If you’re doing the black course, here’s the mileage of the notable parts that might be a bit sketchy. All in, however, the course is a very nice gravel course. 99% of it will be fine.
10.0: Short, twisty, loose, washboarded descent. Expect to see ejected bottles on this stretch. Teeth will get rattled if go too fast over the deeper washboarded. hang on.
12.5: Start of dirt section that can get muddy if wet. May be some ruts in this section.
15.5: Steep descent; Sharp left in the middle; can be rocky especially after this left; Watch for pinch flats
35.0: “Singletrack” section after the steep climb to steamboat lake; Not technical at all if you were on a mountain bike, but some rocks + ruts that might cause a pinch flat on a gravel bike if you hit wrong
64.0: Long descent of moderate grade, however can get going fast, and can be loose; Be careful in some of the turns
104.0: Long steepish descent; can be loose; Be careful on the turns
131.0 miles: Cow Creek descent; Moderate grade, but can get going fast. Some rocky sections; Watch out for pinch flats
Thudded! This is amazing! For anyone in town I am riding a mosaic bike with pink accents on the seatpost and fork. Very blonde hair and super white skin. See you out there
Good luck to everyone riding this weekend! I’m new to gravel but understand that I’m supposed to pathologically scrutinize and second guess my tire selection. Can you folks help? I’m doing the black course and my options are: 1/ panaracer gravelking ss+ 35c or 2/ panaracer gravelking sk 43c. Thanks!
Done the race twice, didn’t want to race this year but now having serious FOMO. Top 10 in the blue 2019, top 100 black last year. Race is brutal!
I did the first year on 38 Gravel King SKS and last year the 38 WTB riddler which was so slow on the pavement and faster gravel sections. Miserable
Back in may we had a road race out there and I was on 28 slicks and part of the road race was on the oak creek section and one other part. Had me thinking I could do the race on normal or the SS gravel king.
If you’re comfortable on gravel, you can run something smaller or not as bulky. Cow creek isn’t even that bad. But if you’re not use to gravel or don’t mountain bike, it could be scary or rough.
I think my optimal tire would still be the 38 gravel king sk. SS if you’re comfortable on gravel at high speed. I have to try the pathfinder. Can never find them in stock though : (
Thanks for such a detailed response! I think I’m leaning towards the panaracer gravelking ss+ 35c then. Will have to check with my lbs to see if they have the 38s, but they weren’t in stock last I checked.
The gravel is smoother overall than a lot of races, and there’s a decent amount of pavement. I would be using 35mm SSs if I didn’t have S-Works Pathfinders.
If it was me, I’d go with the 43s. I’ll be about 9.5-10 hrs for black, so value the comfort of a bigger tire.
I’ll be riding 38 pathfinders. I used to ride 35s (Schwabe G ones) and they were uncomfortable for longer rides. Next tire I get will be 42 pathfinders. I’m riding the 38s because that’s what I have on my bike.
You’ll be fine with the 35s also as the course is generally pretty nice gravel. Depends on how much you value the smoother ride from bigger tires.
I had a very good race last year on the BLK Course. Ran 32mm GK SK. Never an issue on the course. Didnt even feel the gravel compared to BWR SD. Enjoy the views. I was pretty disappointed with the overall attitude of the event. Once and done for me.
Got into town, grabbed lunch, got registered and picked up my SuperSapiens stuff…briefly walked the expo, saw an old buddy from my bike biz days (who I hadn’t seen in 20 years).
Bonus - saw Valteri Bottas and Tiffany Cromwell walking the expo…my daughter who is with me is a huge F1 / Bottas fan, so she was super-excited.
I rode it a few days ago and according to Strava I averaged 20 mph for the whole segment and hit about 28 mph max. I think the key is to focus and look ahead to pick the right lines. Oh and watch for Cows. For me coming from N Texas are a I am used to roads like this although in Texas the cows are usually behind fences…usually.