Unbound XL 2023

This post was written in June of 2023

Unbound XL is America’s premier gravel racing event. It’s one of the biggest gatherings of gravel cyclists in the world. There are five distances, 25, 50,100, 200 and XL. The 25, 50, 100, and 200 are fully supported with aid stations. XL is 350 strictly unsupported. No outside help is allowed, we can stop at the five convenience stores along the way.  All I can share here is a brief summary of my 32 hours and 45 minutes riding Unbound XL. 

The All Things Gravel Expo was fun. There was a lot to look at, and many people to talk to. Many would ask “are you riding,” “first time,” and my favorite to answer, “which distance.” The admiration and respect was instant, without even having crossed the start line. 

The start line send off was excellent. I got there a little early and sat in the shade and watched the crowd form. Riders were called to the start and we lined up into the starting coral. The coral was lined by a crowd of people, lots trying to get pictures and say good luck. I thought it was awesome. Then we got going, and there was an entire town full of people lining the main road to send us off. The energy was amazing. 

I started ¾ of the way to the back. We had a neutralized start through town, with police escorts. Then the fast guys took off and the chase was on. Everybody was flying. I quickly made the choice to stop trying to bridge gaps. Settled in and sat on wheels as much as I could. 

I got my first and only puncture early on, somewhere around two hours into the ride. A sharp rock was stuck in my tire. I pulled the rock out, and covered the hole with my thumb to slow the leak. I knew exactly where my plug kit was, and had it out quickly. I jammed the Stans plug in the tire, reinflated the tire with co2 and was able to catch up to the group I was with. I did not have any more tire problems for the rest of the day. 

 The biggest challenge was mud. Unrideable clay, sticky, and heavy. It sticks to the tire and will clog the wheel. The clay picks up rocks and debris. Mud was getting in my chain and it would frequently drop. I hiked my bike through many miles of mud and wet grass. In the dark it is hard to see what is rideable until you are in it. There were times I could ride my bike in the slick wet grass. The grass hid rocks, pipes, and the fence on the side was barbed wire. 

The clay was mud, and the gravel was dry and fast. There were all kinds of gravel from sand to small rocks. In Kansas they call their unmaintained road, minimally maintained roads, or MMRs. There were lots of minimally maintained roads. Some would go through cattle pens, occupied by cattle. Some of the MMRs were rough, and really were maintained to the minimum standard of the farmer. Road conditions varied, there was a lot of perfect fast gravel along the way, and around every corner was a new gravel type.  

I would find groups to work with, then we would hit the mud and the group would shatter. I would have to stop to clean my chain and get it back on the chain ring. The mud would jam in the chain and it wouldn’t fit on the teeth of the chainring. I used the pipe cleaner from my number plate to clean each link of my chain, or smash it on again. The groups would reform in the fast dry sections, only to hit the mud and shatter again. After mile 225, the courses overlapped, and there were a lot more people to ride with. 

I made many friends and rode with some amazing people. Having wheels to ride and people to talk to was a huge boost. When I was on my own in the middle of the night I nodded off while riding, rolled in the grass, and set my head down on my bars. Then, along came Yellow Jersey, and simple conversation was all I needed to get to the next stop. Mile 2?? discussion of snacks and food was exactly what I needed to keep pushing. In the heat of the day I came upon a rider who was clearly struggling. When I asked what he needed he said  “a friend,""No problem, buddy, I can handle that.” We climbed a hill, and I asked about his supplies. We made a plan to stop at the top of the hill so I could share a Skratch labs high sodium.  We made it, he said he had to puke, so I gave him the sodium and left. I have no idea who that rider friend was. Along the way I made many friends, rode many wheels, and passed many miles with conversation. 

My nutrition plan was built around Skratch Labs. Calories were supplied by Skratch Labs High-Carb, and electrolytes came from Skratch Labs Hydration, and High sodium. I carried 2 30oz bottles, and wore a 1.5 liter backpack.  I started the day with 100 grams of High carb in each bottle and one scoop hydration in my backpack. At each stop I planned to use 6 packets, 300 grams, of high carb in the bottles, and a high sodium packet in my backpack. I actually used four or five packets of carbs per stop, and had a few left over at the end. I 

I brought some snacks, rice crispy treats, maple waffles, maple candy, scratch gummies, GU gummies, and some other samples from the EXPO. I grabbed a cookie hand up at speed from a nice local family. At the rest stops, I bought water, some food, and sodas. I had a cheese burger, a spicy chicken sandwich, almonds, ice cream, cheesy potato bites, mountain dew, and red bulls. At the first rest stop a friend I had never met before offered me the second half of his Coke, and I accepted and drank that soda. I offered to share my almonds with a rider, and never saw him again. Somewhere near the end of the ride I got a mini coke from some locals at a road crossing. 

Long before the stop at mile 225 I made the risky choice of using my Skratch high carb to clean my chain, Scratch High Carb is not a good cleaning product. I thought I could either stop, and drink water, or get riding to get more water. I got going again and it was getting hot, I was thirsty. I missed the stop, It was my fault. The volunteers pointed me in the wrong direction. It was my fault for listening, they were not there for me, and I should have known exactly where Casey’s was. I did three miles, and decided to turn back to town. That stop was excellent, I ate cheesy potato bites, an ice cream bar, and drank water. I discovered the power of an iced 32oz mountain dew mixed with a Skratch Labs high sodium, dumped in my hydration backpack. I regrouped with Ben and others. On my extra miles, I noticed a hose tap at the local cemetery, the others were all onboard for a little detour. I probably spent more time spraying myself than cleaning my bike. After this stop we were mixed with the 200 milers and there were a lot of people to ride with. Yet I would still find this group of riders again. 

It rained hard before my stop at mile 270. It was cold and wet. I was shivering and made a mess inside the cafe. I had a coffee, and a riblet sandwich while discussing scratching with other riders. I decided to keep on it and see how it went, a few came with me. One rider made a rain jacket from a trash bag. The miles in the rain were wet, and hard. I stuck my face into the spray from the wheel in front of me and hung on. What else is there to do?

I stopped at mile 314 rest stop, but only to pick up a few riders. Getting in before midnight was my new goal and I had to work hard. I pushed, and found others doing the same. We worked together the best we could. It was dark and everybody was tired. My headlamp died after I could see the glow of Emporia’s lights. I switched to headlight only and kept on pushing. There was a deep water crossing and I rode through like it was a puddle. When I was close to town, I turned my headlight on to the 3000 lumen max, and pushed harder. 

I got tired, and things hurt. But nothing major or irreversible. My feet hurt from being wet for 32 hours. My legs had decent push. Coming into town was a little confusing, or I was confused, and I wasn't sure where to go. Another rider came up behind me, and I asked if he wanted to do a sprint finish, to which he agreed. I counted down, and he didn’t go. I counted again, “3-2-1… GO”, and I smashed a sprint finish. He didn’t have anything for me. 

The DNF rate was high. Of the 205 people who signed up only 46 finished within the cut off. 

While I thought I could have a better finish time, I am proud to have finished, and I hope to try again next year. 

Unbound gravel is a bike race, but it is much more, to me it’s all about the gathering of people. We could all go out and ride our distances alone. But it’s more fun to do it together, and it’s easier with support, on or off the course. Through racing events like Unbound we are granted an opportunity to push our own personal limits, have fun, and make friends with others doing the same. I rode 350 miles, but I couldn't have done it without everybody's help, support, and friendship.    

I have a lot of room for improvement. There is more gas in the tank. I can make more power. My strategy can be improved. My stops were far too long. I hope I can continue to progress my skills as I prepare for my next ultra distance race.

At the start of the ride I had thought that if conditions were good and I could avoid mechanicals I could finish in 24 hours. That plan didn't last long. I had to readjust my goals, when 24 hours wasn't possible, it was sunset, then midnight. Often my goal was the next stop, or even the next turn. 

It was an experience I highly recommend. It was fun. Push your limits, sign up for an event that you don't know you can complete, and let me know how I can help.

Questions

1.Why did I want to ride the Unbound XL.

I like riding my bike long distances, and I wanted to challenge myself. My longest ride before entering was 152 miles. I was confident that I could complete the 200 mile. I was not confident that I could finish a ride like Unbound XL. 350 miles is a lot longer than anything I had considered doing. A ride like this seemed like the challenge I needed. 

I wanted to participate in a few races in 2023 to try it out and see if I liked the racing format. I had participated in a few events, but I had never participated in a real timed bike race when I signed up. My first race was in April at Rasputitsa, Unbound XL was my second race. Unbound gravel is one of the biggest races in the country and was a great opportunity to experience a large race.

 Unbound attracts many of the best riders in the country, and from around the world. It offered an opportunity to line up with some big names in bike racing, and there would be many skilled riders to ride with. 

2. What was the craziest thing I saw?

 It was dark, I could only see what was illuminated by my lights. I was riding at a decent pace. There were two shining lights in the road ahead, they were moving, but I could not tell what I was looking at until I got much closer. It was a cow on the road. It walked off into the grass on the side of the road. As I approached she turned around and started walking back toward the road. I told the cow “no, don’t do that,” and didn’t slow down much.

3. What was the hardest part? 

Wet feet, I was not prepared for that. It rained, and walking in the grass was very wet.  I brought one extra pair of socks, I should have brought more. I changed socks in the stop in the middle of the night, rinsed the ones I was wearing and stuffed them in my pack. I alternated socks at the third stop. But, they were just as wet. After the downpour around mile 270-300 my feet hurt and I was unable to put down the power that I wanted to. Walking was painful, each step hurt. The last mud section was the worst one for me, I was practically limping along. But, I got through and riding the bike wasn’t as painful. 

4. Did you think about quitting? 

Yes, but never seriously. The closest I came was when I was sitting in the cafe drinking a coffee. Some of the other riders had had enough. It was pouring rain, and I was shivering even with my jacket on. Quitting wasn’t really an option I was considering. A rider was able to get a phone signal and check radar. Waiting the storm out would make finishing in time more challenging, it was going to rain for a few more hours.  I could see riders from the 100 and 200 rolling past and decided to continue on and see how far I could go. The next stop was relatively close, and an easy target. 

5. What was your favorite part?

The rideable parts were fantastic, and riding with others made it even better. I enjoyed riding and having conversations with many people. It’s a race, but there wasn’t much competitiveness between riders. We were mostly working together to get to a common goal, offerings of supplies and wheels were common. The 100 and 200 mile riders I rode with provided amazing support, they wanted to help. Riding wheels is one way to pass the miles, but I think a good conversation works just as well. I got to ride with some extraordinary people, it was fun. 

6. How do you recover from something like that? 

Slowly. It was a monumental effort. I finished the race, was driven “home” , went to bed, and woke up a few hours later to go to the awards ceremony. The effects of sleep deprivation can be difficult to overcome. Combined with the muscular fatigue, recovery felt slow. I napped often, and sometimes unintentionally. I did a few ice baths, ate a lot, and I tried to keep my exercise intensity and volume low. I did not help myself, I participated in Climb to the Clouds and B2VT. I am still feeling some lingering effects but I think I am almost back to normal. 

7. What's next? 

I have not signed up for any events in July. I have plans for a hard bikepacking trip, and I plan to do a lot of riding. I’d like to organize some Gravel Boston Activities, Saturday Adventure, and some other  options.  August brings another big race, Garmin Gravel Worlds The long voyage 300. On the distant horizons might be a bikepacking race. I enjoy ultra distance and would like to continue there, but I am also interested in trying more race formats.