The Gravel Conspiracy

2010 Gentlemens Agreement: Platte

2010-05-28T10:48:00.000-07:00

Whats That?
You all have someone in your family that golfs (you just don't talk about them). Well, on any given Saturday morning a group of guys get together to golf and everybody in the group throws down 20 bucks. The Golf Pro puts the money in an envelope and holds on to it during the round. At the end of the round the winner get the money.

When: Monday, May 31st at 6-6:45 pm to register, roll out at 7 pm sharp
Where: The trails at Platte River State Park. We will meet down at the bridge.

The details:
This is a no frills get together. You are on your own. This is not sanctioned, insured or otherwise approved of by anyone (other than Big Al). I will not be responsible for your well being. Please don't do anything foolish, rash, or let Gersib goad you into doing anything beyond what you are capable of.
Here is how it works:
You show up, hand me a $5 bill that goes in the pot, I write down your name. Ride two laps as fast as you can (I will mark the course before hand). Top 4 get paid out (40%, 30%, 20%, 10%) of the total pot. Thats right 100% payout!

Not into riding for money?
Six Pack racing. Bring a six pack. set it down at the start/finish. Ride two laps as fast as you can. The sooner you finish two laps the sooner you get to make your own mix and match six pack.
Note: I am not sure of beverage laws in NE state parks so exercise some discretion.

Scoring and time keeping will be done be myself and my associate.

All results are final.
You must wear a helmet.
No whining.
Cheaters will be shot.
Fixies race for free!

Questions? gravelconspiracy@gmail.com

A Gentlemens Race: Unsupported and Unsanctioned

2009-06-28T19:20:00.000-07:00

You all have someone in your family that golfs (you just don't talk about them). Well, on any given Saturday morning a group of guys get together to golf and everybody in the group throws down 20 bucks. The Golf Pro puts the money in an envelope and holds on to it during the round. At the end of the round the winner get the money(and is usually required to buy everyone a drink).

The Format: Time Trial ~8k loop
Locale: River Trails in Manhattan (google map: hofman lane, 66502)
When: Saturday July 11th, 2009
Registration is at 6:30 pm with the first contestant rolling out from the dirt jumps at 7 sharp.
Five dollars gets you a start time.
You can race any class you want, but only one pays, OPEN.
1st gets 50% of the pot, 2nd gets 35%, and 3rd gets 15%. everyone else gets a good time.
Cheaters will be shot.
Fixies race for free!
Results!
Heres how they finished.

Tanner marshall 14.37
Aaron Apel 15.07
John "i am not a role model" Waller 15.13
Tyler Whetstone 15.20 (fixie)
Josh Patterson 15.21
Josh Stamper 15.26
Clint Mcallister 16.05
Jay Schmitz 16.12
Rich Shurtz 16.25
Ryan Logan 18.28
Will Breitkreutz 18.31
Dustan Ridder 23.45
Gillian Armstrong 24.08

Platte Roubaix

2009-06-10T10:52:00.000-07:00

Joe Fox has cooked up some gravel loving good times for July 18th.
More Details are forthcoming.

Fox Hole 100

2009-06-02T05:55:00.000-07:00

Czech it out

Once again the Nebraskans have cooked up a good time.

Quick results

2009-05-16T18:18:00.000-07:00

In a moment of hesitation...... involving a bovine, Mark Smelser was able to sneak away from, and hold off, for 70 miles!, the hard charging Corey Godfrey and Dan Hughes. Troy Krause rounded out the top 4. Matt Wills won the SS division. James Stamper (no relation) walked away with a custom fitting session with Carmichael Training Systems with a hand of two pair, and Craig Schimdt won a hour massage at lotus health works with two aces!
Great time and fellowship were had by all.
My apologies for the marginal directions. Several folks got to spent some quality time in a bar in Alta Vista, waiting for transportation.
Glad that you guys got to meet bearded Tom.
More details and a better synopsis later once I unload everything and and collect myself.
Big Shout out to our gracious sponsors, Sunflower Outdoors, CTS, Cycle City, Big Poppies, City Billy Cycles ( the shirts were a huge hit!), Spilker Ales, Chamois Butter and Lotus Health Works.
Many thanks to all the participants that made this event happen, and to my lovely and gracious wife who does not smother me in sleep for hosting events like this, and dispenses goo and pizza with the utmost grace and panache.
Cheers
Joshua

The details and course info and general paranoia

2009-05-13T08:15:00.000-07:00

Looks like the cows are up to somethin, and it don't look good.

True dat!

See Here for a google document which includes a link to the updated course map and the cue sheet.
Familiarize yourself with the course several times by reading the cue sheet and looking at the map.
You must print off your own copy of the map and cue sheet!
I will not have any on the day of the event, if you forget one you better start making friends real quick.

When: 9am Saturday May 16th 2009
Where:We will be leaving the gravel lot on the corner of Wreath Ave. and Robinson Dr. on the western side of Cico Park in Manhattan, KS.
You can leave you cars in the gravel lot there.

I rode the course on Saturday and it took me about 7 hours of saddle time, rolling on a 42:18 gearing. All road were in good shape and assuming we do not receive rainfall of biblical proportions in the next few days the roads should be in great shape.

I will make sure that the course is marked with spray paint on the gravel sections. I will not paint paved roads so use those maps!
Let me know if you have any questions. I will not get back to you until after 11 am tomorrow since I am preparing for 900 level plant physiology final.
If its really important you can call my Cell (by really important I mean you are gonna tell me that you are going to donate a ton of money, provide podium girls, or provide me with a credit card with which to underwrite this event)
336-469-1526 otherwise just shooot me an email :-)
Looking forward to seeing you crusty faces.
Cheers
Joshua

DK 200 Blog

2009-05-08T09:06:00.000-07:00

Joel Sent me this.
Looks like they will be updating in the next few weeks with DK updates.
I scouted the south half of the course on Tuesday, and all of these roads are in tip top shape.
Doing the northern half recon on Saturday. This will determine what B roads are used.
Big shout out to MG and Matt Wills on their finish of Trans Iowa!
See yall soon!

Registration is FULL**

2009-01-30T07:02:00.000-08:00

** but that doesn't mean you can't buy your way in.
contact me for details.
gravelconspiracy@gmail.com
Also If I do not have your shirt size make sure that you get it to me!
If you have a significant other (for some of you, your others really are more significant), that are looking for something to do, I would love some volunteers to help out with the aid stations. Just have them get in touch with me.

Achtung! Thats "attention" in German

2009-01-27T07:50:00.000-08:00

There are only 5 Spots left.....you better get on it.
We leave From Cico Park at 9 am on May 16, 2009.
That should give anyone traveling plenty of time to roll in and arrive fully caffinated.
There will be a neutral start rolling out behind one of our local riders on the linear trail at about 15 mph for about 5 miles. That will spit you out onto Hwy 24, and then you can drop the hammer.

There have been some inquiries about what needs to be carried by each individual during our the Gravel Conspiracy race, and below is a list of what needs to be carried by each individual.

You must have:
• A helmet (and wear it)
• 2 extra tubes and a patch kit
• A multitool (and the capacity to make it do your bidding)
• A cellphone (and someone to call if things go awry)
• The ability to carry at least 40 oz of liquid on your bike or person
• Chamois Butter or whatever you choose to use to keep “monkey butt” at bay will make your experience much more enjoyable.
• A fully functioning bike
• Perseverance

There have also been some questions as to what type of bike is best suited for this endeavor. My response is generally a question of how much you are willing to suffer to go fast. Cyclocross bikes are the steed of choice if you want to go fast and ride in the drops, but mountain bikes will be infinitely more comfortable for the longer haul. If you are gonna roll a cross bike I recommend tires that are at least 35c in width and running at least 60 psi in them. Spring is the time for counties to start grading gravel roads so there may be a lot of large loose gravel under wheel. Skinny, underinflated tires do not like large, loose gravel! You should also expect to reach speeds of up to 40 mph coming down some of the the hills, so make sure and spread out if you are riding in a group.

Ipods: We got no problems with you rocking some tunes, but please be aware of your surroundings.

Dingos: They are ever present, most of them just want to be your friend, but be prepared to throw down if you encounter a truly cantankerous canine.

Crusty Old Ranchers: they travel at a high rate of speed, and you will see the cloud of dust from a mile away. They however will not see you until they are less than 100 yards away. Pick the upwind side of the road and stick to it as soon as you see the dust cloud. If you are riding with a group make sure that you communicate this to your compatriots. Smile and wave at everyone you see. They just might give you a ride one day.

Gas Stations: You will have access to 2 such oases around the halfway point in Wamego and in McFarland. There is also a Sonic on the route in Wamego in case you just have to have a Cherry Lime-Ade. But the food there is neither fast nor particularly good in my gastronomic opinion.

You will have to sign a waiver that pretty much says you are on your own and that WE (the royal we) and our sponsors are in no way responsible for anything that should happen to you during this event. There is no insurance, Sag, or anything other than food, beverages and gravel waiting for you out there....ok and some Chamois Butter.

Sponsorship Love

2009-01-20T10:50:00.000-08:00

Update
Oh, and guess you else is showing showing some gravel love?

Thats right CTS has donated a Custom Bike Fitting Session worth $300.
And the boys at City Billy Cycle are gonna make sure that you are all rolling in the finest style. Prepare to send me some shirt sizes.

Through some arm twisting and some totally unsolicited offers it look like we are gonna have some cool stuff for you guys. So to help distribute this loot we are gonna have a "poker ride" component. At each of the two aid stations you will get to draw 2 cards, and you get to draw a final card at the finish line. The best hand wins.....something
So far our friends at Paceline Products have jumped on board with enough Chamois Butter to keep us in the saddle all day.

The fellas on our northern Border have also been throwin around some fun ideas.

Turns out that we will not be able to finish the race at the LAB since it is graduation weekend here in Manhappenin and they are gonna be slammed, so we will probably just cookout. we'll see what happens.

The Roster

2009-01-08T13:33:00.000-08:00

1/14/09 Update: Registration is half full and am still getting a steady stream of entrants. I am currently with the Fam in Idaho, plotting planning and conniving on how I might acquire gainful employment next year. Some of yall have expressed interest in sponsoring the event, I will be in touch with you each individually in the near future regarding how we can put on the best possible event. Thanks for your support of grassroots racing!
Can be found Here
Is in Google Docs which I just learned how to use so bear with me.

If all photos were of gravel roads and floppy eared dogs the world would be a better place

The paranoia begins on May 16, 2008

2009-01-06T06:40:00.000-08:00

Is your daily calcium intake met by the limestone dust that accumulates on your water bottles?
Is your idea of fun hurtling down a gravel road at 35 MPH?
Do the people at Casey's General Stores know you by name?
Does your family stare at the ground and softly talk about your "gravel problem"?
If so we have got something for you!
In the spirit of the PCL, the Dirty Kanza, Trans Iowa, and "I hate Disco Nite" at Wrigley Field
........the Gravel Conspiracy present a gravel ride in the northern flinthills just in time for you to get in that last long ride before the Chase County madness that is the Dirty Kanza 200.

The Low Down:
Its FREE. If that does not get you here nothing will.

It will be a little over 100 miles of flint hills chert-limestone and B-roads.

We will have aid stations with the kind of food that we think that you would want in the midst of a long ride (pizza, PBJ, fruit, pretzels, assorted beverages) with donations being accepted to off set these costs and benefit the K-State Cycling program.

The tentative route can be found here

This ride is all about fun, fellowship, and making sure that you have got it together for the other longer rides that we hold so dear to our hearts. Bear in mind that you are on your own, and we will not come get you.

Donde?
We will Start the race/ride from Cico Park in Manhattan, KS, leave the town via the linear trail.
The course will be "painted" once the route is finalized.
Hopefully we will finish the Race at the LAB for some good eats as its only about 400 yards from where you left your vehicle at the start.

So How does one go about signing up for this soiree?
You need to shoot me an email with your name, age, and home town.
Field size will be limited to 50 so I can simplify the logistics.

If you are interested in helping sponsor this event with product, dinero, bandwidth or your time give me a shout @
gravelconspiracy@gmail.com