Spring is coming to many places, and this weekend was filled with wonderful rides. Two of them were captured on video, and they inspire me as I plan upcoming outings on my bike. One is from the Rasputitsa Gravel Road Race in Vermont, the other from the Flèche Northwest. Both rides are challenges, but in very different ways. The Rasputitsa is all about speed, whereas the Flèche is about endurance. Both favor teamwork and put friendship above competition.
In the Rasputitsa Gravel Road Race, Bicycle Quarterly reader Matt Surch was in a breakaway of four riders. In the video, you see them working smoothly on the gravel as they race to the finish. The top photo shows Ansel Dickey (left) as he made his winning attack. Matt Surch came second in this race, riding his Compass Bon Jon Pass 700C x 35 mm tires.
Matt’s teammate Iain Radford came seventh. Iain reported: “The Bon Jon’s allowed me to roll faster with less effort compared to everyone else in the chase group. I was able to let gaps go on the climbs to save effort and easily get back on the group using the descents.” (And unlike sponsored pros, these guys say this even though they paid for their Compass tires with their own money.)
Before departing for the Flèche, Hahn Rossman packed his bike for Rinko. The team started their ride in Olympia, but there weren’t enough bike spots for the entire team on the Talgo train. Hahn was glad that he could just carry on his bike after putting it into its Rinko bag. Theo took the time-lapse video. Even in real time, the entire process took less than 10 minutes.
The team had a great ride, enjoying a challenging course over the gravel roads of the Willapa Hills. And the sunrise after riding through the night was gorgeous!
Enjoy the videos!
Further reading:
Photo credits:
- Kingdom Trails: Rasputitsa photo
- Peter Vollers (Vermont Overland): Rasputitsa video
- Theo Elliot: Rinko video
- Hahn Rossman: Sunrise
