Gravel

Rain, orange mud, and riders with Paris-Roubaix and Tour de France experience all scheduled to descend on the first Monument of Gravel.

For our final Monument of Gravel, our voting pool was deadlocked between Rebecca's Private Idaho and Crusher in the Tushar. Now, you can vote for one of these events to help us complete our Monuments of Gravel list.

Riders like The Mid South because of the event's production and founder, and because the 100-mile course is short enough to actually race.

The Belgian Waffle Ride's punishing course and huge media footprint have attracted elite riders from multiple disciplines and helped drive them toward gravel racing.

Belgian Waffle Ride sprung from Michael Marckx's desire to build a Belgian-style classic in North San Diego County. The event blends road racing tactics with bone-jarring off-road sections that are a test for all riders.

What do riders think about Dirty Kanza 200? The distance is intimidating, the crowds and ambiance are thrilling, and to win—that can change a rider's entire career.

Dirty Kanza 200 was our only unanimous selection to the VeloNews Monuments of Gravel list, and it's easy to see why. The 200-mile race has become the most famous and prestigious gravel event on the planet.

We went in search of the Monuments of Gravel: the five gravel races that carry the most prestige to win. This week we will be rolling out stories around each race and why our panel of experts voted it onto the list.

Peter Stetina and Kristen Faulkner won Saturday's Super Sweetwater, the original event of California's Grasshopper Adventure Series.

Dirty Kanza winner Colin Strickland is not your average pro cyclist, as we found when we visited him in Austin in late 2019. Strickland's constant tinkering is pushing American pro cycling in a bold new direction.

Across much of North America, spring makes a fickle bedfellow to gravel racing. We found six races where the weather shouldn't be a problem, but your early season fitness might.

Think you want to put on a gravel race? There's a lot more to consider than a cool course and a fun afterparty. We spoke to Chelsea Luttrall, founder and "one-woman show" at Colorado's The Crippler race to find out what it takes.

American Ironman record-holder Heather Jackson will race gravel in 2020 as she builds towards the world championships in Kona.

Amity Rockwell joins the VeloNews Podcast to discuss Dirty Kanza, gravel cycling's sponsorship market, and what it's like to be the only female rider on a group ride. Plus, we hear from contributor James Startt about Remco Evenepoel's impressive win in Argentina.

The gravel season kicked off this weekend with Colorado's Old Man Winter Rally, a 100-kilometer trek across dirt roads in Boulder County. Heavy snowfall greeted racers on the morning of the event, and by the time they left the start line in Lyons, Colorado, several inches had accumulated on roadways. And then, just 15 kilometers in, the Colorado Department of Transportation made the decision to stop the event. That wasn't before VeloNews Photo Editor, Brad Kaminski, snapped some images of the snowy action in Colorado.

Blowing snow forced the cancellation of the Old Man Winter Rally gravel race in Colorado.

The unofficial Gravel Worlds race in Lincoln, Nebraska, will offer a free entry to riders who cannot afford the $90 registration.

Patrick Brady was on-site in Ukiah, in Mendocino County, California, for the first race in the Grasshopper Adventure Series.

Part epic race, part economic builder, Lost and Found shows off the Lost Sierra to gravel riders with a riverside party to cap it off.

Here's what it took for Mat Stephens to win his fourth Texas Chainring Massacre, just ahead of teammate Spencer Seggebruch.

Gravel riders and race promoters are wary, if somewhat curious, of UCI boss David Lappartient's comments that the governing body may hold a gravel world championships.

Katie Hall, Kate Courtney, Alison Tetrick, and Amity Rockwell will all line up at this weekend's Grasshopper Adventure Series. What makes the gravel series so popular amongst female riders? We asked the experts.

We all agree that a bit of flex is good in a gravel bike. But how much?

150 miles of gravel. Nearly 10,000 feet of climbing. Here's a breakdown of John Borstelmann's winning ride at the 2019 Gravel Worlds.

The Mid South founder Bobby Wintle says the best gear for his race depends on the weather. His own bike, a Moots Routt 45, features prototype tires and Shimano components.

USA Cycling invited promoters from the Dirty Kanza, SBT GRVL, and other gravel events to meet in Bentonville, Arkansas to discuss the future of off-road racing.

After Colin Strickland won the 2019 Dirty Kanza 200, EF Pro Cycling invited him to join the WorldTour in 2020 to race Paris-Roubaix. Here's why Strickland declined the offer.

Gravel events like Old Man Winter and Rasputitsa embrace the winter elements.

Gravel racers have become the entrepreneurs of American cycling, pushing the sponsorship model in strange new directions.

TJ Eisenhart has left road cycling behind to launch his own gravel program called Imaginary Collective. The program boasts an innovative sponsorship model that bucks the trend commonly found in road cycling teams.

The balance VeloNews and I hope to achieve this year.

A decade ago gravel racing was an oddity for cycling's hardest core riders. Today, it's a movement for the masses.

Who are the best gravel racers in the country? It's a question that's open for debate. Enter Pure Gravel’s Power Rankings, a ranking system that scores riders based on their results at 15 different U.S. gravel races.

40mm is the new 35mm. Here’s why.

What's the best tire for the course? What should gravel racing be in length and format? And what causes this gravel madness, anyhow? We will be digging into all this and more in The Grind.

Life Time has acquired the Crusher in the Tushar, adding another marquee gravel event to its lineup of off-road cycling races.

Check out Dan Cavallari's author page.

When the Leadville 100 MTB and SBT GRVL races were scheduled on back-to-back days, organizers decided to create a new endurance event called the LeadBoat Challenge.

WorldTour pro Peter Stetina will walk away from WorldTour road racing to launch a career in gravel racing and ultra-endurance mountain biking. "This is not a retirement," Stetina says.

Japanese company's new off-paved-road-specific component group aims to provide array of options for gravel and cyclocross riders

Although he tried really hard to do so, Chris Case didn't crack at the gorgeous, demanding, and high-paced inaugural edition of SBT GRVL.

Approximately 1,500 riders turned up for the inaugural SBT GRVL race last Sunday in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. The event offered up three course options (Black, Blue, and Green), with the heartiest riders opting for the 140-mile Black route that included a leg burning 9,000 feet of climbing. Former WorldTour pro Ted King and rising road racing star Brodie Chapman were fastest on the day in the men’s and women’s fields, each earning a healthy $5,000 prize check. But this first-year event was about much more than the sharp end of the race. Indeed, SBT GRVL demonstrated once again that this whole gravel thing is here to stay. Scroll down to see our expansive photo gallery. All images courtesy SBT GRVL

Each earned a well-deserved $5,000 for their hard efforts on the 140-mile Black Course with 9,000 feet of climbing.

The multi-talented rider wins crits, mountain bike races, and singlespeed 'cross events. Now she's taking on gravel, and looking forward to suffering at SBT GRVL.

Gravel race management earmarked 200 spots specifically for women after initial registration numbers were heavily male.

On July 7th 2019, 84 riders set out from Inverness to race across three Celtic nations – Scotland, Ireland and Wales – in the inaugural edition of the Pan Celtic Race. The ride would encompass Celtic history as well as scenic splendour, as riders pushed their physical and mental limits to reach the finish line in Llandudno in time for the party 10 days later.

What do you get when you add Richie Porte, Cameron Wurf, the Col de la Madone and the Everesting phenomenon together? A very epic ride, that's what.

A look at the 2019 Crusher in the Tushar gravel race, which was won by Evelyn Dong and Alex Grant

Check out Matt De Neef's author page.

Morton is less than 200km from the end of a 2,000km journey from Lands End to John O'Groats, leading the GBDURO endurance race

Check out Sonia Blair's author page.

Check out Sarah Lukas's author page.

Dirty Kanza’s a big event, and plenty of riders structure their year’s riding around it. That wasn’t to be my path. Eight days was all I had. Eight days to get myself from couch to Kanza, on a bike from Walmart that I'd never ridden.

The 200-mile race is making efforts to attract women to ultra-distance cycling. Our columnist reflected on the female experience at the Dirty Kanza

In the Flint Hills of Kansas, the tribe that rides Dirty Kanza 200 epitomizes the generosity of gravel.

Check out Jonathan Kambskard-Bennett's author page.

Two elite racers, from disparate backgrounds in cycling, battled each other for 200 hot, windswept miles on the Kansas plains.

Dirty Kanza's female champion loves "crazy long adventure" training rides in Northern California

The non-traditional racing calendars of WorldTour teams brings riders closer to fans, however they also create potential pitfalls on social media

Amity Rockwell wins women's Dirty Kanza 200 after making a late charge to overtake Alison Tetrick

What's the buzz at this year's Dirty Kanza? Tire choice and weather conditions surpass pro participation and corporate ownership

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

VeloNews is on the ground in Emporia, Kansas for the 2019 Dirty Kanza. Here's what we saw in the pre-race expo

Check out Peter Foot's author page.

In 2011, then VeloNews tech editor Nick Legan completed Dirty Kanza 200. The ride marked the sixth running of the race, and VeloNews's first—but not last—time getting dirty in Kansas.

Check out sarah moore's author page.

The pro mountain biker talks with VeloNews about race strategy, how WorldTour riders might change the race dynamic, and the all-important question of aero bars.

Gravel cycling is having a big year in 2019, with corporate buyouts, big paydays, and even interest from WorldTour pro riders

The WorldTour riders attending Dirty Kanza 200 do intend to race for the win. Whether or not they can win is another story

How will professional road racers shake up this year's Dirty Kanza 200? Reigning champion Ted King is eager to find out

For Lael, the 350 miles of Dirty Kanza XL isn't enough, so she has decided to ride 650 miles to get there as well.

Check out Tom Owen's author page.

Check out Iain Treloar's author page.

With Western flair, Wild Horse Gravel serves up some of the best gravel roads on Colorado's Western Slope. The gravel sportive offers timed segments for "competers" and a relaxed atmosphere for "completers."

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

An adventure bike packing a lot of punch into an affordable package, the Grail AL takes its carbon cousin and makes it more accessible.

Ready or not, here it comes. Shimano has released the first-ever gravel-specific component set, and we got a first look at it at the Wild Horse Gravel event in De Beque, Colorado.

The ABSA Cape Epic is arguably XC mountain biking’s most competitive stage race. From the front of the elite field, here’s Giant pro rider Brendan Johnston’s account of how it went for him and his partner, Cam Ivory.

Check out Matthew Beaudin's author page.

There's arguably no cyclist who better represents the Colombian cycling lifestyle better than Esteban Chaves. We join the charismatic former Giro d’Italia runner-up on his favourite ride in the Eje Cafetero in Colombia.