Tag: gravel racing

Little Apple Gravel Race 50K – Race Report

August 3, 2025 – Manhattan, IL – 50K Open Division

Results: 50K Open – Male: 24th out of 40, no official time listed

Watch data: 30.68 miles – 1:53:20 – 16.2 mph/ave.

I completed my first bike race today! Well, kinda sorta. Although I’ve raced my bike in numerous triathlons, this was my first cycling-only race, a 50K gravel race on a great day. There were 48 registrants in my division – the Open 50K, with many others doing longer distances, some requiring a license that I lack, and after today, have no desire to obtain one. Those people are in a different league.

I arrived early enough to find a good parking spot under a shady tree and picked up my number placard, which goes on the front of your bike. There was a table next to the pick-up area that had some fun trinkets and a sign near some stickers that said something like Team Dog or Team Cat – Choose wisely. I chose Team Dog and stuck the sticker on my number.

Even the dog thinks this might not be a good idea.

Looking fairly fresh just before the start of the race. Somehow, I missed my friend Jim’s call for a pre-ride group photo, but I still had a chance to get in a shot or two with people I had no idea who they were.

The course is billed as 88% gravel and runs through the farm areas of the southern Chicago area. The start is a neutral roll-out, where there’s no racing and is designed to get the group going without any incidents. A little after a mile, the race is on. I saw Jim and another friend, Dan, just before they started their 100K ride. Dan wished me luck and advised me to “stay between the ditches.” As we got rolling and started racing, we came to the first turn and the first section of gravel, and that is when I saw my first crash. The guy went into the turn a little too hot and wiped out. I was surprised to see him at the finish later on, looking good and in one piece. It looked to be a bad wipeout.

The gravel section is hard enough, but the course started heading uphill and into a headwind. It was at this point that I realized the packs of riders ahead would be tough to catch, and I found myself riding pretty much on my own, which I didn’t mind. This section was about five miles long, and I just kept focused on keeping a good cadence and finding the best line, usually the car tire-packed-down area of the gravel road. There were plenty of bike tire tracks to use as a guide as well.

I was finally catching up with some other riders and caught my friends Chris and Kristin, who had started strong, but I was finally able to pull them in. Chris rode on my wheel for a while, but then I pulled away. We were three Chris’s for a mile or two.

I had ridden the course a little over a week ago and remembered which areas to be cautious in. Someone nicknamed a section of very soft gravel the “Devil’s Gravel,” and that section had some white knuckle moments. Around 23 miles into it, I saw a second rider who had just passed me and another rider go down around a corner. His helmeted head hit the ground hard enough for me to gasp, but the gravel was so soft there that it didn’t seem to phase him. I saw him later on as well, and he advised that he was fine.

Right after the guy went down, I chatted up “Matt” and we started working together to get to the finish, and by together I mean, I got on his wheel and tried to hold on. When we finally got to a paved road again, it was I who took the lead and let him hang on for a while, but he was a little faster going up the hills. As we turned onto the final straight to the finish, we both pushed pretty hard, trying to catch the guy ahead of us. Somehow, I finished ahead of Matt, but I’m not sure if he was happy to let me go, knowing that there really wasn’t anyone challenging us from behind, or was out of gas and had no sprint finish left. Well, I gave it my best effort regardless.

Pretty dirty at the finish.

In all, it was a day of riding hard, being cautious, and enjoying a great race for the first time. I may have to do this one again!

The Forge Gravel Triathlon Race Report

When:  07/20/2024

Where:  The Forge – Lemont, Illinois

Distance:  Off-road Sprint – 14 miles total: ~ 540 yard SWIM, ~ 10 mile BIKE, ~ 3 mile RUN

Results:  1:20:34 –  Overall & A/G placement – Who Really Knows?

Results Link:  The Forge Gravel Triathlon Results

A lot can happen in three years. I certainly changed in that short period, taking time off from almost any type of race that involved going fast, and concentrating on going long and slow. But as I claw my way back into shorter and faster races, I find it difficult to get back to where I was. The Forge Gravel Triathlon has also changed since the last time I did it, adding a very technical (i.e. scary hard) section to the run course that involved a lot of walking and praying that I wouldn’t fall. I ended up with a time about 5.5 minutes slower than in 2021, which I can’t be too upset about. I’m actually somewhat impressed that I held it together through the last mile of the run. It wasn’t easy.

All set up and waiting for the start.

As I drove over a very potholed road into The Forge on Friday to pick up my race packet, I was reminded that this road is part of the course, and it was going to need my full attention on race day. I was up at 4 am on Saturday to get ready for the race. The drive to Lemont was an easy trip and I parked in my usual spot at Lemont HS and rode my bike into the park along the I & M Canal trail. Once there I racked my bike, set up my transition area, then started taking in the important Swim Out, Bike Out, and Run Out portions of transition. That led me to discover that the run-out now takes a narrow path, winding around and eventually dumping you on the trail. I decided a warm-up jog was in order, and headed down the trail to see what parts were changed and what to expect. I saw my friend Tony walking down the path and we exchanged pleasantries. He was there to volunteer as a lifeguard in a kayak, which is very much appreciated. He has a super-packed race schedule this year, so I was a little surprised that he finds time to volunteer for stuff like this.

Back to the warm-up jog, it led me to a very technical portion of the park that is used for mountain biking. It had steep drops and climbs, with many rocks and other gnarly stuff. I “jogged” through some of it until I finally decided I had seen enough and returned to prep for the race.

I saw another friend Leah, and I asked her husband Steve if he was wearing “the shirt”. “Oh yeah, I’m wearing it!” He wears this shirt that says “I DON’T DO MARATHONS, I DO A MARATHONER” to all her events and it gives me a chuckle every time. Leah and I chatted about our nervousness and then got ready.

Even though the water was 75 d. F. and wetsuit legal, I opted for my Roka swimskin, a sort of swim outfit that is supposed to reduce drag in the water. I love my wetsuit, but struggling to get it off after a swim can be a chore.

I was one of the first triathletes to head down to the swim start area and I found myself first in line in Wave 2. Looking at some of the athletes behind me had me thinking that I should probably move back, but I kept my spot and waited for the start. After the Elite Wave group of about 10-12 started, we all started to make our way to the dock and jump in, separated by about 5 seconds. It was a good swim for me – the water was a good temperature, I settled into my pace easily and had zero contact. I started to tire and felt a little out of breath on the last section heading back to the dock, but I got through it fine. SWIM TIME: 13:36

Into T1, I easily unzipped my swimskin and lowered it to my midsection, while sitting down, drying my feet, putting on socks/shoes, grabbing my helmet and bike, jogging to Bike Out, and then I realized I hadn’t fully taken off the swimskin! I stopped, leaned my bike against the fence, stripped it off, tossing it back to my transition area, and then off on my way to ride. T1 TIME: 2:32

I redlined the ride in true Gunner fashion. I was breathing heavily and my legs were screaming at me, but I soon found myself concentrating on my line on this twisty-turning trail and looking out for others as well. I passed a few and had a few pass me, but still felt like I was giving it my best effort. I knew that I wanted to press hard here and try to gain some time advantage because I knew I would be walking some of the run. BIKE TIME: 37:21

T2 was quick for me! It took me all of 44 seconds to rack my bike, take off my helmet and cycling shoes, put on my running shoes, grab my bib belt and visor while running to Run Out. I’m usually not that quick! T2 TIME: 0:44

A photo of the early part of the run course. The gnarlier stuff came later.

Once on the run I secured my bib belt, got my visor on, and carefully jogged through the opening path leading to the trail. It helped me settle down a little. As I got to the flat main trail, I started pushing pace and was doing quite well. Fortunately, a volunteer directed me over a bridge or I would have blown straight past her, cleaving off about 2/3s of a mile from the course. I was running pretty well on the flat trail and when I got to the technical part the walking began. There’s no way you could run up these little hills. On one of them, I was almost crawling up it. Fortunately, I didn’t have any mishaps and was about to finish that section when I heard a guy yelling about being confused about where to turn. I found that the run course was pretty clearly marked with arrows, but could understand how someone could get confused. He had been ahead of me, so I told him to follow me and got him going in the right direction again. I hit the gas for the last half mile back and finished pretty strongly. RUN TIME: 26:23

I was recovering a little past the finish line when I had a guy come up and ask me if my watch showed three miles. I informed him that it did and he said that he only had two miles recorded for the run. Five minutes later, a young lady also inquired about the run distance, saying she only had done two miles. Things were starting to get a little weird. It wasn’t long after the race that the race director grabbed a microphone and explained that somehow an arrow on the course had been moved, directing runners in the wrong direction. He advised that he couldn’t change the results, but if anyone in the crowd was aware that their run was short by a mile, to do the right thing and let him know. I didn’t see anyone approach him.

That somewhat explains the difference in my finish place compared to 2021. I finished 22nd overall in that race, and finished 60th in this one! And to add insult to injury, I placed 5th in my age group, but when I looked at the results, it was pretty clear that at least two of them had questionable run times. I should have been 3rd overall in the age group. I was robbed of an A/G spot!!! Oh well, it’s not that big of a deal. The bigger picture is that I raced well, felt good about my performance, and had a great time.

It was nice to get back to racing triathlon again.

Taking in the view waiting for the awards.