Unbound Gravel has been described as the Super Bowl of gravel racing. Individuals from all over the world make the pilgrimage to Emporia, KS for the event. Over 1,500 people alone were registered for my race (the 200 Miler). As you can see in the photo above it was quite the adventure.
Unbound, like many popular events worldwide, uses a lottery system in order to give everyone a chance at competing. You basically put your information in a hat and wait to hear an answer. I first put my name in the hat for the Unbound XL (350 mile) Event. I lost that lottery and decided to try for the 200 mile, which is the premier mileage out of all the categories. It's the mileage in which the pros battle it out for the king and queen of Unbound. My credit card was charged and my spot was guaranteed! I later found out that I could have (downgraded) to the XL race with my entry into the 200. Not so much of a downgrade if you ask me, but non-the-less I found out too late.
The next battle of logistics was to find a place to stay. The town of Emporia boasts a population of nearly 24,000 people. Unbound would bring in over 5,000 people. Needless to say finding a place to crash was going to be difficult. Thankfully a friend of ours from Steamboat had a friend who snagged an AirBnb quickly and had availability. A quick message and Venmo and my couch was secured!
I rolled into Emporia and got checked in. One thing I was confused about was the difference between the water oasis stops, miles 41 and 124, and the checkpoint stops miles 78 and 167. I wasn't certain if neutral water support was going to be at the checkpoints since I didn't have a crew. For $90 extra dollars I could buy a crew for hire, which would provide me support at the checkpoints (Food, water, mechanical support, etc.) and a lift out if my bike broke down or I broke down. Turns out this was money WELL spent.
I was able to see off the XL riders, say good luck to Ted King as he walked by, and grab some pizza with a Zwift friend Dan. BOMB pizza! Oh, by the way, it began to rain from the heavens. I felt for my XL friends.
It was business as usual that night prepping the bike, gear, and equipment. I was hoping for a 12 - 13 hr. finish and joining the "Race the Sun" club finishing before sunset. I knew Unbound wasn't going to give me a finishing result to brag about. However, I knew it was going to make for a great training race before Pine Island the weekend after. I didn't have drop bags prepared for my "Crew for Hire" so I had to carry everything special I needed for the 200 miles. Embark Maple and Fig bars packed I attempted to get some sleep.
3:15 AM wake up and a pre-race shower, my usual bowl of instant oatmeal, banana, and some water was in store. I loaded up on sunscreen and rechecked my gear. For the gear nerds, you can see the photo above of what I was running. Cervelo Aspero 5 with SRAM Force AXS 1 with power meter 40t, SRAM Force XPLR 12s XG1271, 10-44, and Reserve 32mm DT350 XDR wheels with 42mm Cannonball Teravails. I was also running a Revelate MagTank Bolt On top tube bag and a 3L Apidura Racing Saddle Bag. My Garmin 1030 also had a battery mount with a battery pack underneath so I didn't have to worry about chare levels at all or brightness levels on my Garmin. 100% brightness all day. Around 5:00AM I rolled out and rode the 1 mile to the race start to get my place in line.
I started at the front of the 12 hr. group, hoping for that time but realistically thinking 13 hrs. was going to be my finishing time. I lined up next to a gentleman from the UK area. Had a nice chat with him and remembered how thankful I was to be 7 hrs. from this event. The pros took off first, and we had about a 5 min. delay before the mass group start. I was near the front when we were a few blocks from the start. We were about to cross the train tracks and continue southbound out of town when the lights started flashing and the gates started closing. I was on the edge of stopping or racing the train. Everyone around me was yelling GO GO GO! I was racing the train. I made it through without having to duck the barriers but I felt terrible for the remaining people behind us caught between the group and the train. Soon later it wouldn't matter that we had a 5 min gap.
Super fast start and we were making great pace until mile 11. Then the infamous mud section hit. Some tried to ride it, some immediately hopped off and began running their bikes, and some had their bikes over their shoulders already hiking. I hit the mud and immediately found that it wasn't going to work. I grabbed my bike and ran straight for the edges with grass, still wet from the rain. I knew from previous experience the wet grass would clean my tires enough to push the bike. We did this for 5 ish miles before the road would allow us to clean our bikes and ride. During those 5 miles I believe my heart rate was near the threshold running, hiking, and lifting my bike. I even stopped to help Jeremiah Bishop and others lift up the moto bike! People's derailers were falling off, chains snapping, it was a mess. At the end I used a Park Tool (tool) Berry gave me and cleaned out my tires and drive train as best as possible. Glad to have gotten through that with no mechanicals.
By now everyone’s bikes sounded like death. Crunching, squeaking, scraping… all noises bikes shouldn’t make. And we still had 186 miles to go roughly.I made it through unscathed thankfully, with just a squeaky chain.
.
The views were stunning. I felt like I was on the Oregon Trail. And the route felt like that as well. Not smooth. Rocky, very rocky at times. They don’t call them the flint hills for nothing. I had a mostly uneventful time riding mostly solo until the first water oasis where I refilled. I was staying on point with my hydration and nutrition with Embark Maple. Between mile 44 ish and checkpoint one I found some great wheels to latch onto including some pro-women. I rode with Heather Jackson's group momentarily before they dropped me. I slowly found a good group of 7 or so mixed with pro women and men before reaching checkpoint 1. who had fallen off the pace.
At checkpoint 1 (mile 75 ish) I met my crew for hire. If anyone ever does this event I can’t stress them enough!! Totally worth the extra money. It was like a NASCAR pit crew team. My bike was hosed off, chain lubed, bottles filled, Camelbak filled, and pockets loaded with snacks and away before I could process what happened. Great work!
At about this point, the heat picked up to 86 degrees. Again I found a good group to work together with and we made our way along the course. I started to cramp in my left quad and had to slow down. This was probably around mile 94. I also was developing serious hot spots in my feet. Remember my feet had been wet since mile 10. I found a farmer hosing people off and he ran the hose over my head for a good 30 seconds and I was feeling like a million bucks. He stated that they had been "scraping" riders off the road and decided to grab the hose. I mentioned that I would send them a Christmas card. They laughed, I laughed, and I departed on my way.
I continued forward until Mile 125 where I stopped again by a lone tree to reapply sunscreen. The small bottle of sunscreen spray felt extremely refreshing on my face and neck. We also started catching some Unbound XL folks who had been riding since 3PM the day prior. They looked trashed, but had amazing spirits!
From there I joined a group and ran into the second water station around 143. Great stop as was the other. The rain and storms were moving in though, and shortly after leaving, we got DUMPED on. A downpour of biblical proportions. Rain pelting my body. Some shared stories after, stating they stopped to seek shelter. People's bikes were being lifted off the ground when they got off to walk. I didn't see winds that bad, but the lightning was my main concern which there was. Others had it worse however with straight-line winds and hail. This course had it all for us. This rain would stay with us until mile 170 or so. Spitting at times and steady at others.
Back on the timeline near mile 153, I had a couple of solid riders pull past me and I made the decision to push harder to grab their wheels. I was tired of riding, and would rather have died pushing myself than spend any longer on that bike. When I started to cramp I literally told my body, "I’m not stopping so quit cramping." Oddly enough it worked. I was nailing my nutrition however it had just been a long day. Riding the third wheel was hard to see with the mud and we were smashing minimum maintenance roads.
The final checkpoint at mile 162 ish again provided amazing crew-for-hire support. They located a broken spoke on my rear wheel, which the Shimano team cut and had me on my way. I was again alone, but finally was feeling GOOD! I had a good pace until the last muddy mile near 171. One more mile of hike a bike. From there I had super smooth and mostly dry roads and a tailwind. Life was good! One more stop for a train and I was across the finish line. All-you-could-eat Casey's pizza, non-alcoholic beer, and a bike washing station to welcome us home. What an atmosphere.
This was an interesting experience. While I’m glad I did it I don’t have the desire to do it again like I’ve had with other races. The race atmosphere is incredible with farmers/ranchers sitting at the end of their driveways with their families cheering you on. That’s incredible. Thousands of people all with the same goal is also incredible. The all-you-can-eat pizza at the end was incredible as well as well as the Muc off bike washing stations where people wash your bike for you. EVERYONE is super friendly. From an equipment standpoint, it just demolishes your bike… The course is relentless and I am very fortunate to only have had the broken spoke. Some flatted 5 times. I’m not digging into the event I’m just sharing that I don’t think I’d do it again. OK....Possibly XL… 🤣
Overall I’m very happy I did it, and would recommend everyone to try it once.
Berry Fast Bicycles, Taste & See, Adam Foland and his team at EXIT Realty in Madison, Madison Family Dental, Sunshine Foods of Madison, Stemper Autobody, and of course Embark Maple. Each has played a pivotal role in a successful race season. Thank you very much!
We are still raising money for the Semper Fi & America's Fund. If you could we would appreciate your support!
Another one in the books!