[josh]

@hozn 179423 wrote:

But Subby beat me. … on his single speed.

70% of the singlespeed field beat me. I’m thinking going with one gear is the easiest way to get faster

[josh]

@hozn 179423 wrote:

Yeah, I did *not* ride my road bike. And I did *not* ride Compass tires (primarily because I couldn’t get those damned tires to re-seat tubeless). I am very happy with both of those choices. The 700×38 G-One Allround tires were great, but I would not have wanted anything smaller on that course. People told me that ~30mm tires would be fine there. Maybe if you have ability to dodge all the potholes. And if there hadn’t been a fair bit of fresh gravel.

I hit a pothole hard when I was still in the big bunch on the initial gravel downhill and rotated my bars forward. So my hoods became pretty useless for the rest of the ride. On the upside I was more aero in the drops

I had my tires pumped up too high. I thought the roads were supposed to be pretty smooth, so I was running 32/38psi (F/R) on my G-Ones. About halfway through the race I stopped on a climb and dropped the pressure down to something that I suspect was closer to 25/30psi (F/R) and that was much better: much less skittish on the gravel descents, better traction on the loose gravel climbs, much more comfortable in general, and didn’t feel much slower on the little bit of pavement that remained.

I had a fantastic race. Subby is right that it is so frickin’ beautiful out there — one of the gravel races with the nicest views, I think. And the wildflowers — you could smell them on the way up to Spruce Knob; it was incredible.

I tried to hang with the main lead group (not the crazy-fast few that broke off quite early), but it didn’t work out. I then just figured I’d enjoy the ride. I ended up finishing 10th in open men, which was really surprising. But Subby beat me. … on his single speed. I almost caught him, though, so there’s that — I might have ridden a little harder if I’d realized I was in the top 10, but then would also have looked around less and forgotten to appreciate the flowers. So no regrets. I’d definitely consider doing this again. I won’t recommend anyone do it on small tires, though. There’s no upside IMO (there’s very little pavement) — and lots of downside.

Awesome race!

Yeah, I’m definitely going to do this again next year (the epic/long route @creadinger). I kept leapfrogging with a guy the second half of the race, and looking at his ride on Strava, he was running 28s at 95psi on a road bike. The deep gravel sections definitely slowed him down, although he still finished pretty fast (under 5 hours). I also liked the section on 33, although I wasn’t really expecting to be on a real road with cars. Smooth pavement provided a nice respite from the gravel.

[josh]

Realized if I’m going to talk shit, I should back it up.

Potomac Freeway with no cars #dangerpanda
[ATTACH=CONFIG]18117[/ATTACH]

[josh]

Or perhaps the Pancake Liberation Front?

[josh]

@TwoWheelsDC 179108 wrote:

Last year, it rained the night before, but even with that the gravel was not bad and mostly solid and smooth. Given your skills and setup, you could be okay. There was one downhill section toward the beginning though, that my G-Ones really struggled with….it’s basically a fast descent on wet grass where the soil is soft and muddy, and if you’re toward the back, it’ll be super rutted from the front riders. Slicks would be very sketchy.

Can now confirm. I think it rained briefly on Friday during the day, but was generally pretty dry. I still wiped out. I was using fairly-worn 34c WTB Exposures (not the Compass tires I was thinking of using), but I think going slower probably would’ve been a better solution.

[josh]

Anyone driving out there with free space for a dude and his bike?

[josh]

Looks like it’ll be around 95 degrees F this evening, contemplating swim trunks.

[josh]

@Judd 179262 wrote:

Free tandem rides for everyone in order of their foxiness. LeprosyStudyGroup gets first ride.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So descending order? Fingers crossed I’m not too far down the list.

Oh I was afraid I wouldn’t meet the height requirements unless you help me with some superfluous material above the neck

Who’s to say the superfluous bits are above the neck? Thinking I’ll ask the lumberjack to lop off a couple inches from the bottom, around the ankles. Get me some SPDs connected straight to the bone.

[josh]

I’ll be there.

@Steve O 179205 wrote:

If you are uncomfortable and concerned about getting home afterward, we will make sure that everyone has an escort or riding partner who would like one.

There are some segments I want to PR on, one leadout train to go please.

[josh]

Neither eyeball visible. Sad!

[josh]

@hozn 179100 wrote:

I’m doing it this year (finally!).

For logistical reasons I’m contemplating of doing it on my road bike (28mm tires) — terrible idea?

I assume you’ve seen this, but the organizers say

Road bikes are not ideal, but if that is all you have, we recommend tough 28mm tires, but it’s going to be squirrely in some sections.

The Compass Barlow Pass tires I ordered came in yesterday, so I’m finally getting around to getting the wheels I bought off you ready to use. Thinking that’s the setup I’ll probably use for this.

[josh]

@Sunyata 179087 wrote:

So… If I recall correctly, Judd and Birru owe me a gravel race this year… I have already talked Reji into doing it (as long as she is free that weekend) with me. I hear Josh is doing it as well.

Come to WV and race (or even just ride) with me! I promise you it will be fun!

I’m excited! Going to be busy this weekend, but I’m going to try to get in a long gravel ride somewhere out in Loudoun with a fair amount of climbing on July 1st. Anyone, let me know if you’re interested in joining.

[josh]

I’ll get there around 5:20 or so.

[josh]

@accordioneur 178979 wrote:

Please double-check date.

Friday, June 29th?

[josh]

I used the pump on the way back from WTFCC this morning. I was too lazy to carry a pump this morning and my front tire started to feel a little sketchy on turns, but then I remembered this was along my route. Thanks!

[Author]

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