Cooper's stepping back from leading IWAR as a main co-promoter will affect IWAR going forward is something yet to be seen. 

As with anything, there is a beginning and an ending. I'm not saying anything is "ending" per se' here, obviously - these are all "just changes". But that said, if you ever thought you wanted to ride in one of these events, don't waste time wondering if this year or next is a good time. Sooner rather than later there won't be a choice because these events will go away eventually. And as with the Tour of Central Iowa and the Bohemian StoMil, that chance is gone now. 

Class of 2024 Vote Cast:

Well, I got it done! The votes have been cast and we will see what happens soon enough. The next class for the Gravel Cycling Hall of Fame is going to be inducted at the end of May in Emporia, Kansas and it looks like I will be there as well.

If you've been reading these pages of late you already have read about the nomination process and how that is under review and probably will see some changes going forward. 'nuff said there....

I only will add that I found it difficult to weight my votes one through five and that after the difficulty of narrowing it down to just five individuals. In my estimation, there were nine that are on the list now that truly deserve recognition. the rest are specious choices, very niche, or really barely notable from a "hall of fame" perspective, in my opinion. 

Then there are names not even on the list. Like Rick Plite who used to be the promoter of Barry Roubaix, one of the largest (in terms of rider numbers) and longest running gravel events in the nation. That's a name that should be on the list! there are others as well. 

But it is an imperfect hall, just like any of them are. The point is, there is a GCHoF and hopefully those stories and history will get preserved for future generations of riders to learn from.

Image courtesy of Salsa Cycles' social media.

Salsa Cycles Teases New (or maybe just updated) Bicycle:

Last week Salsa Cycles began promoting a release of a bicycle at Mid-South. This will happen March 14th, before the race happens that weekend.

It won't be the first time Salsa Cycles has done something like this in partnership with the Mid-south event. The most recent time this has happened would be the 2020 event where Salsa unveiled the single speed Stormchaser model. 

It's hard to imagine that Salsa would release a new bike, especially in the gravel segment. But there are some possibilities which are feasible for refreshes or complete redesigns. For instance, it has been a minute since the Warbird was updated, and seeing how Salsa hasn't been pushing real hard on Warbird models of late, one could maybe see that a refresh is on the way here. 

Another possibility for a redesign/refresh is for the Cutthroat, which has remained essentially unchanged since it was released several years ago. We can count out the Fargo as Salsa already let the cat out of the bag there with a new color for the Fargo Apex 1 recently. We can also probably discount any news on the Stormchaser since that model has seen a couple of tweaks to spec and color over the past few years. 

My money is on a new Cutthroat here. What do you think? Let me know in the comments.

Friday News And Views

Canfield Yelli-Screamy

Canfield Bikes Announces Third Generation Yelli-Screamy:

Another long-low-slack geometry hard tail? (yawn) But there is a reason I post on this particular model today. It has more to do with its influence and history than it does with this third generation of the bike. 

Go back ten years ago. 2011 was a time, if you can recall, when many said that 29"ers would "never be in the long-travel categories or be all that good for anything playful and fun on real mountains". They were decent XC bikes, sure, but - you know - serious mountain biking? That was the province of 26"ers and the , at that time, new 27.5"ers. 29"ers would certainly never be 'that bike' you would ride on rowdy mountain trails. 

Then Canfield Bikes, and a few other niche brands, started fooling around with 29 inch wheels. The parts were barely  serviceable for such exploits, but they made it work. Canfield found itself a hit with the 29"er "Yelli-Screamy" model, and 29"er freaks were all over this bike when it came out back then. This sudden popularity of small brand hard tail and full suspension bikes with big wheels eventually got the bigger brand's attention. It took a few years, because the industry's dalliance with 27.5" stuff had to run its course first, but then 29"er hard tail and full suspension rigs started dominating the lines of the big brands by the mid to late 'twenty-teens'.  

So, here ya go. A hard tail which was a ground breaking model ten years ago, revamped for 'modern geometry', and at a price for a frame that, amazingly, is still pretty reasonable at $799.99. See Canfield Bikes for more.

First PRO Only "Gravel Event" In Italy:

What?!! You've never heard of Serenissima Gravel? Why, it was the very first PRO only roadie event held on gravel, that's all. (So, what is Strada Bianche then?) But you could be forgiven if you have not heard about this. It really doesn't affect many of us in the gravel community. 

But for some, this may be seen as a 'validation' of gravel as a racing surface. For me? It's nothing but PRO UCI sanctioned road racing on a different surface. Novel for roadies, perhaps, but calling this a 'gravel event' is a big misnomer. See, 'gravel events' are not just about licensed, male, elite athletes with no other riders and no 'culture' besides typical roadie fare. 

No, a 'gravel event' encompasses much more than racing. It is about finding one's limits, learning about how to be a self-sufficient cyclist, learning about caring for others, and it is all-inclusive. It is NOT just for the highest categories of male (and female, one would think) racers. However; Serenissma Gravel held its PRO only event with just one day of males racing. No females. And, of course, you could ride the next day on the course the PROs used (gasp! Really! You let them do that!) in a 'fondo'. Woo.....

But again- some may think this sort of thing is the bee's knees. And that's fine, but it is not 'gravel racing'. This is a gravel event, if you are wondering what I might mean. And so is the next item .....

Remembering When Things Were 'Iffy':

About a year ago this weekend I did something I thought was a bit daring. Some would say I was being a bit cavalier about the situation, and risking too much too soon. I went out of town to volunteer at a gravel event.

And now you think that sounds really mundane, right? I mean.....so what? I went somewhere and did a good deed. Why on earth would that be 'risky'? 

Well, I think we all have kind of forgotten how tense we all were just a year ago with this whole COVID deal still ongoing. (And really, we still are not out of the woods yet) There was no vaccine, there were still social distancing and mask mandates, and fear and anxiety was high. People were unsure of what was 'okay', and doing a bicycle race was barely on that side of the line of being something folks wouldn't get too upset about if you were to engage in that activity. 

I had not driven beyond the bounds of Black Hawk County, at that point, in nearly six months. I had only been in a few towns by bicycle outside of Waterloo in that time, and we went once to Cedar Rapids for a football game my son was in. I had not seen anyone outside of Waterloo in nearly half a year. So, going to volunteer at the Spotted Horse marked a line, a breakthrough of sorts, and socially it was a bit of a shock and a relief. It actually was so uplifting that I felt guilty for doing that when so many other people were left sitting around in fear. 

Like I say, we are still dealing with this pandemic, but a year ago we were still engaged in fear and anxiety at a much higher level than we are now, in my opinion. The Spotted Horse, for me, was a big release of tension and a day which gave me some hope that we would, at some point, be doing things again socially. And that has mostly come true. 

I just wanted to mark this anniversary and say 'thank you' again to Dori, Sarah, and Steve, the RD's of the Spotted Horse. Good luck on your event this weekend.

That's a wrap for this week! Have a great weekend and thank you for reading G-Ted Productions.

Friday News And Views

Canfield Yelli-Screamy

Canfield Bikes Announces Third Generation Yelli-Screamy:

Another long-low-slack geometry hard tail? (yawn) But there is a reason I post on this particular model today. It has more to do with its influence and history than it does with this third generation of the bike. 

Go back ten years ago. 2011 was a time, if you can recall, when many said that 29"ers would "never be in the long-travel categories or be all that good for anything playful and fun on real mountains". They were decent XC bikes, sure, but - you know - serious mountain biking? That was the province of 26"ers and the , at that time, new 27.5"ers. 29"ers would certainly never be 'that bike' you would ride on rowdy mountain trails. 

Then Canfield Bikes, and a few other niche brands, started fooling around with 29 inch wheels. The parts were barely  serviceable for such exploits, but they made it work. Canfield found itself a hit with the 29"er "Yelli-Screamy" model, and 29"er freaks were all over this bike when it came out back then. This sudden popularity of small brand hard tail and full suspension bikes with big wheels eventually got the bigger brand's attention. It took a few years, because the industry's dalliance with 27.5" stuff had to run its course first, but then 29"er hard tail and full suspension rigs started dominating the lines of the big brands by the mid to late 'twenty-teens'.  

So, here ya go. A hard tail which was a ground breaking model ten years ago, revamped for 'modern geometry', and at a price for a frame that, amazingly, is still pretty reasonable at $799.99. See Canfield Bikes for more.

First PRO Only "Gravel Event" In Italy:

What?!! You've never heard of Serenissima Gravel? Why, it was the very first PRO only roadie event held on gravel, that's all. (So, what is Strada Bianche then?) But you could be forgiven if you have not heard about this. It really doesn't affect many of us in the gravel community. 

But for some, this may be seen as a 'validation' of gravel as a racing surface. For me? It's nothing but PRO UCI sanctioned road racing on a different surface. Novel for roadies, perhaps, but calling this a 'gravel event' is a big misnomer. See, 'gravel events' are not just about licensed, male, elite athletes with no other riders and no 'culture' besides typical roadie fare. 

No, a 'gravel event' encompasses much more than racing. It is about finding one's limits, learning about how to be a self-sufficient cyclist, learning about caring for others, and it is all-inclusive. It is NOT just for the highest categories of male (and female, one would think) racers. However; Serenissma Gravel held its PRO only event with just one day of males racing. No females. And, of course, you could ride the next day on the course the PROs used (gasp! Really! You let them do that!) in a 'fondo'. Woo.....

But again- some may think this sort of thing is the bee's knees. And that's fine, but it is not 'gravel racing'. This is a gravel event, if you are wondering what I might mean. And so is the next item .....

Remembering When Things Were 'Iffy':

About a year ago this weekend I did something I thought was a bit daring. Some would say I was being a bit cavalier about the situation, and risking too much too soon. I went out of town to volunteer at a gravel event.

And now you think that sounds really mundane, right? I mean.....so what? I went somewhere and did a good deed. Why on earth would that be 'risky'? 

Well, I think we all have kind of forgotten how tense we all were just a year ago with this whole COVID deal still ongoing. (And really, we still are not out of the woods yet) There was no vaccine, there were still social distancing and mask mandates, and fear and anxiety was high. People were unsure of what was 'okay', and doing a bicycle race was barely on that side of the line of being something folks wouldn't get too upset about if you were to engage in that activity. 

I had not driven beyond the bounds of Black Hawk County, at that point, in nearly six months. I had only been in a few towns by bicycle outside of Waterloo in that time, and we went once to Cedar Rapids for a football game my son was in. I had not seen anyone outside of Waterloo in nearly half a year. So, going to volunteer at the Spotted Horse marked a line, a breakthrough of sorts, and socially it was a bit of a shock and a relief. It actually was so uplifting that I felt guilty for doing that when so many other people were left sitting around in fear. 

Like I say, we are still dealing with this pandemic, but a year ago we were still engaged in fear and anxiety at a much higher level than we are now, in my opinion. The Spotted Horse, for me, was a big release of tension and a day which gave me some hope that we would, at some point, be doing things again socially. And that has mostly come true. 

I just wanted to mark this anniversary and say 'thank you' again to Dori, Sarah, and Steve, the RD's of the Spotted Horse. Good luck on your event this weekend.

That's a wrap for this week! Have a great weekend and thank you for reading G-Ted Productions.

Rear View 2020: The Fourth Quarter

The Quest took up almost all my riding for the last quarter of 2020.

 Hello Readers! Once again I am doing the annual retrospective on what went down over the year of 2020. This is the last post and will cover the Fourth quarter and the previous three quarters have been posted already for a total of four, one each week of December on Thursdays. This is the fourth "Rear View" post of the series. 

October kicked off with my announcement that I was not going to continue on with cataloging gravel events anymore. The chaos induced by the pandemic caused everything to be in flux and one man trying to ride herd on 500+ events was not a tenable situation going forward. Besides, the whole situation previous to the pandemic in relation to taking care of the calendar was time consuming and did not reflect in any perceived benefits to either the site or myself. So, that's that. I kind of hated to call an end to something I started in 2008, but it wasn't a realistic expectation for me to carry it on either. 

The Fall saw my rides to complete "The Quest" ramp up considerably. The days were windy, dry, and the routes got more convoluted and weird. The need to get roads done dwindled down to a point that by December I had a minimal amount of roads to cover. Finally, on the last nice day of 2020, where the temperatures reached about 60°, I completed 'The Quest", and that was on December 10th.

On a personal level I was attending my son's final high school football games. The away games were all at the same stadium in Cedar Rapids with the exception of the final game which was at Drake Stadium in Des Moines. Attendance was strictly relegated by the schools, so it was a weird experience. The West Wahawks won a play-off game and were awarded a special banner to be hung in the school gymnasium and a trophy for the trophy case. My son was proud of his accomplishments on the field and it was kind of rewarding to be a small part of that.  

One other notable thing I did was that I volunteered for the Spotted Horse gravel race in October. This marked the first time I had driven out of town for anything other than football games since the last day of February. It also marked the first time I had personal contact with anyone outside of my family and employer since mid-March. In fact, I got three hugs. It was.......weird, wonderful, and risky. I actually felt a touch guilty about it all. Still do......

Work was another thing that dwindled down to nearly nothing by December. Since new complete bikes were as rare as hen's teeth, only repairs were keeping me working and those dried up, which wasn't a surprise. The Winter would be a sparse, low-key affair for me going forward due to this. Of course, this gave me more opportunities to finish up "The Quest". So it wasn't a total loss. 

And that's a wrap on the year. Once again, I want to extend my deepest thanks and appreciation to all those who have come here to read this blog. Either on a daily basis, occasionally, or even rarely. All of you matter and I am honored and privileged to have you all as my audience. 

As 2020 draws to a close, and after 15 years of blogging, I am still amazed that anyone even ventures to read my writings. I still am energized to write stories and convey thoughts and opinions. I hope to continue sharing my experiences in words and images for a long time into the future. But I realize the future is not guaranteed. This year has brought that thought into sharper focus more than ever. 

Next: A look at the images of the year, a Top Ten Most Read Posts article, and a look into the future of the blog and my exploits for 2020.

Rear View 2020: The Fourth Quarter

The Quest took up almost all my riding for the last quarter of 2020.

 Hello Readers! Once again I am doing the annual retrospective on what went down over the year of 2020. This is the last post and will cover the Fourth quarter and the previous three quarters have been posted already for a total of four, one each week of December on Thursdays. This is the fourth "Rear View" post of the series. 

October kicked off with my announcement that I was not going to continue on with cataloging gravel events anymore. The chaos induced by the pandemic caused everything to be in flux and one man trying to ride herd on 500+ events was not a tenable situation going forward. Besides, the whole situation previous to the pandemic in relation to taking care of the calendar was time consuming and did not reflect in any perceived benefits to either the site or myself. So, that's that. I kind of hated to call an end to something I started in 2008, but it wasn't a realistic expectation for me to carry it on either. 

The Fall saw my rides to complete "The Quest" ramp up considerably. The days were windy, dry, and the routes got more convoluted and weird. The need to get roads done dwindled down to a point that by December I had a minimal amount of roads to cover. Finally, on the last nice day of 2020, where the temperatures reached about 60°, I completed 'The Quest", and that was on December 10th.

On a personal level I was attending my son's final high school football games. The away games were all at the same stadium in Cedar Rapids with the exception of the final game which was at Drake Stadium in Des Moines. Attendance was strictly relegated by the schools, so it was a weird experience. The West Wahawks won a play-off game and were awarded a special banner to be hung in the school gymnasium and a trophy for the trophy case. My son was proud of his accomplishments on the field and it was kind of rewarding to be a small part of that.  

One other notable thing I did was that I volunteered for the Spotted Horse gravel race in October. This marked the first time I had driven out of town for anything other than football games since the last day of February. It also marked the first time I had personal contact with anyone outside of my family and employer since mid-March. In fact, I got three hugs. It was.......weird, wonderful, and risky. I actually felt a touch guilty about it all. Still do......

Work was another thing that dwindled down to nearly nothing by December. Since new complete bikes were as rare as hen's teeth, only repairs were keeping me working and those dried up, which wasn't a surprise. The Winter would be a sparse, low-key affair for me going forward due to this. Of course, this gave me more opportunities to finish up "The Quest". So it wasn't a total loss. 

And that's a wrap on the year. Once again, I want to extend my deepest thanks and appreciation to all those who have come here to read this blog. Either on a daily basis, occasionally, or even rarely. All of you matter and I am honored and privileged to have you all as my audience. 

As 2020 draws to a close, and after 15 years of blogging, I am still amazed that anyone even ventures to read my writings. I still am energized to write stories and convey thoughts and opinions. I hope to continue sharing my experiences in words and images for a long time into the future. But I realize the future is not guaranteed. This year has brought that thought into sharper focus more than ever. 

Next: A look at the images of the year, a Top Ten Most Read Posts article, and a look into the future of the blog and my exploits for 2020.

Volunteering At The Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra

Old DX gas station in Murray. Iowa.

 5:00am Saturday, October 24th, 2020: The alarm goes off on my iPhone and I jump up out of bed, careful not to awake Mrs. Guitar Ted, but not quiet enough for Minka The Cat. She accompanies me downstairs where I immediately feed the ravenous creature its breakfast. Then I get to making my own meal before getting kitted out to do my turn at the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra. This event, in its fifth year, happens to be down South of me about a three hour drive away. So, I have to be quick about things to be able to hit the road by 6:00am or earlier, if I can. My turn to serve starts at 10:00am, but they wanted me to show up by 9:30am. 

My destination is Murray, Iowa, a small village West of Osceola, Iowa on US 34. Wikipedia says the population, as of 2010, was 756 people. Hmm.....I'd believe it if it was less than that. Anyway, I'd never been there, or even heard of the village, until my assignment was given via e-mail to me from Race Director, Sarah Cooper. I was to be paired up with another of the RD's, Dori, and the lead at the checkpoint was Amanda. I knew Dori and Sarah from Trans Iowa, but I had never met Amanda before. 

The Spotted Horse is a 150 mile or 200 mile event which had been modified this year due to COVID-19, and was run (kind of) concurrently with the postponed from April Iowa Wind And Rock, the 300+ mile event which was strongly influenced by Trans Iowa. I wasn't sure what to expect, since these sorts of gravel ultras are hard to train for and what with 2020 being what it has been, I wasn't even going to venture any guesses as to what the attendance might be. Added to this was the fact that it was forecast to be raw, cold, and grey for the weekend, and I wasn't thinking this was a recipe for a large turnout. But who knows?

Some Murray, Iowa flavor. I don't know how smaller villages like this hang on these days.

Besides a public school and a Casey's convenience store, this was the best maintained building in town.

I arrived a half an hour early, you know, like a good Mid-Western boy should, and sat around getting the stink-eye from locals gathering at the public area we were to set up the checkpoint at. They were gathering with their elementary school aged children for a bit of a soccer game. I have to say that I was duly impressed by the turnout. There must have been 30 children of various ages running amok at one point. Anyway, me being an outsider with non-Clarke County plates, well, I was a stranger and therefore to be suspected of.....well, I'd rather not guess what. I'm sure it wasn't 'good'. 

The forlorn streets were mostly devoid of activity, with the exception of a stray cat and dog.

I had my picture made with (From L-R) Dori, Steve, myself, and Sarah. (Image taken by Amanda)

Not long after I arrived a silver VW sedan with a bike rack turned around the corner up the street from me. Ah! The 'bike people' are arriving! It was Dori. We said our hellos and got to setting up the checkpoint. Dori is one of the RD's of the Spotted Horse and a very inspirational person to be around. Not long after this, Amanda arrived, and we were ready to go. Then Steve and Sarah, the other RD's of the event, arrived and we had a few more folks stop by as well, including the couple from Bottom Bracket Biking and Lisa, who was banged up and recovering from a bicycle accident earlier this year. 

This is always my favorite part of events like this where you get to chat for a time with folks you only see at gravel events. It's where the term, "Gravel Family" comes from, and it's a big reason why the grassroots gravel scene is so popular. 

Siphamandia Simelane came in second to Checkpoint #1

Dori's self-described "bitchy notes" for the riders at the checkpoint

As volunteers we were instructed to be wearing masks and to have riders take off water bottle tops, hand the bottles to us, and we would fill them from the spigot. This worked marvelously well, and all riders I helped were very compliant with the protocols. Other than this small inconvenience, this was basically like any other aid station/checkpoint experience I have had. 

The first riders did not show up until the stroke of ten o'clock, so we had about a half an hour of chatting freely with Steve and Sarah before they had to move along and get up the road. I found out that the situation in the Iowa Wind And Rock event had caused everyone to fall away until one was left standing- or riding, in this case. It was, no surprise to me, Greg Gleason. The two-time Trans Iowa winner was riding IWAR single speed, and some of the stories shared by Steve and Sarah concerning Greg's performance were fun to hear about. 

The situation with some of the other riders was also shared with me, which was very kind of them, and of course, told in confidence. I wouldn't say anything, but they never asked me not to. That sort of trust is rare. I appreciated their confidence greatly and always will. Anyway, Greg ended up winning and being the only finisher. Amazing! 

We were graced by a visit from the Burger King. Who knew that he lived in Murray Iowa? Crazy!

Past Spotted Horse events have been noted for their derailleur-destroying conditions. Many single speeders showed up this year as a result.

As I said, the first two riders we saw come in showed up at the stroke of 10;00am. By this time the soccer brigade had cleared out and left the forlorn streets of Murray, Iowa to us bike freaks. We went about our business, seeing cyclists come in pairs every so often, until we heard a train blow its lonesome call. A big freight train, by the sounds of it, and I was wondering, along with the others, if it was holding up some of the rider's progress to our position. 

As the rumble of the iron wheels faded we saw a slug of riders headed our way, the biggest pack we would see all morning, and sure enough, they related to us that the train had caused them all to bunch back together. We moved quickly as we could from rider to rider to service their needs and one by one they eventually all made their way back on down the road. 

Amanda was our leader and record keeper. It was great to get to know her during my time there.

A few riders getting ready to head out to checkpoint #2.

Eventually riders stopped trickling in. 11:30am came and went with no further activity. Technically speaking, we were to be done then, but we all agreed to stay on until noon to make sure no straggler was left behind. As the noon hour approached we packed up most everything and I said goodbye to Dori and Amanda, the only two left there, and made my way back home. 

While turn out wasn't spectacular for either event, everyone was stoked to be there and riding. I saw a lot of happy faces and it was good to be out doing something kind of normal for once. Oh......yeah. This is the first time I've traveled out of town for anything social since before the pandemic. It was odd, but not weird. If that makes any sense. I had a bit of anxiety about it, but overall, I am okay. I think the event was done right and we were safe, as far as you can be. 

Anyway, besides that I was very glad to be giving back to the gravel community again in a bit different role than I have before. I might have to do this volunteering thing again someday. It was pretty fun.

Volunteering At The Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra

Old DX gas station in Murray. Iowa.

 5:00am Saturday, October 24th, 2020: The alarm goes off on my iPhone and I jump up out of bed, careful not to awake Mrs. Guitar Ted, but not quiet enough for Minka The Cat. She accompanies me downstairs where I immediately feed the ravenous creature its breakfast. Then I get to making my own meal before getting kitted out to do my turn at the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra. This event, in its fifth year, happens to be down South of me about a three hour drive away. So, I have to be quick about things to be able to hit the road by 6:00am or earlier, if I can. My turn to serve starts at 10:00am, but they wanted me to show up by 9:30am. 

My destination is Murray, Iowa, a small village West of Osceola, Iowa on US 34. Wikipedia says the population, as of 2010, was 756 people. Hmm.....I'd believe it if it was less than that. Anyway, I'd never been there, or even heard of the village, until my assignment was given via e-mail to me from Race Director, Sarah Cooper. I was to be paired up with another of the RD's, Dori, and the lead at the checkpoint was Amanda. I knew Dori and Sarah from Trans Iowa, but I had never met Amanda before. 

The Spotted Horse is a 150 mile or 200 mile event which had been modified this year due to COVID-19, and was run (kind of) concurrently with the postponed from April Iowa Wind And Rock, the 300+ mile event which was strongly influenced by Trans Iowa. I wasn't sure what to expect, since these sorts of gravel ultras are hard to train for and what with 2020 being what it has been, I wasn't even going to venture any guesses as to what the attendance might be. Added to this was the fact that it was forecast to be raw, cold, and grey for the weekend, and I wasn't thinking this was a recipe for a large turnout. But who knows?

Some Murray, Iowa flavor. I don't know how smaller villages like this hang on these days.

Besides a public school and a Casey's convenience store, this was the best maintained building in town.

I arrived a half an hour early, you know, like a good Mid-Western boy should, and sat around getting the stink-eye from locals gathering at the public area we were to set up the checkpoint at. They were gathering with their elementary school aged children for a bit of a soccer game. I have to say that I was duly impressed by the turnout. There must have been 30 children of various ages running amok at one point. Anyway, me being an outsider with non-Clarke County plates, well, I was a stranger and therefore to be suspected of.....well, I'd rather not guess what. I'm sure it wasn't 'good'. 

The forlorn streets were mostly devoid of activity, with the exception of a stray cat and dog.

I had my picture made with (From L-R) Dori, Steve, myself, and Sarah. (Image taken by Amanda)

Not long after I arrived a silver VW sedan with a bike rack turned around the corner up the street from me. Ah! The 'bike people' are arriving! It was Dori. We said our hellos and got to setting up the checkpoint. Dori is one of the RD's of the Spotted Horse and a very inspirational person to be around. Not long after this, Amanda arrived, and we were ready to go. Then Steve and Sarah, the other RD's of the event, arrived and we had a few more folks stop by as well, including the couple from Bottom Bracket Biking and Lisa, who was banged up and recovering from a bicycle accident earlier this year. 

This is always my favorite part of events like this where you get to chat for a time with folks you only see at gravel events. It's where the term, "Gravel Family" comes from, and it's a big reason why the grassroots gravel scene is so popular. 

Siphamandia Simelane came in second to Checkpoint #1

Dori's self-described "bitchy notes" for the riders at the checkpoint

As volunteers we were instructed to be wearing masks and to have riders take off water bottle tops, hand the bottles to us, and we would fill them from the spigot. This worked marvelously well, and all riders I helped were very compliant with the protocols. Other than this small inconvenience, this was basically like any other aid station/checkpoint experience I have had. 

The first riders did not show up until the stroke of ten o'clock, so we had about a half an hour of chatting freely with Steve and Sarah before they had to move along and get up the road. I found out that the situation in the Iowa Wind And Rock event had caused everyone to fall away until one was left standing- or riding, in this case. It was, no surprise to me, Greg Gleason. The two-time Trans Iowa winner was riding IWAR single speed, and some of the stories shared by Steve and Sarah concerning Greg's performance were fun to hear about. 

The situation with some of the other riders was also shared with me, which was very kind of them, and of course, told in confidence. I wouldn't say anything, but they never asked me not to. That sort of trust is rare. I appreciated their confidence greatly and always will. Anyway, Greg ended up winning and being the only finisher. Amazing! 

We were graced by a visit from the Burger King. Who knew that he lived in Murray Iowa? Crazy!

Past Spotted Horse events have been noted for their derailleur-destroying conditions. Many single speeders showed up this year as a result.

As I said, the first two riders we saw come in showed up at the stroke of 10;00am. By this time the soccer brigade had cleared out and left the forlorn streets of Murray, Iowa to us bike freaks. We went about our business, seeing cyclists come in pairs every so often, until we heard a train blow its lonesome call. A big freight train, by the sounds of it, and I was wondering, along with the others, if it was holding up some of the rider's progress to our position. 

As the rumble of the iron wheels faded we saw a slug of riders headed our way, the biggest pack we would see all morning, and sure enough, they related to us that the train had caused them all to bunch back together. We moved quickly as we could from rider to rider to service their needs and one by one they eventually all made their way back on down the road. 

Amanda was our leader and record keeper. It was great to get to know her during my time there.

A few riders getting ready to head out to checkpoint #2.

Eventually riders stopped trickling in. 11:30am came and went with no further activity. Technically speaking, we were to be done then, but we all agreed to stay on until noon to make sure no straggler was left behind. As the noon hour approached we packed up most everything and I said goodbye to Dori and Amanda, the only two left there, and made my way back home. 

While turn out wasn't spectacular for either event, everyone was stoked to be there and riding. I saw a lot of happy faces and it was good to be out doing something kind of normal for once. Oh......yeah. This is the first time I've traveled out of town for anything social since before the pandemic. It was odd, but not weird. If that makes any sense. I had a bit of anxiety about it, but overall, I am okay. I think the event was done right and we were safe, as far as you can be. 

Anyway, besides that I was very glad to be giving back to the gravel community again in a bit different role than I have before. I might have to do this volunteering thing again someday. It was pretty fun.

Volunteers

 So, today I am off doing something I haven't done in years- volunteering for an event's production. Yep! I mentioned earlier this week that I wasn't doing any event promotions/productions anymore, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't help someone else. 

Besides, I figured that my volunteers for Trans Iowa were invaluable to helping produce that event, and so when the call went out for volunteers for the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra, I figured I would return the favor and maybe give back a little in recognition of my fortunes in getting stellar volunteers. 

I hope that my help is one-tenth as valuable as the volunteers help I got for Trans Iowa was and that my tiny contribution is of some worth. It will be fun to see some of the folks I haven't seen in a long time and maybe see some folks for the first time. 

The weather should be interesting. A high of 44°F with a light Easterly breeze, and I know it will be slightly colder than that in the morning which is when I am scheduled to be "on point" for my assignment. I will be traveling three hours each way to get there and back, so my day will be pretty much driving and standing around for a bit. That will be most of today's time I have to spend. 

A report on my tiny slice of the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra will appear here on Monday. 

Volunteers

 So, today I am off doing something I haven't done in years- volunteering for an event's production. Yep! I mentioned earlier this week that I wasn't doing any event promotions/productions anymore, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't help someone else. 

Besides, I figured that my volunteers for Trans Iowa were invaluable to helping produce that event, and so when the call went out for volunteers for the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra, I figured I would return the favor and maybe give back a little in recognition of my fortunes in getting stellar volunteers. 

I hope that my help is one-tenth as valuable as the volunteers help I got for Trans Iowa was and that my tiny contribution is of some worth. It will be fun to see some of the folks I haven't seen in a long time and maybe see some folks for the first time. 

The weather should be interesting. A high of 44°F with a light Easterly breeze, and I know it will be slightly colder than that in the morning which is when I am scheduled to be "on point" for my assignment. I will be traveling three hours each way to get there and back, so my day will be pretty much driving and standing around for a bit. That will be most of today's time I have to spend. 

A report on my tiny slice of the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra will appear here on Monday. 

Friday News And Views

Spotted Horse This Weekend:

The big event on gravel for Iowa in Fall is now the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra. It is slated to go off this weekend. The event is put on by Sarah Cooper with help from some fine Iowa gravel folks like Steve Fuller and others. Basically the same bunch that do Iowa Wind & Rock in April.

The events are pretty much take-offs on the Trans Iowa model with self-navigation, self-support, and long distances the main features. Sarah is based in Madison County so most of what they do is West and South of there. (Read: very hilly and remote for Iowa)

This weekend may prove to be pretty challenging with rain in the forecast for Saturday and what with the several days of soaking rains we've had previously to this weekend. Sarah likes her dirt roads down there, so I am thinking it is going to prove to be a big bite to chew on for all involved.

It's been fun to follow along on Facebook as far as folks getting wigged out about the weather and seeing the things Sarah has been juggling in regard to directing things. Ah!......the memories! On one hand I can certainly sympathize, on the other, I am blessed not to have to go through that anymore. Hopefully the weather folk are all wrong about the rain and things go off unhindered by weather. But if not, I hope everyone stays safe and good times are had. Those times when things aren't according to plan are usually the best memories later, but also may be the most stressful when they are being made too!

Geezer Ride: Cresco-

And.......yeah! It's supposed to rain up in the Cresco area as well. I don't know what will happen for certain, but the plan is for me to make my way up there regardless, and if it looks bad, I suppose there will be a call made.

This one isn't being organized by me, so my best advice would be to pay attention to the Facebook Page for the event and monitor that for any announcements that may or may not be made there. Cresco Bikes is this Geezer Ride's official host, so they get to make the call, not I. So, being that I am the instigator of these Geezer Rides, I gotta go there, but you should keep an eye out on the weather.

As I wrote yesterday, it seems that this Fall is quickly becoming one that will be dominated by rains, wet grounds, and some flooding. Great..... The best season to ride and it looks to be getting squashed for the second year in a row now. I sure hope this pattern breaks down soon and that we can get into another dry stretch, because I am sick and tired of all the wet weather now. If you are from the Southeast, you probably are hoping for a change as well, only it isn't due to rain. No......they are getting roasted down that way. 

Old single speed stuff about to be reborn.

Two Old Hubs, Two Old Rims, 64 New Spokes = New Wheels:

Earlier this year, (I think it was), I posted here that my friend Grannygear had bequeathed to me a bunch of single speed stuff he had no use for anymore. Part of that treasure was a set of White Industries ENO hubs. They used to be on Granny's old Karate Monkey back in the day.  

These hubs had seen a lot of grinding in SoCal dust over the years, so when I got them they were dingy, dull, and the rear bearings were ......ah....less than smooth, shall we say? Yeah. They needed replacement.  With gravel season coming on I sat these aside and gave it some time to simmer on the brain. Then I came across my old set of Hope Pro 3/Salsa Gordo wheels. The free hub pawls shelled out on that hub and I had zero luck here in the US getting a replacement free hub body. So, those went on the back burner long ago. Well, when I found them languishing in the corner of the Lab, I had a thought. Let's unlace those Hope hubs, clean up and freshen up the White Industries hubs, and lace up a killer set of QR single speed wheels.

I looked up how to service the White Industries ENO rear hub, and it looked easy enough. The bearings would have to be ordered, and then I could pop those back in. But then I discovered something under a pile of crap in the bottom of my work tool cabinet. It was a tandem specific rear White Industries hub which had a defect. Seems the hub shell was polished just a wee bit too much and there was a crack in the middle of the hub shell which when the hub was torqued, it distorted the hub shell, revealing the crack. The wheel was warranted, I cut the old hub out, since no one wanted it, and saved it for.......

Well, I had no idea why I saved it, but guess what? It had the exact bearings I needed. Boom! Swap-a-roonie, and I had a freshened ENO rear hub ready to roll. Now I have one rim freed from its grip to the Hope hub it was laced to and one more to free up. Then it's build wheels time. Hopefully that will happen this weekend.

This new wheel set will go on my OS Bikes Blackbuck, a bike I have to get up and running again. The Gordo rims are the forerunners of the "wider-is-better" trend in the MTB world and are 35mm outer rim width. I had these on the Blackbuck once before and it made for a stellar combination of rigid bike and cushy wheels. I have something special in mind when I lace these hubs up, so stay tuned.....

That's a wrap for this week. As always- Thank You For Reading Guitar Ted Productions!

Friday News And Views

Spotted Horse This Weekend:

The big event on gravel for Iowa in Fall is now the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra. It is slated to go off this weekend. The event is put on by Sarah Cooper with help from some fine Iowa gravel folks like Steve Fuller and others. Basically the same bunch that do Iowa Wind & Rock in April.

The events are pretty much take-offs on the Trans Iowa model with self-navigation, self-support, and long distances the main features. Sarah is based in Madison County so most of what they do is West and South of there. (Read: very hilly and remote for Iowa)

This weekend may prove to be pretty challenging with rain in the forecast for Saturday and what with the several days of soaking rains we've had previously to this weekend. Sarah likes her dirt roads down there, so I am thinking it is going to prove to be a big bite to chew on for all involved.

It's been fun to follow along on Facebook as far as folks getting wigged out about the weather and seeing the things Sarah has been juggling in regard to directing things. Ah!......the memories! On one hand I can certainly sympathize, on the other, I am blessed not to have to go through that anymore. Hopefully the weather folk are all wrong about the rain and things go off unhindered by weather. But if not, I hope everyone stays safe and good times are had. Those times when things aren't according to plan are usually the best memories later, but also may be the most stressful when they are being made too!

Geezer Ride: Cresco-

And.......yeah! It's supposed to rain up in the Cresco area as well. I don't know what will happen for certain, but the plan is for me to make my way up there regardless, and if it looks bad, I suppose there will be a call made.

This one isn't being organized by me, so my best advice would be to pay attention to the Facebook Page for the event and monitor that for any announcements that may or may not be made there. Cresco Bikes is this Geezer Ride's official host, so they get to make the call, not I. So, being that I am the instigator of these Geezer Rides, I gotta go there, but you should keep an eye out on the weather.

As I wrote yesterday, it seems that this Fall is quickly becoming one that will be dominated by rains, wet grounds, and some flooding. Great..... The best season to ride and it looks to be getting squashed for the second year in a row now. I sure hope this pattern breaks down soon and that we can get into another dry stretch, because I am sick and tired of all the wet weather now. If you are from the Southeast, you probably are hoping for a change as well, only it isn't due to rain. No......they are getting roasted down that way. 

Old single speed stuff about to be reborn.

Two Old Hubs, Two Old Rims, 64 New Spokes = New Wheels:

Earlier this year, (I think it was), I posted here that my friend Grannygear had bequeathed to me a bunch of single speed stuff he had no use for anymore. Part of that treasure was a set of White Industries ENO hubs. They used to be on Granny's old Karate Monkey back in the day.  

These hubs had seen a lot of grinding in SoCal dust over the years, so when I got them they were dingy, dull, and the rear bearings were ......ah....less than smooth, shall we say? Yeah. They needed replacement.  With gravel season coming on I sat these aside and gave it some time to simmer on the brain. Then I came across my old set of Hope Pro 3/Salsa Gordo wheels. The free hub pawls shelled out on that hub and I had zero luck here in the US getting a replacement free hub body. So, those went on the back burner long ago. Well, when I found them languishing in the corner of the Lab, I had a thought. Let's unlace those Hope hubs, clean up and freshen up the White Industries hubs, and lace up a killer set of QR single speed wheels.

I looked up how to service the White Industries ENO rear hub, and it looked easy enough. The bearings would have to be ordered, and then I could pop those back in. But then I discovered something under a pile of crap in the bottom of my work tool cabinet. It was a tandem specific rear White Industries hub which had a defect. Seems the hub shell was polished just a wee bit too much and there was a crack in the middle of the hub shell which when the hub was torqued, it distorted the hub shell, revealing the crack. The wheel was warranted, I cut the old hub out, since no one wanted it, and saved it for.......

Well, I had no idea why I saved it, but guess what? It had the exact bearings I needed. Boom! Swap-a-roonie, and I had a freshened ENO rear hub ready to roll. Now I have one rim freed from its grip to the Hope hub it was laced to and one more to free up. Then it's build wheels time. Hopefully that will happen this weekend.

This new wheel set will go on my OS Bikes Blackbuck, a bike I have to get up and running again. The Gordo rims are the forerunners of the "wider-is-better" trend in the MTB world and are 35mm outer rim width. I had these on the Blackbuck once before and it made for a stellar combination of rigid bike and cushy wheels. I have something special in mind when I lace these hubs up, so stay tuned.....

That's a wrap for this week. As always- Thank You For Reading Guitar Ted Productions!

The Winner

Jeff Kerkove just after winning the 200 mile Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra- Image courtesy of the Spotted Horse

My old co-worker, Trans Iowa co-founder, and an old hat at running long, tough races, Jeff Kerkove, won a gravel race. That isn't anything new, by the way. He's won a lot of races.

I had him tabbed to win it all along, as soon as I heard he was on the roster for the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra. He's not an unknown, at least not to me. I know not many have heard of Jeff on the gravel side of bicycle racing, but he's won lots of solo 24hr races, been a contender in really high altitude mtb ultras, and you know, he is from Iowa, after all. 

Jeff cut his teeth, in terms of cycling, on gravel. He trained for miles, hundreds- maybe thousands of miles, all over Iowa on gravel roads. He raced in the first Trans Iowa. Gravel racing, riding techniques, and most importantly, how to ride for a hell of a long time, are not things foreign to this guy. That's why when I read things like, "It was only his fifth gravel race!", I have to snort with laughter.

But I know about this guy. 

I haven't hung around Jeff for many years now, but in my short time that I was blessed to do so, I can tell you that I have never met anyone else with such a strong sense of discipline than he has. Jeff was determined, loyal to the plan he set for himself, and had that "it", that mental attribute, that you cannot teach. If everything went right, Jeff was going to contend for the win. I doubt he's changed much in the last decade, so when he won, I wasn't at all surprised.

Congratulations Jeff!

The Winner

Jeff Kerkove just after winning the 200 mile Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra- Image courtesy of the Spotted Horse

My old co-worker, Trans Iowa co-founder, and an old hat at running long, tough races, Jeff Kerkove, won a gravel race. That isn't anything new, by the way. He's won a lot of races.

I had him tabbed to win it all along, as soon as I heard he was on the roster for the Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra. He's not an unknown, at least not to me. I know not many have heard of Jeff on the gravel side of bicycle racing, but he's won lots of solo 24hr races, been a contender in really high altitude mtb ultras, and you know, he is from Iowa, after all. 

Jeff cut his teeth, in terms of cycling, on gravel. He trained for miles, hundreds- maybe thousands of miles, all over Iowa on gravel roads. He raced in the first Trans Iowa. Gravel racing, riding techniques, and most importantly, how to ride for a hell of a long time, are not things foreign to this guy. That's why when I read things like, "It was only his fifth gravel race!", I have to snort with laughter.

But I know about this guy. 

I haven't hung around Jeff for many years now, but in my short time that I was blessed to do so, I can tell you that I have never met anyone else with such a strong sense of discipline than he has. Jeff was determined, loyal to the plan he set for himself, and had that "it", that mental attribute, that you cannot teach. If everything went right, Jeff was going to contend for the win. I doubt he's changed much in the last decade, so when he won, I wasn't at all surprised.

Congratulations Jeff!

Friday News And Views

Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra:

Well, this weekend is the annual Spotted Horse Gravel Ultra. First of all, good luck to all who are participating. Especially my old coworker and Trans Iowa co-founder, Jeff Kerkove, who is signed up to ride in this thing.

This event is star-crossed for me. I want to go, but every year something else coincides with this that keeps me from attending, either as a participant or as a spectator. This year my son has a football game, and for obvious reasons, family takes precedence over seeing old friends, but that doesn't make that any easier to bear. Last year I forget what it was that kept me from going, but I remember the year before it was the Fargo Reunion Ride which took precedence over Spotted Horse.

Anyway..... I will miss seeing everyone there and I wish you all the best. Maybe one of these days I'll make it to a Spotted Horse! But that said, hopefully this predicted rain won't affect the event too negatively, and also, I hope everyone stays safe!

Tell me they are good for gravel- Okay. Just don't say "gravel specific", please!

It's Getting Silly- This "Gravel Specific" Thing: 

Look........I get it. The bicycling marketplace is suffering. Sales are, at best, flat. The only categories showing growth, if you care to know, are e-bikes (mopeds-motorcycles.....whatever) and gravel bikes. I still think the adoption of "gravel" for these bicycles is short-sighted, but again........whatever.

The point is, this "gravel" deal is one of the bright spots in cycling. So, you know......everyone wants a piece of the action. In that vein, a new cyc;ing helmet was introduced Thursday, which shall remain nameless, which was touted as being "gravel specific". The media outlet which presented us with this farcical idea did its usual job of writing up a story and in the middle of its presentation it questioned what it was that made the helmet gravel specific, answering themselves by saying they didn't know, but maybe it was due to the useless visor attached to the helmet's browline.

See, this is marketing gone awry. I don't mind if a company says, "Hey! Look at this! It might work well for gravel riding!". Okay. That's good. That's fine with me. But when you tell me a saddle is "twenty-niner specific", as fizik did at one time, or that a stupid piece of plastic masquerading as a "visor" makes an otherwise roadie helmet "gravel specific", well you are on very thin ice there. Not buying it.

Titanium May Not Be Forever: 

But Silca says it can be guaranteed for 25 years in a bottle cage form. Yep! Introducing the "Sicuro" titanium bottle cage for $70.00.

Seventy bucks! It had better last for 25 years! That's a lot of dough, especially when you can get what is arguably the best cage in the business, made from titanium, in a King Cage for around $50.00 retail. But......you can move this one around in different mounting positions. Yep! Comparable to the Morse Cage by Wolf Tooth (made by King Cage) at the same price as this Sicuro cage. That said, Wolf Tooth doesn't have a 25 year guarantee.

The bottom line here is that you could outfit an entire bike with three plastic cages, or injection molded cages, for less, so it depends upon your viewpoint. Titanium is definitely durable. Like Silca says, ".....feel free to slam your bottles home with abandon and mount it under the downtube on your gravel rig in the knowledge that it will provide a "Sicuro" hold."

So clever there! Anyway, you'll have to decide whether or not titanium bottle cages are worth it, or if stainless steel is "good enough" (you can get that Wolf Tooth cage for $25.00 when it is in stock), or if none of this nonsense is making sense to you and you'd rather save a bunch of money and use injection molded cages. Twenty five years is a looooong time, so unless you plan on moving the Sicuro cage from bike to bike, you may not ever get the full benefit of the guarantee. Then again, you've got to wonder if Silca would even bother to warranty a 24 year old titanium bottle cage, or even if they would be around to honor that in 25 years. Hard to say......

Floyd's of Leadville to sponsor a Pro Continental Team?

In The "No- I'm Not Making This Up" File:

Pro road cycling still suffers from the stigma of doping, 20 years after the modern day breakout of the big doping crisis in the sport. Many have had their names drug through the mud, have been cast  from their lofty places in the sport, and have lost everything due to doping to gain an advantage on the field. One of these characters, Floyd Landis, announced that he was going to take what was left over from a lawsuit settlement which he was engaged in with the deposed cyclist, Lance Armstrong, and spend it on starting a continental Pro road race team. (Details here)

In an irony of ironies, a former doper is starting a team, in a sport hurting from doping allegations to this day, with money he got from a lawsuit against another doper, and will be sponsored by his own company which sells marijuana based hemp and CBD products. So dope! 

Man, the story just seems tailor made for a comedic routine. I'm sure the jokes are already flying! But, many in the media are trying to look beyond the obvious silliness here because any news of growth in the realm of road cycling is rare these days. That shows you how desperate these times are for cycling. 

Teravail offerings in skinwall.

 Teravail Debuts New Tire Offerings:

Lots of newsy stuff today and here is a bit more from QBP tire brand, Teravail. They have introduced some new variants in there tire model line up.

The two 650B offerings are interesting in that they cover two popular sizes and they are the tread that Teravail has designated as one of their gravel specific offerings. This is big because of all of the new bikes coming out with 650B compatibility. The smaller size should even slot in on bikes which have narrower clearances.  

The 29 X 2.8 Coronado is interesting for the 29+ freaks that want a great looking skinwall option. Of course, you can get blackwall versions, but why would you? Skinwalls till Winter! ha! Anyway, a great option for 29+ bikes. I doubt it will fit the back of many 29"ers. 

Then the Rampart is a tire I am not familiar with, but a 38mm offering is a good size which isn't covered by many companies. It also would be a better choice for some cyclo cross bikes where a 40+mm tire isn't allowing for any mud clearances or just plain won't fit. 

Teravail says these are available now, so see your local bike shop dealer and ask about 'em.


That's a wrap for this week. I hope you all get to ride this weekend.