Planemaker

The ride was yesterday with a 200k race and a 100k ride (I rode the 100k). The ride took place in Central Kansas where there is little tree cover. When we started there were sustained winds in the low twenties out of the NW . The ride took us west and then south, the west portions were not only against the wind but, we were being pushed all over the road, the south portion was a as you might expect was great. On the way back we had a solid 18 miles, half mile east otherwise 18 straight miles, straight north into sustained NW winds at 25 with gusts to 35 which made the stretch really hard.

The sand in this area is very fine and tends to collect where the wind doesn't blow so, we would have stretches of great gravel and then really fine sand about 3 to 5 inches deep for about 10 yards.

It was very challenging day in the saddle but, I had a great time.

rosefarts

Sounds mentally exhausting. Good for you, I’m sure that i wouldn’t ride if i lived in the midwest.

Hondo Gravel

South Texas is all hard packed limestone gravel. Sometimes smooth as pavement then again there are parts you need a front suspension 29er. The heat is the big obstacle here in summer it will get 100+ so a hydration pack with ice water is a must and finding frequent places to restore fluids like Gatorade. Deep sand I found in Lajitas Texas when my MTB sunk and I went down but gently you know tuck and roll with it. Avoid broken arms and wrists. I browsed the Emporia Kansas website where they are promoting gravel rides and events. Good to see you had a great ride.

shoota 

My buddy gave up at the 90 mile mark because it was so miserable.

ksryder

Yeah I did the 200k at it was a rough day. Roads were much worse than last year--they were packed down for the most part last year but mostly loose sand this year. Last 50 miles or so were against the wind, my average dropped from 17-ish to low 14. Would've been a good course to run some really wide tires, like 50mm or so, but I can only fit 38s so that's what I run.

Started getting the hang of the sand eventually -- on the descents you ride out the skid like you're skiing. On the flats and climbs I just shifted into an easy gear and spun like hell. It wasn't perfect and I still would get caught in a sand pit here and there and have to walk, but I was able to ride through quite a bit of loose stuff that way.

My finishing time was nearly an hour slower than last year, but I managed a top 10 finish in my category this year which was an improvement. Extremely impressed with the organization of the event and all the volunteers, but it was an absolutely brutal day on the bike.

Planemaker

Congratulations on a top 10 finish, you earned it for sure.

FlashBazbo

I did the 200k. The deep powdery sand was tough. The first time one of the sand pits brought me to a stop, I stepped off and my foot instantly sank up past my ankle bone. (Shoes full of sand.) The headwind -- especially the last 35+ miles from Medicine Lodge to Pratt -- was brutal. At one point, I was full aero, giving it all I had, looked down at my Garmin, and was doing . . . 5.8 mph! Supposedly, there were gusts of 45 mph between Medicine Lodge and Isabel. There was no coasting on the last 35 miles into that wind.

The open range country south of Sun City and Medicine Lodge was pretty amazing. The surface was firm, some of the eroded double-track was pretty challenging, and the scenery was a big contrast to the rest of the route. Beautiful territory. (At about the 50-mile point, I put a wheel wrong and was thrown off -- but "fortunately" my landing was cushioned by one of the many thorn bushes. I was pulling thorns/stickers out of my hands, backside and back for the rest of the ride.)

Before the race, I had a hard time figuring out whether to go with 38's or 47's. After the race, I was glad I went with 47's.

ksryder

LOL yeah I got in a small group on the paved section out of Medicine and we got a rotating paceline going for a while and were able to maintain a blistering... *checks strava*... 12 mph!

shoota 

Holy crap dude. Your finishing ave of 14mph is mighty impressive then.

FlashBazbo

Races like these always generate a lot of stories . . . the local guy in the flatbed truck who voluntarily shuttled DNF's up to 50 miles back to the start/finish and, when they got in the cab, handed them a big communal bottle of Jim Beam.

. . . the little girls in Isabel giving out free water and who knew exactly how many miles were left and where the tough spots were up ahead.

. . . quote of the day for me. As we were slogging (pushing our bikes) against the wind through a super-size sand pit (more like a bowl) near the farthest south portion of the course, a guy told me, "Last year, we could take this bowl at way over 20 mph." Then he asked me, "You came all the way from Tennessee for this?" (Yes.) Then, a wry smile . . . "Any regrets?"

It's the people and the stories that make gravel racing great!

ksryder

Yep - despite the adverse conditions this year it was fun.

Not to keep beating this horse, but this is an astonishingly well-run event.

I did it last year because I know the country around Medicine Lodge and I knew it would be an impressive and fun area of the state to ride in. I was not disappointed. However, I was a little cautious because last year was the inaugural year, and sometimes the first year of an event can be a cluster. That was not the case -- the organizer did an amazing job preparing and getting the volunteers prepared and I didn't have any complaints about how things were run. (Pretty good raffle prizes too).

I came back this year in large part because of how smoothly everything runs, and once again everyone did a fantastic job. Also I won some tires, which basically made up for my registration and some of my lodging.

Kudos for coming out from Tennessee -- this was only a 3 hour drive for me, but that's pretty impressive to travel that far.

FlashBazbo

It was 14.5 hours each way. What can I say? I like Kansas gravel!

Zurichman2

Curious as to why you didn't fly there FlashBazbo. I just saw a video over at Kansas gravel group. Where did you stay at in Pratt? This ride is a couple of days before my birthday and would be a great way to celebrate my 69th next year. If you love Kansas Gravel you need to do the Pony Express ride @ Marysville in Sept. It only has 1 mile of macadam the 1st mile out of town.

Zman

FlashBazbo

I put the trip together with a family visit, another bike ride, and some business I had to take care of in Oklahoma. Under the circumstances, driving was a lot more convenient for me than flying would have been -- not to mention, less expensive. (Plus, I could bring along all my tools, work stands, spares, etc. I don't travel light to a gravel race.)

I stayed at one of the newer hotels out near Pratt Community College. I forget the name. There are four nice hotels, all less than ten years old, in Pratt. The discount rates for race entrants were very reasonable.

For a time, I rode with three guys from Marysville during the Open Range. Good people. They told me about the Marysville ride but, unfortunately, I never have an excuse that takes me that far north. How far is that from Manhattan? Are there good accommodations nearby?

Zurichman2

The accommodations were average as it is a really small town. Think 2-3 blinky traffic lights. I have been to around 15 gravel rides/races so far. I compare all the others to the Pony Express ride. Humphreys the other weekend as far as gravel was the only thing that even comes close. That is the ride itself. As far as how the town goes all out to support the riders and the swag give away at the riders meeting the night before there is no match. It took about an hr. and they gave away a $1300 gravel bike, bar mitts and all the other raffle prizes. Everybody came out of there with something. It is grass roots for sure and there was around 120 riders for both rides 2 years ago when I did the ride. I have a ride report over at gravel cyclist under the racing thread about 5-6 pages back now. They had 2-3 pro photographers out on the course and left you steal the pics when they posted them. I can't say enough good about that ride and even though I have the goal of riding in all 50 States I want to go back and do the 120 miler. The 1st mile was the only mile of macadam You won't regret going to it.

I did MapQuest and see it is 59 miles due North of Manhattan. The Manhattan bike shop gave away most of the free swag the year I did it. I thought I saw a different bike shop doing it last year but I am not sure.

Zman

Zurichman2

Here is a ride report of my Pony Express ride.

Zman

https://gravelcyclist.com/race-repor...frbuaCmRtnN_Hg

Poonjabby

This was a fantastic event. I highly recommend it. Excellent DK training.

Zurichman2

If I am looking at this video right most of the riders look like they are riding 700 x 33. Is that true?

Zman

Poonjabby

Thats what I ran. A friend ran 45s and said it did help with the sand, but noticeably slower on packed surfaces.