Welcome to the bike course preview! We thought it would be a little easier to convey the information in a blog post rather than on Facebook as there is a decent amount of information to convey.
The Shorty
- Distance: 14 miles
- Surface Conditions: Mix of pavement and gravel roads.
- Elevation Gain: 383 ft (according to Strava)
- Route: Strava File
- % Gravel/Pavement: 80%/20%
- Tire Recommendation: Minimum of 28mm tires. This will vary based on rider ability but 32s would be better for most of us. Let’s face it, us triathletes aren’t exactly known for our bike handling skills!
- The Gravel: We rode the course 9/10/21 and conditions were about perfect (see images below). The video was taken fall of last year so the colors might not be as pretty, but the gravel will still be gravel.
The Long One
This is a tough course, let’s get that out of the way at the beginning. We designed this route to feature seasonal/Jeep roads along with some of the most beautiful gravel roads that Barry County has to offer. Fortunately for us, those roads also feature lots of hills! The route has been modified slightly from the initial release by removing a small section of Sager Rd as we weren’t sure if an ambulance could get through and athlete safety is always our number one concern as race directors. Be sure to check out the new route on Strava (link below).
The first and last 7 or so miles will be the same as The Shorty (see above) but the real fun will start around mile 11 (Sager Road). This is what makes a race like this fun. Do you go with wider tires to be faster through this approximately 2 mile section or do you try to go with skinnier tires and make up any lost time on the other 29 miles?
- Distance: 31.9 miles
- Elevation Gain: 1902 ft (according to Strava)
- Route: Strava File
- Surface Conditions: Mix of pavement, gravel roads, and seasonal/Jeep roads.
- % Gravel/Pavement/Seasonal: 82%/13%/5%
- Tire Recommendation: Minimum of 28mm tires but we STRONGLY encourage a minimum of 32 on this course, with 40+ being even better due to Sager Road.
- The Gravel: We rode the course 9/10/21 and conditions were about perfect (see images from The Shorty section). We took a video of the Sager Rd section of the course and have included it below. I apologize for the shaky camera work, but it’s a tough section of road to drive one handed while holding a camera.
