EVERYBODY IS SO NICE, WHEN THEY HAVE A HATCHET IN HAND

YOU DON'T NEED TO BUY A GRAVEL BIKE TO APPRECIATE WHY GRAVEL EVENTS ARE GROWING SO FAST.  And, brining a mountain bike to race is not like bringing a knife to a gun fight...

... in fact Brian Scarbrough took 3rd today on an MTB.

To be honest, you don't event need to do a gravel even to get it.

You just need to show up and check it out.

The vibe is friendly, comradic, even collaboratory.  

People are antsy at the start, but that's because these are always an adventure.  A wide skillset is required:  good road skills, good dirt skills, good repair skills.

There is always some pileup you just can't believe,

Like today.

I'm jamming along in a sweet, ripping pack and I see this gal nearly go down.  I'm talking bounce off her seat, land on the top tube, vector off course and save it.

But, she wasn't done.

You'd think...

Unbelievably I see her do it a few miles later.  This time she doesn't save it and goes flying off a hill.  Total yard sale.  

I stop.

She's giggling.  Trapped in her crumpled bike.

We try and get it working,  Stem recentered.  Front brake fixed.  But, then I saw the twisted derailler.

Bummer.

Anyway, these are the kinds of things you see... and maybe experience.

Which is why there is a party at the end...

... with people hanging out...

... and rehashing it all...

... which is also why you might want to check out the gravel scene.

Our finisher's award?

A hatchet.

Personally, I thought that was risky. There were a number of heinous climbs where I was mentally cussing Sam, the promoter.  The cramps were hitting me hard.

Fortunately, they were rewarded with some very fun and twisty slot canyons.

At that point I was hitting my supply of Salt Stick tablets hard.

Cramps came on.

Tablets chewed.

Cramps gone.

https://pedalindustries.com/collections/nutrition/products/saltstick-fast-chews

The nifty thing about what we do is we included a little plastic container with a pop top.  It's perfect for keeping in your jersey pocket and popping as needed,

Trust me on this... for less than $19, you just might save your next race.

Ships free, too.

https://pedalindustries.com/collections/nutrition/products/saltstick-fast-chews 

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? lbs
Hypervolt
7 hrs sleep
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