Further Thoughts On Unbound 2026

Riders stopped by a train (Image courtesy of Unbound social media)

Last weekend Unbound was held as approximately 5,000 riders partook of event distances ranging from 350 miles to 25 miles. The marquee distance is the 200 miler, and over 1,200 riders in the 200 mile category fought conditions from mud, rain, and lightning to get back to Emporia Kansas. 

I already wrote up my take on the event (HERE), but since then, the article has engendered many interesting comments which I wanted to point out or address here today. 

First of all, I want to thank everyone who shared the post or talked about it and drove more eyeballs to the article on this platform. This was, by far, the most read piece I've written in 2026. So, again, thank you for reading Guitar Ted Productions!

Severe Weather Plans? 

Now, to the points I saw being made. There was a huge thread going on concerning this post where I linked to it on Facebook. In the comments I saw a good few points concerning potential for weather related disaster to possibly impact this event. I would 100% agree this is a big time bomb for Life Time to either diffuse by addressing it, or ignore at their peril, (not to mention the rider's perils) 

The situation is compounded by a few critical elements. First, the area called the Flint Hills. It is remote, crossed by few roads, and those roads become nigh unto impassable, according to the locals, once saturated with rain. 

Next we have the sheer numbers of riders. With 1.250 total riders  doing the 200 miles in the amateur class, the throng leaving Emporia took almost five minutes to pass a camera recording the start of the event. Now think about this conga line getting stretched out over miles and miles of rustic Flint Hills roads in inclement weather. That's just the 200 mile class! 

There were 237 doing the even more far-flung 350 mile option, with the remainder of the 5,000 doing 100, 50, and 25 mile courses. That is a lot of territory to cover and a heck of a lot of possibilities for things to go pear-shaped. 

Now think about weather conditions. Riders in this year's event already were dealing with rain, lightning, and wind, but what if things took a turn for the worse? Let's say a violent severe thunderstorm with high winds, hail, and sheets of rain. No one in their right mind would even think about driving in a vehicle during such events in the Flint Hills. How does Life Time extract up to 5,000 riders from such a remote course? I think the answer is obvious: They cannot do this. 

So, what should Life Time do? One: Be willing to cancel the event in case of potential bad weather. This year would have been a close call for the organizer. I think it gets tough when you have weather that is unpredictable, but not so bad you couldn't ride in it.  I know all about this.

Then you have pre-event communications. One commenter on my Facebook post said something to the effect that Life Time has policies and warnings in their written rules, but this person felt it was not communicated to the riders and hammered home that the riders have a responsibility here as well.  

I probably over-communicated when I ran Trans Iowa. I know I was cited for information fatigue by riders at times. But, in my opinion, better to wear you out with messaging than have you be oblivious to your responsibilities. Better to understand, as a rider,  what the event can and cannot do for you. You just cannot rely on written rules as a race organizer. Period. 

Then there is the money. Obviously Life Time rakes in a truckload of cash from entry fees. It has expenses, to be sure, but if the unthinkable happened, families and loved ones won't see that. They will have lawyers at the ready to extract whatever financial compensation they can get. Waivers won't save Life Time there, and it would be very costly, or potentially fatal for the event. 

Emporia and the surrounding environs benefits tremendously from Unbound. The economy can ill afford any hit to this income stream. I would think the community would have an intense interest in seeing that Life Time does its due diligence in presenting an emergency plan and a set of parameters for cancellation of the event. I do not know if this has been done, or not done, by Life Time.  (I would assume it has been done) I am only saying that Life Time should have this mechanism in place. If they already do, they have done a very poor job in communicating this, according to some riders reports online.

Fence Jumpers: 

Rules for events mean nothing unless they are enforced. There was an image from this year's event showing folks hike-a-biking a minimum maintenance road. In the image, more than a few riders were jumping the fence on to the landowner\s side and riding/walking on that private land. 

I know when this event was run by Jim Cummings that was a big no-no and DQ worthy. However; during this year's events, no one seemed to be policing this. Again, perhaps Life Time doesn't have the staffing, wherewithal, or impetus to do policing and enforcing of rules. I don't know Life Time's situation regarding this. I do know if you are trespassing on private land you should be yanked off the course and given a DQ. Apparently this is not happening.

From the 2015 "Mud Year"

Team Tactics:

A recent article in "Velo" ballyhooed what they claimed to be a sea change in gravel racing. Team tactics! Gravel will never be the same again! Oh my!

You've probably seen the story. How Specialized rider Mads Wurtz Schmidt received Keegan Swenson's rear wheel so he could finish the event and win the overall in the 200. Swenson ended up finishing fifth overall. Just exactly how he fixed the "unfixable" rear flat, no one has reported that I can find)

Does this mean it's curtains for privateers? Does this mean now that anyone coming to Unbound had better be on a team with full team support? I don't think so. In fact, I'll go so far as to say this is no big deal. 

Riders have been allowed to help other riders in the event since the beginning of the Modern Gravel Era. Stories of riders assisting each other are numerous. But you might say, "Yes, but this was just like a Pro road team where the captain is supported at all costs!" I would caution against any thoughts along these lines. Yes, Swenson, Schmidt, and the second place finisher Matt Beers were all on Specialized's "team", but make no mistake, they were racing for themselves. Had Swenson had the legs that day, I don't think he's giving Schmidt his wheel. But we will never really know this. 

And as far as a Pro road like team in gravel? The average team budget in the UCU Pro road ranks is 33 million according to this article. Let's say a gravel team costs a quarter of this amount. That is still a whopping 8.25 million bucks. I just don't see this happening. Your mileage may vary. So, yeah....that "Velo" article? I wouldn't put too much stock into it. 

Surprising Data:

It was a "mud year" at the Unbound Gravel event, so how did the finishing rate turn out? Surprisingly, outside of the XL event distance, quite well, actually. 

You can get a quick look at the finishing numbers versus the actual starting numbers for each event by clicking HERE. Obviously the XL with 237 starting and 60 finishing had the worst rate of DNF's, but over 350 miles and storms, mud, and wind, this is maybe more reasonable. But look at those other classes. Not too shabby for a bad weather year, I'd say. 

Certainly it was far worse in other years and this edition of Unbound doesn't even hold a candle to the carnage of 2015. One final note: The gravel scene still has a hard time pulling in women riders in the upper echelon of the sport. Only 63 Pro women? Wow.... I gotta say that is surprising. 
 

The World's Premier Gravel Event Is....

Image courtesy of The Traka

 20 years ago there was a small group of riders who convened at a seedy, run down motel in a city in Kansas most people had never heard of to ride in the Flint Hills. A 200 mile trek across those rolling, rock infested roads around Emporia. 

At the time, no one cared. 

No one, that is, outside of the small cadre of enthusiasts who were the pioneers of what we now know as Gravel™. The biggest trend in cycling for decades. 

That event grew, and it grew, and it became known as "The World's Premier Gravel Event". And it was true for many years. 

But now? Now there is a contender. An event across the sea in Spain which has been around for eight editions now. Run by a series called Gravel Earth, The Traka, based in Girona Spain, has a little something to say now about who may have the world's top gravel event.  

The Traka isn't the richest Pro gravel event. It isn't even a pioneering gravel event in Europe. But it has taken on a vibe, and it has taken on an importance in Europe, and beyond. A place on the calendar which took Unbound far longer to achieve in terms of overall importance. Of course, the event formerly known as the Dirty Kanza 200 had to forge a path no other event had forged before it, unlike The Traka. But besides this point, it would seem to me, at any rate, that the Traka is poised to take over the crown of the World's Premier Gravel Event. 

Image courtesy of Unbound Gravel

Comparing these events we see that both draw about 5,000 riders across multiple distances. Both feature Pro level event categories. Both events draw heavy industry attention with brands choosing to debut new equipment and bicycles at these two events. Both events draw intense cycling media coverage on the internet and social media. 

So, why might The Traka overtake Unbound Gravel as the top world gravel event? In one word, I can give you a very compelling answer: Geography. 

The thing is that geography could take in what the courses are like at these two events, but that is not what I mean, necessarily. I think it has to do with something N.Y. Roll mentioned while we were discussing the two events. It is just easier to get to Girona Spain than it is to get to Emporia, Kansas. 

But cycling companies are making choices too, and one popular wheel brand has already stated that The Traka is the "benchmark" gravel event. We can see how many European based brands are making moves to be a part of The Traka as well. This has been the domain of Unbound up until recently, but with both events in May, and after Sea Otter, it seems to me that The Traka has drawn a lot more brand interest than Unbound seems to be getting. 

Now, it should be said that both events have had growing pains when it comes to Pro vs amateur field racers. Just this year at The Traka complaints were lodged by some Pro women riders concerning this. Now Unbound has further separated the Pro field from the amateur classes by giving the Pros exclusive feed zones. They also have separated finish chutes and timing for their respective classes. The Traka is still navigating some of these issues as well. How the ending of these stories is told may have a say in which event becomes the one at the top of the heap for all concerned. 

For now, in 2026, twenty years after a humble beginning in a seedy Kansas town, the Unbound Gravel event still holds the crown as being the World's Premier Gravel Event. But for how much longer will it retain this accolade is now in question. I wouldn't be surprised to see this crown move overseas.  

It Is Time For Pro-Only Unbound

From the 2024 UNBOUND Gravel highligths video by Life Time Events

 The fall-out from this year's Unbound Gravel is still coming down and once again, there is "beef", as it has been called in the past. Meaning that there were circumstances which the Elite Women's field saw which prompted some articles online afterward disparaging how the event is set up for Elites and for how support is rendered in a couple of different instances. In today's post I want to, once again, discuss the idea that Pro/Elite racing, which is a job/money-making venture for most in this field, is not compatible with the amateur/original intentions for this event.

First, I want to point out a few previously published articles on this subject which I have written. The most directly related of which is one I wrote three years ago now entitled " State Of The Gravel Scene: Mid-Term 2022- Is It Time To Separate The Pros From The Rest?" . The next article which pertains to this year's "beef" is entitled "UNBOUND Makes Changes To Event But Will It Matter?". That one is also from 2023. Finally, another related article is entitled "Unbound Gravel: The Real Heroes of the Event", also from 2023. I will be drawing from these articles for the following thoughts I have concerning the issues brought forth this year.

Briefly, let's touch upon "the beef" part. What is going on which is making waves? I'll hit some Googled results for "Unbound issues/news". Here are the top four results:

• From Cyclingnews:  "Unbound Gravel 'needs standards, not red tape' "Elite riders feeling the squeeze in Kansas amid lightly vetted fields and chaotic aid stations"
• From Outside:  "Unbound Gravel Is Becoming More Dangerous Every Year" "Many riders had safety concerns after Saturday's race, between the feed zones, sizes of fields, and the aggressive racing."

• Again - From Cyclingnews:  'Good day until blood came out' - The Unbound Gravel ...   "A catalogue of the crashes, broken wheels, barbed wire encounters and wrong turns that ended races and curtailed results."

•  From Cycling Weekly: Unbound rider left injured, in ditch for 90 minutes before ..  "Klara Sofie Skovgaard (Canyon Factory Racing) suffered a serious crash early in the women's elite race at Unbound Gravel on Saturday, ..."

From social media: Roads were troublesome all week.

The fifth return was an Outside feed for the event but was tag lined with the same news about the Elite woman rider's crash and being in the ditch.

So, let's clear up a few things here. All of the following five points are big parts of what Unbound is today and figure heavily into what is seemingly going on there. 

 One- The event payed out for placings, for the first time, if I am not mistaken. Of course, Unbound figures heavily into brands, teams, and other sponsors marketing for the year in gravel also. The event now is a plum prize in terms of how athletes can be rewarded financially and by other means. Basically, the perception is that Unbound is important to success for athletes and cycling related business. 

Two: The event was purchased by Life Time Events as a turn-key, ultra-distance format gravel event, primarily focused on amateur athletes, but with a distinct Pro/Elite presence at the front of the field. The event was not as large as it is now. In 2018, when Life Time purchased the Dirty Kanza Productions company, the event hosted 2,500 riders in total. Now, in 2025, the event has an estimated 5.000 riders. In 2018, the event was seen as a challenge, there was no prize purse, and there was no separate field for Elite athletes.

Three: The Dirty Kanza 200, the event which eventually became Unbound in 2020, was based on a couple of other events. One called Trans Iowa, and another called the Flint Hills Death Ride.  These were events which were based on self-reliance, risk-taking, and adventure. The founders of the DK200 took these elements, infused them into their event, and added elements to appeal to business and to enhance the riders finish line experience. A focus on all rider's experiences was top of mind in those days.

Four: It is undeniable that the DK200 revitalized Emporia, Kansas in several ways. Unbound has pumped even more economic impact into the area. According to this article in the "Emporia Gazzette", Unbound gravel is estimated to have a 21.7 million dollar impact on the economy of the city.  So, the health of this event is important to the businesses in the area which are affected by Unbound's impact.

Image courtesy of Life Time

 Finally: I could add a fifth category here, and this would relate to how Unbound Gravel is a platform for people to overcome 'mountains' and stretch their perceptions of what their bodies and minds can handle. There are several stories from this year's event which show this to be true. People overcoming inhibiting factors like cancer, age, and disabilities. I've seen stories concerning all of these factors and more, which are inspiring, and obviously immensely meaningful to the participants, their friends, and families. This, in my estimation the most important aspect of Unbound, is often not reported in the major news outlets for cycling, (as noted above).

What To Do? 

The trouble seems to come with the doubling of riders since 2018 and the demands from professional riders who want to have every advantage when competing, and if something looks unfair, you are going to hear about this. I would submit that the medical issues regarding response to the woman who was "left in a ditch" (a bit over dramatic there, in my opinion as "the ditch" is not the awful place to wait it is made out to be. I know, having sat in several myself.) could be mitigated in the future. Actually, I think a simple solution to much of the issues here would be to have women and men Elites race on separate days and the amateurs on their own day as well.  Medical response times would be reduced for the Elites, since there were only 76 starting women and 143 starting in the Men's field. (Numbers taken from Life Time results page) An ambulance could be the sweep vehicle, or at least follow the field closely.

Now, I know, having ridden there, that there are "roads" which you just cannot get a vehicle down unless it is a Jeep, an off-road 4X4, or an ATV.  Conditions play into this also. So, a certain amount of risk has to be assumed by the rider, given the terrain and circumstances of any particular day. This is why follow cars and team vans are ....well, stupid at Unbound. Not to mention all the unnecessary dust. 

There was concern over the |F-1 style pit stops" at aid/support points. In the former days of the event, this sort of thing was highly frowned upon as well. So, make it self-supported by drop bag. Really self-supported. This would even the playing field as every rider would have to take care of their own bottles, food, wheels, bike, or whatever you allow to be changed out.

Some complained about "not very well vetted competitors". Supposedly Unbound does vet the Elite field, so whatever measuring stick they use there may have to be discussed, but you will get people making mistakes in big races. It happens at UCI sanctioned Pro road events all the time.  Relegations for poor sprinting, bad maneuvers in the field bringing riders crashing down, and other miscues happen every year in these sanctioned and sanitized events. What makes anyone think it can be "cleaned up" for Unbound by vetting riders? Even the best make mistakes. Riders will be crashed out of events, cut off from chase groups, and more.

Image courtesy of Life Time

Obviously Unbound is far too important to Emporia, and to the huge field of amateurs, to let it fade away, or stop. Life Time likely doesn't want to see any shrinkage of the event either as it probably has a big impact on their bottom line. So, all this complaining and problems brought on by a small percentage of the riders (Elites) which gets over-amplified by media, seems a bit much. Yes, there needs to be some examination of how things are done, and in my opinion, Life Time could easily clean this up with a few decisions which - if enforced with impunity - would clear up any future concerns.

Starting with a separation of days for Elites and amateurs would be a big one, and honestly, I really do not think this idea is the negative some make it out to be. For an example: Have the Amateur race on Friday, the Women's on Saturday, and the Men on Sunday. You'd be out of there by dinner time on Sunday after awards. Oh, and hold awards for each group immediately after their event, with the amateurs awards being on Saturday morning as the women race. That's just one idea. I'm sure others smarter than I could come up with solutions which would not only work, but actually enhance the experiences for all involved.  

Two Things

Karolina Migon wins the Women's Elite 200 (Image courtesy of Life Time)

Thoughts On Unbound 2025: 

Well, Unbound is over for another year with record-setting results. I went back and read my reactions to last year's Unbound and you know what? I could almost copy and paste the entire article again. 

So, instead of rehashing the same ol' stuff again, I decided to look at a few other resources for my take on the event, since the Elite/Pro story is not really all that different.  Yes, there were some differences. There was no big sprint finish in the Women's field as Karolina Migon rode everyone off her wheel with around 50 miles to go. There were 20 more women and a few more men in the Elites this time, but the percentages of Elites to "regular folks" was still really lopsided toward the amateurs and the coverage was all about the Elites.

Now, what was interesting was the reaction to what cannot be described as anything but a media blitz on Friday before the event. Folks online were posting a lot of "I'm getting tired of this" sentiments, and while this might be seen as "negative" I read as "fatigue" when it comes to how the cycling media covers this stuff.  As one poster opined: "If I see another 'bike check' so help me...." They weren't wrong either as the tech side was hammered on pre-Unbound while true, engaging story lines were largely missing.

The other thing I saw which I found interesting was a post from an Emporia resident who opined  concerning how the event had changed since the DK200 days. There was mention of the finish line chute, as they run it now with segregated chutes for Pro/Elite and everyone else, as being something which lessened the experience for this person.

The DK200 used to have a tagline which went something like "Everyone is a Rock Star" which spoke to the experience the early organizers tried to give each and every rider. The common finish line chute, with cheering fans which were there for first place through till the bitter ends of the field, are now more focused on where Unbound places the spotlight. Obviously, a huge focus shift to Elites has taken the shine off the ordinary rider, and it would appear some people are noticing this.

Grip It and Rip It:

As stated earlier, I am choosing the Gryphon Mk3 for the Tree In The Road Ride coming up later this month. I've been doing a few minor tweaks to the bike. Things like de-racking it and streamlining the set up for this 70 mile group ride. One thing I decided to do was to try the Redshift Sports Cruise Control system on this bike.

This system is already on my Gen I Fargo, so I already know what to expect, and it was one of the reasons the Gen I Fargo was one of the two bikes I considered taking on this ride. Since I had a spare kit sitting on the shelf, I decided to throw it on the Gryphon which has Luxy Bars on it and see what I thought.

The Luxy Bar is an odd-duck of a flared drop bar, but it has a couple characteristics which are being picked up on by cutting-edge flared drop bar makers. The Luxy was never considered as an "aero-advantage" handle bar, but recent developments have shown the Luxy could have been a contender in this category today. I wrote a post about this which you can check out HERE. 

With the Gevenalle shifters, I now have a pseudo-aero bar position I can use utilizing the Cruise Control upper portion as a place to rest my forearms.It will be just one more place I can go to and relieve tension and pressure during a longer ride. The lower grips I already know will be a boon to avoiding numb hands. 

Friday News And Views

Image courtesy of Canyon Bikes

Canyon Unveils New Grail Rift Gravel Bike

Canyon announced on Tuesday of this week a new gravel bike which was the subject of many rumors over the past several months. The bike's main attraction being a suspension fork from DT Swiss tuned especially for gravel riding.

The range-topping Grail CFR Di2 Rift model in carbon fiber (natch!) will fetch a handsome price of $7,849.00 USD.

The bike is aimed at racing, so this is reflected in the geometry. The Grail Rift does not sport the slackest head angle, (71.5 degrees for a Large) and it has a stated 42mm tire clearance, which doesn't seem to be "cutting edge" these days.

The frame has internal storage, which is all the rage for the newest gravel bikes, and the range-topping model shown here has power meter crank arms from 4iii.

Comments: The press was going bonkers over the bike earlier this week, and at the asking price, it is a bargain. However; there are a few things which I've got opinions on which would render this bike, in reality, a rather pedestrian offering.

First off, while the DT Swiss fork has a lock-out option, and it probably works slightly differently than the other short-travel gravel forks out there, it still only has forty millimeters of travel. That is barely over an inch and a half for you folks who are not metric-fluent. Physics is a hard and fast science and there is no free lunch when it comes to what you can do with forty millimeters of travel. Add to this the extra weight of a suspension fork, the required, semi-yearly (at the least) maintenance, and you can see where the telescopic gravel suspension fork may not be all it is cracked up to be.

One can gain better function (absorption of vibrations), lighter weight, a no-maintenance part, and at less cost by going with one of the several gravel suspension stems. Plus, the stem can be transferred to other bikes easily. Of course, I highly recommend Redshift Sports here, but there are other options as well.

Then you have limited tire clearances, which is not ideal, plus the geometry, which steepens as you blow through forty millimeters of travel, by the way, and I just do not see the appeal of this bike. There are a lot better alternatives out there, in my opinion. 

HED Lincoln G25's (Image courtesy of HED Wheels)

HED Wheels Announces Stillwater 50, Lincoln 25 Carbon Gravel Wheels:

HED released information on Tuesday of this past week regarding two new carbon fiber rimmed gravel wheel sets. Named for the cities where two well known gravel events occur, the Limcoln G25 and Stillwater G50 feature wide inner rim widths and hooked beads for best tire retention.

The Stillwater G50 has, as the name implies, a 50mm rim depth. The inner rim width is a generous 28.5mm which HED claims can be paired with tires from 700 x 40mm to 29" x 2.25" wide. Cost for this model is $1,984.00 and wheelsets are estimated to weigh about 1,640 grams.

The Lincoln G25, is as you'd expect, a shallower rim profile of 25nmm, but it has the same internal rim width as the Stillwater.  The price is the same as well. Weight is less at an estimated 1,430 grams a pair.

One other difference is the weight limitation. The Stillwater G50 is limited to riders weighing 240lbs or less while the Lincoln had no weight limitation posted on its webpage. 

Check these wheels out HERE. 

Comments: I had just been checking out HED Wheels site about a week or so ago and saw nothing new, so maybe I had some premonition about this. Ha! Seriously, the honoring of gravel events, by way of naming these wheels after two iconic gravel race's home cities, is pretty cool and follows with the naming convention HED started when they changed the Eroica wheel range to be "Emporia". 

Gravel Cycling Hall of Fame Inducts Its 2025 Class:

Over the last three years I have been in Emporia, Kansas for the induction of the Gravel Cycling Hall of Fame nominees. This year, mostly due to my not having a vehicle anymore, I chose to stay at home. But the show must go on, (as if it matters if I am there or not!) so the GCHoF welcomed in four new people into its roster of feted gravel cycling greats.

This year the inductees were Amanda Nauman Sheek, Ted King, LeLan Dains, and John Hobbs. The festivities, held at the historic Grenada Theater,  were attended by a sold-out crowd who all enjoyed a fine meal and drinks. The event is sponsored by Shimano.

Comments: When the GCHoF announced the 2025 class of inductees in January I wrote a detailed post on each inductee and made a case for a glaring omission. You can read the post by clicking HERE if you want my takes on each inductee. 

Image courtesy of a blog reader from a Facebook post

Unbound Gravel Looking To Be Wetter Than Usual For 2025:

Here I have an image forwarded to me from a Facebook post from about a week ago showing the flooding at the time in and around the Unbound 200 course. These images appear to be from the flood plain area surrounding Emporia, Kansas. 

Emporia is in the midst of a confluence of several smaller creeks which feed into the Cottonwood River, which flows just South of the town. It is not uncommon to see flooding around the immediate area. So, if things have calmed down in regard to flooding by now, this may be much adieu about nothing.

Weather conditions should be fair for the event itself, but some low water crossings may have a good amount of water in them for the riders to deal with. Furthermore, it is not uncommon for flooding to rut out remote roads, and cause finer rock to be washed away in valleys where water crosses the road. This removal of finer material can leave chunky, sharp flint hidden under the water, and can cause issues with tires easily.  Whether or not this will be the case on Saturday, we shall soon see.

I've no reason to believe this year will be in any way like "The Mud Year" of 2015, or even like 2023, unless an oddball shower pops up at the right (wrong?) time. This doesn't seem likely for 2025. By the way, I will have an ode to the 10th anniversary of "The Mud Year" coming up for you to read tomorrow, so look for this post to get a feel for what it was like back then. 

Image courtesy of BTCHN Bikes.

 Titanium Flared Drop Bar? BTCHN Bikes Says "Yes!"

I came across a social media post showing a drop bar with welded in corners, which I assumed was titanium, but I inadvertantly lost the "story" and couldn't find it again. Then I found a Tweet on X which revealed the source as BTCHN Bikes, a custom titanium fabricator located in Chico, California.

The key to BTCHN Bikes Ti Drop Bar is a 3D printed 'corner' piece which is then welded to a tops section and a ramp/drop/extensions section on each side. Due to this unique construction method the width and flare of the Ti Drop is customizable. Prices start from $620.00USD and go up depending on finish options. Pre-orders are open now through June 4th, and you can check out this offering HERE. 

Comments: Titanium drop bars. I've always thought this would be a cool idea, since titanium flat bars seem to have quite a following, and titanium has certain attributes which would seem to make it ideal for a flared drop bar, in terms of ride feel. 

However; there was no good way to execute the tight bend from the tops section to the ramps and finally to the extensions. That is, until this new 3D printed idea BTCHN Bikes has was employed. I know we rely on welds every day we ride bicycles, but the thought of a welded handle bar in drop bar form made me a bit uncomfortable for a hot minute. Then I came to my senses and realized I was being silly. Heck, I'm riding handle bars with brazed on extensions now!  Which reminds me..... I need to get on the final review for those!

Anyway, I thought this was an interesting alternative for a flared drop bar which just might prove to be a decent riding bar for gravel. 

That is a wrap for this week folks! Get out there and ride those bicycles!

Friday News And Views

The 2025 Gravel Earth Series Calendar

Gravel Earth Series Announces Official Dates For 2025:

The Gravel Earth Series has expanded its palette of offerings to the competitive gravel rider to include several new events to the series. 

Events now span the globe from the Philippines, South America, North America, Iceland, Europe, and Africa. The USA has six dates on the 26 event calendar alone. 

Most interesting to my local readers is that - as reported here previously - CORE4 in Iowa and Gravel Worlds in Nebraska are both Gravel Earth Series events. This will mark the first time that Iowa has figured into any international series or has gotten any spotlight in a world-wide stage, such as the Gravel Earth Series brings. 

More details can be found at the Gravel Earth Series site. 

Comments: This series is ambitious and seems to be aiming to be the preeminent series for gravel racing worldwide. There is, of course, the UCI Gravel World Series, but at this point, if plans come to fruition, the UCI series will have half the events that Gravel Earth Series has in the USA and the UCI has nothing in Iowa or Nebraska at this point. At least the Gravel Earth Series seems to place a heavy emphasis on the birthplace of the modern day gravel scene, both in having events on its calendar and in allowing those events to be what they are uniquely suited to be. 

Now the outlier here is the Life Time Grand Prix, which is a mix of MTB and gravel, but within its smaller series of events, it has a very lucrative payday and the "crown jewel" of gravel, the Unbound event in Emporia, Kansas.  "Crown jewel" in that it is regarded as the most prestigious Pro level event, but that is all. Whatever charm the event had in its early days is being heavily overshadowed or eliminated in favor of a focus on the highest levels of competition, media access, and prizing.

Schwalbe G1 RX gravel tire (Image courtesy of Schwalbe)

Schwalbe Announces G1 RX Gravel Tires:

On Tuesday of last week, Schwalbe announced new G1 RX gravel tires. The tread pattern is Schwalbe's most aggressive pattern for gravel tires. 

Schwalbe also considers this tire as the gravel tire in its range with the best traction and best cornering traction. They also claim good mud clearing abilities, but I wouldn't hold my breath there when it comes to Kansan clay or Iowa's black dirt. 

The G1 RX comes in 700 x 38mm, 700 x 43mm, and 700 x 50mm. Black or tan side walls. Webpage for the black version HERE. 

Comments: I am not all that familiar with Schwalbe gravel tires. I did try a set of their lighter weight MTB treads for my Fargo one year and had a poor experience so I haven't been all that interested in Schwalbe's offerings. There are a LOT of fans of Schwalbe tires, however, so they must be doing some things right. 

I'll have to try a set again someday just to see what the hype is all about. 

Image courtesy of Good Grief Bicycles

These Are Some "Nice Bars":

I follow "Fixie Dave" Nice on several different social media platforms. He has done Trans Iowa in the past and he really does ride fixed gear off-road and everywhere else all the time. Anyway, he was showing these handle bars recently and they struck me as being very familiar looking. 

In fact, they are a dead ringer for the original Jones H-Bars. I first saw those handlebars at the very first DK200 in 2006. I always thought those were cool, but they were expensive, being made from titanium, as they were. 

I ended up buying some Titec H-Bars, which were made out of aluminum and varied a bit from Jeff Jones' design by using a riser center section instead of a plain, straight section of tubing like Jeff Jones had been doing. It was ugly, but man! It was sure awesome on my OS Bikes Blackbuck. 

One thing led to another and those bars came off, others went on, and the Titec bars went to the recyclers. But when I saw these "Nice Bars", (yes- named after Fixie Dave, it seems), I thought I should try a sample, so I have purchased them. 

These are made from steel, not titanium, but the effect will be similar, I hope, to my old Titec H-Bar experience, which is when I thought the Blackbuck was at its best. I'll have more to say when I get them, but if you are curious, here is the website page. And it looks like my handlebars will be here on the 23rd. So, that's pretty quick service from a small fabricator/business. 

Rocky Mountain Solo Carbon 90 gravel bike.

Rocky Mountain Bikes Files For Reorganization:

News broke yesterday that Rocky Mountain Bikes has asked for a "Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act" from the Canadian government, according to this report on the "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News" website. 

Citing the all too familiar story of a crash in sales post-COVID and a market-wide drop in pricing, Rocky Mountain hopes to avoid interruption of its business with this move.

Comments: This was the sort of thing I thought we might have seen more of earlier in 2024, but it seems that the end of the year has pushed some companies to the brink and now we are seeing the results expressed as financial troubles. 

One has to wonder when you see the brand being "closed out" on internet sites like Jenson USA where you can buy a Rocky Mountain gravel bike for 50% off. In fact, that retailer can sometimes be used as a barometer for what companies aren't doing so well by looking at the deeper discounted brands. 

Rocky Mountain isn't the only brand with recent troubling news. I'll have another brand featured in next week's "FN&V".

That's a wrap on this week. Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions and remember: Get out there and ride those bicycles!

Friday News And Views

Will Holidays Prop Up Bicycle Industry's Season?

Sluggish sales in many categories have plagued the cycling industry all of 2024. So-called "Black Friday" sales offers and discounts have been piling up in this writer's inbox the entire month of November. I've even seen discounts on already discounted bikes! Deep discounts are tempting, but many seem to be reticent to let go of those funds in their accounts. 

Further muddying the waters are the results of the recent national election which many fear will increase costs to consumers of cycling goods by way of proposed tariffs. Seeing as how most of the stuff cyclists want and consume come from foreign manufacturers, this seems to be a reasonable fear for the cycling consumer. 

Since many consumers are already saying prices are too high, it would seem that any actions taken by the government which would end up increasing the costs of foreign made goods would only further erode consumer's motivations to buy in 2025. Of course, nothing has happened yet, and it may not happen, in regard to the proposed government actions on tariffs. So, we will just have to wait until 2025 and see what really happens. 

In the meantime, are you considering buying now instead of later due to this fear of tariff action? Respond in the comments if you care to sound off.

Trek Lime ...Or Is It Lemon?:

In the late 2000's Shimano introduced a three speed internal geared hub which was shifted by a control box electronically. The power to make this work was from a generator hub in the front wheel. The rider only had to pedal and when certain speeds were met the shifter control box would make a gearing change by way of a servo motor than pulled a short length of cable to work the hub gears. 

The system had one of Shimano's roller brakes for stopping power. The design also incorporated several visual cues, the most obvious being big, shiny spherical covers over the axles. Shimano marketed it as a group for everyday cycling and for fun. They called it "Coasting". While several companies may have bought into this idea, I only ever saw Treks and Raleighs that were outfitted with the group. 

Recently a Trek Lime with this Coasting set up was donated to the Collective. I noted that it was not shifting. So, as a guitar player I am thinking, "Check all the electronic connections first!", because it is something which can easily be addressed and usually is the issue. Okay, the front generator connector was simple to check. But not so for the shifting mechanism. The shifter box has a cover which has two small Phillips type fasteners, one on each side. Trek put the shifter box under the bike and slightly behind the bottom bracket. They also designed a chain case for this model. The chain case is held on by the flange of the bottom bracket cartridge, and guess what I had to do to access that inner screw on the control box.....

My finger is pointing to where the screw is under the chain case. Had Trek designers just given a bit of access to allow for removal of the shifter box cover, "all I would have had to do" was remove the outer part of the chain case and the crank arm, but noooooo! You have to take the bottom bracket and left crank arm off as well. 

Dumb! 

By the way, the connection was fine. It turns out that the shift point adjustment screw can be adjusted so the bike will not shift. 

Also dumb.

I won't mention the absolutely fantastic rear wheel retention system which utilizes eight fasteners you must remove to get the wheel out to fix a flat tire. Yeah..... This isn't a Lime, it is a lemon! But it works now, so.....

Unbound Announces Qualifying Events :

Last week Unbound sent out a press release showing the qualifying events for a spot in Unbound Gravel events in 2025, 2026, and 2027. Those events that will be a part of the qualifying for Unbound Gravel are as follows:

- April 11, 2025: Life Time Sea Otter Classic Gravel (90 mile) in Monterey, California
- July 12, 2025: Life Time Crusher in the Tushar (70 mile) in Beaver, Utah
- August 10, 2025: Heathland Gravel (100 mile) in Lindburg, Belgium
- September 27, 2025: Life Time Rad Dirt Fest (70 mile and 110 mile) in Trinidad,
Colorado
- October 18, 2025: Life Time Big Sugar Gravel (100 mile) in Bentonville, Arkansas

How it works: Each event will have 50 spots up for grabs. Half of those will go to the top finishers in each category of the event in question. Then the other half of available entries will go to winners of a random draw from a pool of the race's competitors. Winners of entries will be guaranteed a spot on the roster of the Unbound Gravel event that follows the event in question on the calendar. So, as an example, if you won an entry in the 2025 Heathland Gravel event you would be getting a guaranteed entry to the 2026 Unbound Gravel event. 

According to my source at Unbound Gravel this system will carry through at least until the 2026 qualifier events have been held. So the 2027 Unbound Gravel event would be the final event that would carry on with winners of these qualifiers in this format unless things get renewed/changed. 

Comments: This is not "Earth shattering" news by any stretch, but the time stamp for the format is an interesting tidbit. Without saying so, this would indicate to me that Unbound Gravel has no plans currently to become a UCI affiliated gravel event. And from what we already know, it could not carry on as the event is currently formatted if it were a UCI sanctioned event for many reasons, not the least of which is that Unbound's premier distance is about 75 miles too long for the UCI's tastes. 

With the prestige which Unbound holds in gravel cycling's professional ranks, and the allure which it has for the under-classes, the current formatting of Unbound seems prudent to continue. It would appear that will be the case for at least a few years.

Image by Ben Witt

New Teravail MTB Tire Soon?:

Ben Witt of Heath Creek Cycles showed off his new Sklar mountain bike recently on social media. It was noted that the tires are Teravail "Prototype" tires. When a commenter asked Ben about these his reply was that there would be more information coming soon. 

Comments: There are not a lot of "new" 29"er tires coming out anymore because we've had a solid 20 years of development in the size and most "good" tread designs have already been done and copied several times by this point. 

So, it will be interesting to read about what will set this aggressive appearing 29"er tire apart from the crowded MTB tire market. I'm sure there are some interesting details, but from what I can see of the tread design, it doesn't seem that radical or innovative. 

Cropped from an image by Ben Witt

I will say that these Sklar bikes look really cool. Ben is selling them through his Heath Creek Cycles shop and you can check out this bike you see there at Heat Creek Cycles. 

The danger for me would be that I happen to know that Ben sets his bikes up almost to the gnat's eyebrow to how I would, so this bike you see would most definitely fit me as it sits. But don't dismay if you are not a size Large person because Ben has some other Sklars in the shop as well as his being able to order you one if you'd like. 

Interesting note: The 'tall bike' Ben had at Mid-South was built by Sklar but is not a "Sklar Bikes" frame. I know.....weird. But it seemed pretty dialed in and it looked great, so I can only imagine how well these real Sklars are to behold and ride. 

PSA: The Blog Is About To Go Chaotic!

Next week will be double posted almost everyday. This will be due to the addition of the Virtual Turkey Burn Ride Reports, some breaking news on Tuesday, and regular end-of-year stuff I have to squeeze in as well.

This means you probably will need to scroll down the page to make sure that you do not miss anything. You may need two cups of coffee and toast to get through it all. You may roll your eyes and click off to go to another site. 

I don't know, but this message is to let you know one last time that there will be a LOT of content from here on out. So hold on and get comfortable, because things are about to go nuts here!

That's all for this "black Friday" edition of the FN&V. Get out there and burn off a few calories by riding a bicycle this weekend. Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions!

Friday News And Views

From Ingrid Components Instagram account

Ingrid Components Shows Brake/Shift Lever Combo:

At the Bespoke show, which is Europe's biggest handmade bicycle show, Ingrid Components showed this angular, brutalist looking brake/shift lever combination. Seen hooked up to a brake caliper and Ingrid's own rear derailleur, the only clue given by Ingrid in the post was that the brake was produced " with a little help from our friends @rideformula". 

Brake/shift levers for drop bars are a difficult thing to produce without some clever workarounds due to Shimano, Campagnolo, and SRAM patents. It very well could be that Ingrid is using the flat bar shifter internals that they already make. Yes - this is a mechanical lever.

Comments: The comment section under the post had a few references to the Cybertruck and Minecraft aesthetic. Yeah, I get that as well. But you have to hand it to Ingrid for being true to their design language. It is also fairly obvious that the design language is more important than ergonomics. No word on availability, price, or other details yet.

Image courtesy of Life Time Events

Unbound To Offer Prize Money For First Time In 2025:

In an announcement that came out a little over a week ago, it was revealed that Life Time Events will offer a new prize structure for their Grand Prix events in 2025. 

Besides offering equal prize money to the top ten men and women at the end of the series, the following events will also offer prize money for the first time: Unbound Gravel, Leadville 100, and Big Sugar Gravel.

Comments: First of all, I will admit that most riders really do not care what these people get paid. (Are they "employees" of this series?) So, it is kind of weird that anyone thinks this is "news". What difference to anyone, outside of the actual competitors, does this make? I guess it is lost on me. Maybe more money somehow equals "better/more competition"? So, you are saying you can "buy yourself a meaningful race by waving cash around"?  Gotcha.... Again, I don't care. I don't think most people care either. 

But all this aside, my main reaction is that by offering prize money at Unbound the organizers have finally wiped away the last remaining tent pole of meaning which the original founder's had put in place for the event. Not looking for a monetary "prize" meant that riders were finding other "rewards" for choosing to take on the challenge of 200 miles of Flint Hills gravel. Not anymore. At least not for the elite athletes. And really, if you read what the pundits write about Unbound, well you might think that all there are there riding are elite athletes. At least those folks who are not getting the red carpet elite athlete treatment are not getting paid for placing. So there is still meaning there, perhaps. 

Image courtesy of Chris King Precision Components

Chris King Seat Post Collars:

Seat post collars are an important part of a bicycle. It also is a part you would have thought Chris King Presicion Components would have made by now. That wasn't the case until just recently.

Now you can have more Chris King on your bicycle, or maybe look at this as your first Chris King part, seeing as it is reasonably inexpensive relative to all the rest of Chris King's catalog at $48.00 each.

They come in 10 anodized colors and four sizes to fit most frames. The Chris King Seat Post Collar is made in the uSA and comes with a Lifetime Warranty. See their webpage for more here. 

Comments: I never really thought about this not being a Chris King thing before until now. It makes all the sense in the world that Chris King should offer this, and why they hadn't before now seems almost silly. At least the maximum torque rating is a realistic 6nm instead of what Thomson seat post collars are rated at. (Yes, I have some beef with that component) 

The New Mason Macro: The Missing Link?

Mason Cycles just introduced a new hard tail MTB model they call the Macro. And calling it a mountain bike is probably not what Mason would like here, but it does take a MTB drive train, so....

Mason says it is the most configurable adventure hard tail bicycle you can get. So, you could go with their own design carbon fork or a suspension fork. You can load it up with the many accessory mounts for touring, go with a bagged bikepacking set up, or use it as a fast XC hard tail. 

The frame is aluminum and the Mason fork is carbon, if you want that, or it can be ordered with a suspension fork. There are complete options as well. A basic frame/fork package runs approximately $1,625.00 USD at the time of this writing. (Mason is based in the UK)

Comments: There are not too many high-end hard tail bikes designed for all-around, versatile usage these days. The Macro is such a bike. I think it could work for gravel to all-day mountain riding and everything in between. It strikes me as kind of the modernized equivalent of the once ubiquitous 90's steel hard tail MTB's which were super-versatile and capable bicycles. 

This is kind of a "missing link" bike. A bicycle that isn't a long travel, down hill oriented hard tail, but it also is not a bike that would shy away from a rowdy MTB trail. (with a suspension fork, most likely) Now what I'd like to see is more of this sort of thing at a more entry level price point with decent components made to work everywhere. Maybe even a bike with a (gasp!) multiple ring crank set and front derailleur.

Outrider Components - Tire Pressure Sensor Tech For Bicycles:

Your newer vehicles all have tire pressure sensors which alert you to low air pressures in vehicle tires, or sudden losses of air pressure, in case of a flat tire. Now this type of technology is available from Outrider Components for your bicycle. Or it soon will be. 

The company has launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for their device which promises to alert your Garmin device in case of a puncture, or it can be used to monitor air pressure. 

The device is designed to run for up to two years on replaceable coin style watch batteries. The device attaches to your existing valve stem and sits inside the rim well of the wheel.

Comments: I suppose we all should have guessed this was coming. It does make sense, and while I am not a fan of more lithium type batteries, this system would probably be a big hit if it works in the real world and if it could be used across many different wireless computer brands.

That's a wrap on the last full week of October! Get out and ride those bicycles!

Published In Japan

My article appeared in this issue of Bicycle Club recently

In early June I met an editor of the Japanese publication, "Bicycle Club" and two of his friends in Emporia, Kansas. The editor's name is Taiki Sakamoto. He wanted to ask me some questions and take some imagery of myself for an article he was going to produce for "Bicycle Club" around his experiences doing the Unbound 200. In my case, he wanted to know more about me and my role in the early formation of the gravel scene and what I thought about gravel "culture", past, present, and future. 

Sakamoto-San asked me to write a four page article detailing my take on those subjects. He told me that he wanted to show his audience that gravel cycling was more than competition. Sakamoto-San promised that he would send me a copy of the magazine the article appeared in when it published. That has happened and I now have the magazine (actually, he sent me three magazines!), and I thought that it would make for a good story here, as far as how this all went down. 

First of all, the entirety of what I wrote to Sakamoto-San can be seen in my post from early July HERE. While not all of that was used, a majority of it was, and I am forever grateful and honored that Sakamoto-San and his magazine crew found it worthy of putting in front of their Japanese audience.

Sakamoto-San and Guitar Ted Image taken by Otaki-San

I've told this story before here, but it bears upon this experience, so I will risk a brief retelling here. Once during a Frostbike weekend at QBP where I was shadowing Jason Boucher, then of Salsa Cycles, I was found watching Jason clearing up his cubicle space. Jason was telling me that he had to meet with some of Salsa Cycles' Japanese distributors. He expressed his admiration for them, but couched that with his dismay concerning how long it took to wait for the Japanese folks to take imagery. "Mark, they take pictures of everything!", he told me as he stuck smaller objects and papers in drawers that he did not want seen in public. 

I pressed into that a little bit and Jason explained that, for whatever reasons, (and I am going off decade+ memories here) the Japanese find that your objects and surroundings speak to who you are as a person, so they want to capture as much of this as possible. If I got that wrong, please somebody correct me in the comments, but that was my memory of the moment. 

So, when Sakamoto-San and his two friends showed up on the streets of Emporia looking for me, I noted that all three had massive, expensive digital cameras and some serious looking glass attached to them. I was quickly reminded of what Jason had said and I was ready for lots of picture taking. 

The article as it appears in "Bicycle Club" issue #457.

I was not wrong about my expectations. I was asked to move to a few different spots, pose, and several images were clicked off in each instance. I was shown the raw images in the camera, and the way Sakamoto-San flipped through the screen images and options was like watching a gamer play. It was amazingly fast! Anyway, I was impressed that I warranted such attention from he and his mates.

Image taken by Otaki-San

Sakamoto-San even wanted to have images taken showing he and I in mock conversation. While Sakamoto-San is not fluent in English, he had enough of a command of it that I could make out his meanings. I think he was afraid the conversation between us would be impossible, so he suggested through his friend, who did interpreting for us, that we should stage the conversation. 

I had other ideas, and pressed into conversation with Sakamoto-San anyway, and we ended up having genuine discourse, which was pleasant. You can see in the image there where Sakamoto-San is describing something to me and this was at the point where we were engaging each other and having a genuine conversation. I really enjoyed meeting him and his friends also. 

Of course, I went home, wrote what I wrote (linked above) and sent it off with no expectations of anything. However; last week a package showed up in the mail from Japan. It was three copies of issue #457 of "Bicycle Club". I was immediately struck by a few things I'll share here. This may be a well known thing to some of you dear readers, but for me, this was a learning experience. 

I cut out and saved the stamp.

First thing I noted was how the magazine was formatted. The binding was on the right side as you look at the front cover. So, in our Western way of doing things, this appears backward. The next thing you might note is the Japanese language, in this case, is written in columns. The format is called tategaki. The reader reads down the first column which is furthest to the right then when they reach the bottom they continue at the top of the next column to the left. 

Curiously the image captions seem to be written in the yokogaki format and this would mean the characters are read left to right, as in English. I could be wrong about this, so if anyone reading is knowledgeable on Japanese magazine style, please correct me in the comments.

My piece in the magazine was edited somewhat, but Sakamoto-San sent me his translation beforehand to approve, so I knew what would be going into the article. On the whole, it represents the article I wrote well enough and it seems to have connected with the audience from what Sakamoto-San has shared with me. He tells me via Messenger, "It was truly an honor to talk to you. Since the magazine was released, I have received the following comments: "I'm so glad you were able to cover such a valuable story about the early days of gravel!" "How did you meet Mark?" It was all made possible thanks to Mark's help! Thank you so much!"

So, I guess it was a successful effort. I was gifted the opportunity to speak to an audience which I would not have had the chance to speak to without Sakamoto-San's invitation. For this I am very grateful. I am curious, of course, about how this article was interpreted by their audience and if it makes an impact on riding in Japan. Perhaps I'll never know, but I see it as an honor to have had the stage to speak from, thanks to Sakamoto-San. Plus I was able to get to know Sakamoto-San a little bit, which was great. Through the whole process of this article and meeting he was extremely kind and gracious. The experience was really good. 

Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions