Words Geoff Hunt
Images Taylor Chase

As winter winds down in Colorado – Steamboat Springs to be exact – and the days lengthen, thoughts turn to the bike. With an increase in temperature, and dry roads, it’s time to get out and about. It’s easy to convert one fitness into the other after skiing eAs winter winds down in Colorado – Steamboat Springs to be exact – and the days lengthen, thoughts turn to the bike. With an increase in temperature, and dry roads, it’s time to get out and about. It’s easy to convert one fitness into the other after skiing every day.very day.stmas

The local evening rides begin with slightly shorter distances. The riders all have some focus for their summer – be it the Leadville 100, or the Steamboat Gravel Black Course or Unbound 200. It was only after doing a checkout ride with a small group that I began to think seriously about the Unbound 200 – not to ride it but to visit and see what all the fuss was about.

A quick note to Liam (the editor) who came back with a ‘yes’ that it would be fine to represent the magazine, overnight acceptance from Time Life Media, and I was on my way.

The town of Emporia, Kansas was overrun by bikes and bikers, but there was room for another 1000 or so campers at the show grounds.

Once parked, it was easy to get around – on the bike and into the organised chaos of a town given over to cycling. There were bikes everywhere – every make and model of gravel bike that have every been made, names that were recognised and many that were not.

With the Time Life Media briefing over, it was time to experience some of the countryside that the ‘famous’ race is run on. The program for everyone includes the opportunity to ride with some of the superstars from the past – riders like Yuri Hauswald – who I met when he rode here in the Queenstown Bike Festival.

So I joined a few of the rides – on my not gravel bike, Trek Emonda. Every road we went on throughout the checkouts was gravel and proved not difficult at all on this bike.

What was interesting, however, was the number of people who were enjoying the opportunity to have a spin. To feel the roads or spin out the legs after long travel. One peloton had to be 200 strong and included riders of all abilities.

The opportunity to race in Emporia has changed from just one main 200 mile race to include short races as well – 50 miles being the shortest and thus riders of all shapes and sizes were out exploring and enjoying.

The media contingent was huge and divided into A and B groups, each with their own designated areas that we were allowed to visit. GPS navigation aided – without it I would have been a little lost with no landmarks on the horizon to navigate by, and the rolling hills looking the same in every direction. I made it to my first media spot and just missed the front peloton go through, but caught lots of following groups including the ‘support’ riders for Matej Mohorič, who was debuting his rainbow jersey from the 2023 UCI Gravel World Championships.

The flint roads were playing havoc with ‘the plan’. A young rider was putting a tube in a tubeless tyre with ‘Stans’ everywhere. Eventually he was joined by another ‘support ‘ rider for Mohoric and away they went again. I saw Mohorič and his riders later at Checkpoint Two as they pulled the pin on the event – too many flats and Mohorič didn’t want to continue just to finish, so they all hopped in the vans and disappeared off the race course.

I stayed on this section until the lead girls came through – they were flying; tight together and the hammer was down, with maybe 25 in the group.

The navigation games continued for me. I was looking for some of the famous ‘flint hills’.

At about Mile 70 or so I found a corner at an area called Little Egypt. I walked both ways to try and get a feel for the area and decided the best spot was down from the corner, on a small uphill section. I walked down a few kilometres to see if there was a better spot, and to pass the time. The gravel wasn’t too bad and a 44mm tyre would probably work just fine. After waiting a while with the other photographers, the lead peloton came through. The pressure was on, as you’d expect, and the hill was quickly dispatched.

My next stop was Checkpoint Two – Council Grove, KS – Mile 148. This was crazy. Thousands of support crew for the pros and the amateurs. The course comes off a rail trail here, and winds through the support crews and back onto a road. The traffic was live on the road and only one policeman was trying to control it, with support crews arriving and leaving and racers coming out of the support area and onto the road – which was lined both sides by more support crews. It was kind of wild.

I wandered down the rail trail to pass the time. There were some locals down there – out for the day to watch the race come through their town, with a beer in hand, deck chairs out and just loving the occasion. They told me they do this every year.

I eventually moved back to the corner and decided to just step in like I owned the place and start directing traffic; standing in the middle of the road stopping the traffic and calling out as athletes screamed through assuming the road was clear and free. It wasn’t always and some riders had to bang on car doors as they went through.

I saw how the pros change and resupply; drop one USWE pack and the new one is looped over the arm and swung on to the back without slowing down. Resupply at 30kms an hour, a la Tour de France style – but with a backpack. And all of them are using the USWE No Dancing Monkey™ 4-point harness backpack.

Lachlan Morton and Chad Haga came through at the front – ahead of the chase pack and they were flying. It was time to move if I wanted to see them again, but I waited until Cameron Jones (Mapua) came through. He was only stationary for 15 seconds but that was long enough to lose the pack, and he suffered accordingly.

Around and around in circles, I followed the GPS navigation on my phone. It wanted to take me down a gravel path…. I was unsure, but after another circle around I decided to see where it went. Suddenly, there were riders coming down it. I picked a spot and scooted through to find that it opened onto a road after all. A bit of time wasted and I only just managed to get to the next spot before Morton and Haga came through.

There was no mucking around this time – I was straight into the F150 and back into town. Finding a spot to park, I walked back down the track a little way to a bit of uphill that I had ridden on my checkout rides. It’s where I would attack if I had legs and wanted to drop someone 300 metres before the line. Sure enough, that is the spot where Morton attacks Haga and gets 10 metres on him – and the win.

The women, however, all sprint up there and its only when they turn into the two hundred metre finishing straight in the middle of town that Rosa Kloser opens her sprint to take a three metre gap to the line. Nine women cross the line together after 200 miles – yes, 200 miles or 321kms – of non-stop hard racing.

I was exhausted after driving and watching, but I had the bike handy and it was time to go riding. Not immediately though – first, it was time for coffee. The best coffee shop in town is right on the finish line and sitting outside is a great way to continue to be involved.

It’s great riding in the opposite direction. I go about 30kms out and receive calls from locals watching from the side of the road: “Are you lost?” and “you’re going the wrong way!”. Small peloton after small peloton of racers pass me in the different length races. Those going slow are just trying to get to the finish line, and those in the longer events are still pounding along as hard as they can go.

Now I’m well back in the field and when I turn into another small town, I can keep up with the race pelotons going through. They were a little confused when I told them that I couldn’t pull on the front, but accept that. One guy is determined to drop me, though, and I ride off to the side and five metres back so as not to annoy him.

So, it was race over for me and I headed back into town and over to the showground camping spot for a pizza dinner with my new best friends from Denver area. They are all age group racers – riding in the 50 and 100 mile races. They come here every year as a boy’s ‘serious bike trip’ away. They are already making plans for the following year.

The following morning, I had nothing to do but pack up and start my journey home. I headed back onto Highway I80 and 12 hours non-stop to home.

I can see why people come here every year; there’s the challenge and feeling that you are part of ‘the in crowd of gravel racing in the world’, plus it’s a holiday with friends that’ll help you get through the next crazy year.

I would like to be back to ride… the 200 of course. But, sitting here at the table in Queenstown, it seems a long way away as the pros line up now for the next challenge in their world.