Diaries #1: So, we're doing this US Gravel thing?

Adapting to life as a Privateer in the great US of A.

Mar 31, 2024

Hello, how’s it going? I’m falling into the trap of just writing race reports which is a bit naff.

This one is gonna be a little different. A bit more of a life update, what’s happening day-to-day on the ground here in the States?

For context, this block is seven weeks long in total, I’ll have a month in Europe come May, then June and July it’s back out to the States…

I touched down in the US just under three weeks ago. Since then, I’ve raced twice, travelled through five different States and spent God knows how many hours in a car.

I touched down in Oklahoma and was picked up by Chris Mehlman - my friend who I’ve been on the road with. I landed with snapped handlebars courtesy of Delta, though you’ll be happy to hear that I won the email battle and they paid for the replacements.

Oklahoma brought Mid South Gravel - I finished P12 and had the time of my life. It was a good performance on the bike and an epic time off the bike. I wrote a whole article about it, but all you need to know is that the Mid South is a bloody incredible experience.

After a week in Stillwater, Oklahoma, we drove to Sweetwater, Texas for the Rattlesnake Gravel Grind. A smaller race in the grand scheme of the Gravel world, but that’s not to say that it was any less fun. The organiser, David (who is an absolutely great guy) sorted us out with an RV for the week and I experienced the true American Gravel Dream.

I won the race after a long attacking ride with Chris. That’s not half the story though, we had rattlesnakes draped around our neck, listened to live country music and had one hell of a time.

The RV was a game changer, I need one of those things in my life, or a cool van build at least. I’ve not stopped seeing them since leaving that race, everywhere I look there’s a cool van or RV…anyone have a spare hundred grand down the back of the sofa so I can buy one?

With back-to-back race weekends under our belt, it was time to head up to Colorado Springs, where Chris lives. That’s where I’m writing this from now, and is our base for ten days or so before we head to Utah for the next race.

Colorado has been on my bucket list forever. Colorado Springs is cool, and there are spectacular views all around, but I had one place on my mind: Boulder.

It seems like what Boulder is to the US is what Girona is to Europe: a hub of everything endurance sport. Sitting at 1800m of elevation, and just a 10-minute ride from the mountains, it’s bonkersly beautiful.

It’s a great place, I fell in love immediately. The road riding is great, the gravel riding is mind boggling and it’s at 1800m of elevation. The coffee scene is good, it seems to be a tight-knit community - what’s not to like?

If I end up spending a significant amount of time in the States because of racing and I need a home base, that place will be Boulder. There are some downfalls, namely that it’s bloody expensive. I had a quick browse and the average two-bed apartment is north of $2000 a month to rent - according to Zillow, the average house price sits on $ 1 million.

I had the best of hosts in the Lydic family which also brought the additional bonus of Cooper and Wrigley, their two dogs. When you’re on the road for so long, having a couple of dogs to bond with is worthwhile mentioning.

We rode high on our final day up there, beyond 2800m. The views are spectacular. We climbed for two hours, only stopping to take photos, and for a quick visit to the iconic Gold Hill Store. I knew I liked Boulder already, that ride made me fall in love with the place.

I’m now back down in Colorado Springs for a few days before heading to Utah for the Belgian Waffle Ride, Cedar City. The Springs also sit at 1800m of elevation, and as somebody who was born at five metres above sea level, altitude burns.

To put it into perspective, this morning I had a session that was 4x10mins@360w. I suffered like a dog, breathing heavily to just manage an average of 355w for each set. Yet, when I’m in Girona, one of my regular training sessions is 5hrs endurance with 3x35mins@355w. The ride in Girona feels one hundred times easier.

Sitting here writing this, I’m happy. I keep having ‘pinch me’ moments that this is really happening, when a mere 14-months ago, the whole Privateer idea was just an idea sitting in a Google Docs.

My goal for this year is to become established on the US Gravel scene, to consistently be at the pointy end of the big races, but also to learn about every race for future years to come. It’s also to have a load of fun. Everything is going well so far.

Trip Stats So Far:

Days on the Road: 20
Beds Slept In: 5
States Visited: 5
Race Days: 2
Good Cafes: 3

Next Races:

April 6th: Belgian Waffle Ride, Utah - Gravel
April 10th-14th: Redlands Cycling Classic, California - Road
April 20th: Sea Otter Classic, California - Gravel
April 25th-28th: Speedweek, Georgia - Road

Joe Laverick

Discussion about this post