Unbound Gravel 2022 Recap Part 2

This post covers my Unbound Gravel 2022 ride experience and thoughts on completing it! This blog does contain affiliate links - when you make a purchase using my link, I receive a very small commission, allowing me to continue to do this work. Thank you for your support.

104 miles. That is a really long way. Heck, I don’t even like to drive that far, let alone think about riding it. So I’m not lying when I say I thought about changing my registration multiple times from the 100 mile to the 50 mile distance.

I really didn’t think I could do it.

Seriously, the 50 mile distance in 2021 was probably the hardest ride I’ve ever done. The heat, chunky gravel, heavy bike - it was an incredibly challenging ride and I left saying I’d never do the 100.

So why did I choose Unbound Gravel to be my first century? And why did I add the pressure of a film crew documenting my experience? Who knows…but now that it’s over, holy cow was that fun. It’s all a bit of a blur honestly - those miles ticked by pretty quickly once I was on the course. Here’s how it all went down…

I got to the start line at 6:30 to meet up with the camera crew. They mounted a GoPro on my handlebars, launched a drone into the air to document the start, and followed me to the start line. I said hi to some of my friends at the pointy end of the race and found my place near the back of the corral. Following the advice of a few folks, I lined up with the 10 hour pace group, knowing my time would likely be a little bit slower than that, but that I needed to push myself a bit, and starting with faster folks might help.

Fresh and clean at the start line

The start was great - a neutral, slightly downhill paved start meant I was rolling comfortably at 17-18 mph. I remember looking down at my bike computer at mile .5 and jokingly calling out “Hey! Only 99 1/2 miles left to go!!” It did not go over well - these folks were serious and did not find it funny. I thought it was hilarious.

Around mile 3, the pavement ended and the gravel adventure began. The first few miles of any gravel event for me is all about finding my groove and getting comfortable. I settled into an 11mph pace and pretty quickly found myself all alone on the course.

I remember looking around and thinking “What the heck? I’m going at a decent speed… am I really that slow?”

Turns out, yes, I really am that slow.

The miles ticked by pretty quickly throughout the morning, with sprinkles of rain keeping me cool and feeling fresh. Was this really going to be this easy?

At mile 17 my right cleat started feeling funny. It was super loose - I could literally rotate my entire shoe around the cleat. Not good. (Prior to Unbound, I ordered a new pair of the Shimano RX8 Gravel shoes from CompetitiveCyclist.com (somehow I lost one in the move.) While I would never recommend new shoes for a long ride, these RX8 fit nearly perfectly and I wasn’t worried about breaking them in.)

Getting super annoyed with my cleat situation, I decided to pull over and see what was up. I quickly realized that I had lost a bolt on my cleats and the remaining bolt was hardly holding the cleat onto the shoe, and definitely not keeping my foot on the pedal!

My first attempt at fixing it was to just re-tighten the one remaining bolt. This worked for about a mile. Feeling frustrated but hopefully, I stopped again decided to MacGyver a solution. I grabbed a spare bolt from my fork, screwed it into my cleat and hopped back on the bike.

Normally, I would take the time to fix an issue like this fully, but I was running up agains the clock. To make the cutoff time, I had to make it to mile 64 by 1:30pm, which meant averaging 10 mph. Every time I stopped I was eating precious minutes.

Mounting my bike again with my newly improvised shoe situation, I immediately realized that my solution would not work at all. Not only had I not fixed the issue, but I ‘d made it worse. Now, my foot was literally resting on top of my pedals with no ability to clip in.

I settled back into a rhythm, determined to make up some time. The first half of the course was a pretty gradual climb into the Flint Hills. One thing I love about Kansas is that none of the climbs are sustained. It’s not like Washington where you start climbing and twenty minutes later you’re still climbing the same damn hill.

Kansas Hills

Not out here. All of the climbs were short, sometimes punchy climbs, but overall very very doable. There were two or three very short sections of 14 to 15% incline that I walked up, but I’m going to call that strategy. With a 1x11 drivetrain, I don’t have the lowest climbing gears, so walking is simply more efficient for me.

With my right foot not attached to the pedals, the ride got a little bit trickier, especially on some water crossings and rough downhills. I hit the high point of the course at mile 43 right as a giant thunderstorm let loose - the temperature dropped, massive wind and rain, thunder and lightning. I legitimately thought it was going to be a reenactment of the scene from Twister where the cow goes flying. It was intense.

The sky just before it opened up.

Flying down the hills into the midway check point, I had my first opportunity of the day to share someone’s wheel. Two pro women caught me (they had hit some ridiculous mechanical issues) and invited me to ride with them on the descent.

We were flying. We hit 29 miles per hour, an absolute god send for me as I was still rushing to beat the 1:30pm time cutoff. As the minutes ticked down to 1:30 the miles went by slower than ever. It was looking increasingly likely that I wouldn’t make the time cutoff.

I vacillated between excitement that I was doing the thing, anxiety that I had worked this hard and still missed the cutoff, and pride that I was doing the dang thing! I used every last bit of juice I had in the tank to pedal my heart out into the check point in Madison, buoyed by the crowds cheering for me.

Hanging with Ellen Noble, one of my cycling heroes during my Shakedown ride on Friday

By some stroke of magic, I rolled across the timing chip at 1:30, literally with no time to spare. As I rolled into my support crew who had clean socks and shoes, food, more water, and a big camera in my face, the men’s leaders on the 200 mile course rolled in right behind me.

After I made the time cut-off, all stress I had melted away. All I had to do now was ride another 40 miles to the finish - but I could take as much time as I wanted. My focus shifted from beating the clock to having fun, and I am so grateful I made this mental switch, because after the mid-way point, things got absolutely ridiculous on course.

You’ve probably seen the photos of riders and their bikes caked in mud. The massive thunderstorm I had ridden through earlier did an excellent job of turning the dirt roads into pure peanut butter mud. I did my best to use my cyclocross skills and ride as much of the mud section as possible, but eventually it became too thick and I had to walk.

The MUD

This one mile section took nearly an hour to get through. I carried my bike. I shuffled along with my bike. At one point, I tried to walk in the grass above the mud, only to slip and literally slide five feet down the muddy embankment. Thankfully, none of these falls caused any injuries - but every time I hit the ground, I got more and more covered in mud. All I could do was laugh at the absurdity of the situation.

At this point, I was so grateful to not actually be racing and just trying to make it to the end. Having to get through this section quickly would have been hell. I watched the women’s leader, Sofia Gomez Villafane fly by me and dang, she is a talented rider.

Everything is fine. Zero problems on this ride. :)

Towards the end of the muddy section there was thankfully a creek crossing perfect to wash our bikes in. I wish I had a photo of this section - it was mayhem. With the thunderstorm, the creek was flowing super fast and if you weren’t careful, you’d get swept downstream.

While I was washing my bike, fellow Pearl Izumi athlete Hannah Shell and my old friend turned Pro Heidi Franz came through, so I was able to help both of them was their bikes. They were in a huge hurry, so it was fun to be able to offer some encouragement and make their day a little smoother. That’s one of the things I love about gravel - we’re all out on the same course and sometimes you get lucky enough to ride next to the pros.

Hey, that’s not supposed to look like that!

With my bike relatively clean (or at least ridable), I settled in for the last 30 miles. Still feeling pretty dang good, my average pace actually increased on the 2nd half of the day to about 12 mph. This part of the day was super fun, as pacelines of fast folks finishing the 200 mile distance were continually passing me. Normally, I would never call getting passed fun, but they were all so supportive. So many cheers of “Good Job” and “YEAH!!! MARLEY!!!!” as they flew past me. I really felt like I belonged and that this was my community.

And then my shoe troubles came back to haunt me.

I swapped socks and shoes at the midway point which felt absolutely amazing - until the muddy section. Not surprisingly, my cleats became super jammed up with mud, making clipping in and out of my pedals incredibly hard. It got so bad I actually couldn’t unclip either shoe, forcing a few slow motion falls when I needed to stop. Eventually, I figured out that I could loosen my shoes, letting me pull my foot out of my shoe when I needed to stop. Ridiculous.

The last 15 miles were a blur. I was riding high on the success of my day so far and still feeling great. I was doing an excellent job continually fueling myself and staying hydrated - besides my shoe woes, everything was going better than expected!

As we got closer to town there were a few groups of spectators on the side of the road, offering water, beer and snacks. I gratefully grabbed a Miller Lite and slow rolled a mile, savoring the crisp coolness of the brew. At mile 100, I let out a huge cheer…and realized I still had 4 more miles to go but at this point, barring something absolutely catastrophic, I was actually going to finish!

So gross.

The last push uphill on the Emporia State University campus nearly killed me, but with throngs of cheering crowds on either side, there was no way I wasn’t going to give it my all. Slowly climbing this hill, I put everything I had into each pedal stroke. I was rewarded at the top with a shot of fireball, yet again putting to use my cyclocross skills with a clean handup. I took the shot, gagging and regretting my decision and was off for the last half mile to the finish.

The finish line chute was like nothing I had experienced before - crowds of people lining the street for 5 blocks before the finish line, cheering and chanting. I pulled my foot out of my shoe again (I’d have to stop soon) and rode the last 300 yards with my foot resting on top of my shoe. At this point, all I wanted to do was finish.

Pure joy at the finish

As I crossed the finish line, a volunteer handed me an ice cold towel from Chamois Butt’r and I collapsed into a puddle of mud, tears, and elation that I had actually done it. I finished Unbound Gravel 100, making it my very first century ride!

I am so grateful to the team in Emporia who puts on this event, to all my sponsors for their support, and everyone who helped me get here. I’m also super grateful to Justin Balog and Freddy Winters who were a super fun film crew to work with and were an excellent support team. I can’t wait to see what they produce - hopefully a gem!

In the end , I finished in 12 hours, 44 minutes. My heart rate averaged 145 bpm, which is Zone 3 for me. Overall, it was a hard ride, but not harder than so many other things I’ve done in my life. I’m so excited to do it again - maybe next time with less mud.

Well, I didn’t win, but I’m pretty dang proud of this.

Unbound Gravel 2022 Recap part 1

This blog covers my training, prep and bike setup. Next up will be the ride experience and thoughts on completing it!  This blog does contain affiliate links - when you make a purchase using my link, I receive a very small commission, allowing me to continue to do this work. Thank you for your support.

Well, I did it. I rode my first century. 100 miles. Technically 103 miles. And I honestly can’t wait to do it again. 

Absolutely elated at crossing the finish line

I’m shocked that I’m saying those words - but the amount of fun I had riding Unbound Gravel 2022 should be illegal. Sure, I worked incredibly hard and thought about quitting once or twice, but overall, 10/10 day and can’t wait to sign up for my next one. Thankfully, the whole experience was documented by a film crew (more on that later), so we’ll all get to relive it together at some point down the road.

I’m sitting in a laundromat in Saratoga, Wyoming washing my incredibly disgusting (and brand new) All Bodies on Bikes kit as I write this. While I should’ve done it right away (along with washing my bike…which still sits on the back of my car caked in mud), this tiny little town in the middle of nowhere Wyoming is the first chance I’ve had.

But I’m getting ahead of myself…why in the hell did I sign up for a century? If you remember, last year I rode 50 miles at Unbound (link to post) and swore I wasn’t going to do the 100. The 50 is touted as a stepping stone ride for the 100 and to be honest, I kind of hate that messaging. 50 miles is itself an accomplishment and anyone who does it should be damn proud of themselves. Shoot, every ride should be celebrated - not just rides of stupid long distances. 

Anyway, something got into me when I was signing up and I clicked the button for the 100. I think it might’ve been the same impulse that bought a plane ticket to Greece for a solo trip a few years ago - I thought I’d outgrown it, but clearly not…. 

But in all seriousness, I’ve been riding more than ever this year and figured “If not this year, when else?” I almost definitely told all my sponsors that Unbound Gravel 100 was on my list of events for the year…so I couldn’t exactly back out without a very good reason.

Training and Prep

I had grand plans to train. My ass got handed to me pretty hard last year and I didn’t want to show up unprepared this year, especially doing double the distance. Thankfully, Arkansas has tons of amazing gravel routes right out my front door and I got out on them…a little bit.

In the months leading to Unbound, my goal was basically to spend as much time in the saddle as possible, especially in the heat and humidity. I think I went on four outdoor training rides - none of which was longer than 30 miles. I also spent a lot of time on the trainer and I’m so grateful for those long boring miles. After hours riding indoors, the never-ending fields of Kansas were a treat! Turns out moving across the country, keeping a company running (and growing), and keeping two senior dogs alive and happy takes up a lot of time.

So even though I didn’t train as much as I wanted, my riding felt strong, and what I lacked in bike time, I made up for in both mental prep and nutrition prep. A couple of weeks ago I detailed my nutrition plan and I’m happy to report that IT WORKED!! I ate and drank consistently throughout the day. I never felt like I was running out of energy and even though I ran out of water with 10 miles to go to the support station, I still felt pretty dang good!

Here’s what I ended up taking with me on the bike:

• 2 Liters of Water (in an Apidura Hydration pack)

• 6 GU Energy Gels

• A ziplock bag of trail mix with peanuts, raisins, m&m’s (regular and peanut butter), Floyd’s of Leadville CBD gummies, and gummy bears

• 2 Peanut Butter & Jelly Rice Cakes (from the Skratch Labs Cookbook)

• 4 packs of GU Shot Blocks

• 22 oz Skratch SuperFue

The Bike

I rode my Cannondale Topstone 4 - an aluminum alloy bike with carbon fork and was overall super happy with it. I have it set up with a 1x11 drivetrain with Shimano GRX parts. For tires I went with the Panaracer GravelKing SK in 700x43 width.

Shimano and Cycling Tips did a fun little feature on my bike - and YouTuber Francis Cade gave  some love too!! 

Even with all the crazy mud, water crossings, and sharp gravel, I somehow escaped Unbound with zero mechanical issues (on my bike.) I had all sorts of troubles with my shoes/cleats, but more on that later. I don’t want to jinx myself but that bike ran like butter and was absolutely perfect for this ride.

I’m so grateful for Cannondale for sponsoring me, but even more so for giving me their entry-level gravel bike to ride. I never quite feel right riding a $10k bike - it’s not a realistic price point for most of my audience,  so having a great experience on a $1500 retail bike feels much more approachable. Even better, the Topstone has a 333lb weight limit, which for a super lightweight bike is pretty dang awesome!

Other Equipment

There were a few other key pieces of equipment that were pretty instrumental in having a successful day.

The first was my hydration pack from Apidura. I have the 2 liter vest in a Large/XL which has pretty decent additional carry capacity in 2 zippered compartments and pockets on the straps. I carried plain water in the vest, along with some extra snacks, ibuprofen, my inhaler, and a small first aid kit. 

On my bike I had 3 cargo storage options - The Revelate Feedbag, Apidura Top Tube bag, and a PRO Bike Gear seat bag. Both the Revelate bag and Apidura bag were full of snacks (easy to access, one handed feeding) while the PRO bag had my repair kit, spare tube and multi-tool.

Thankfully I didn’t need to use any of it, but I also carried a hand-pump, tire levers, Dynaplug repair kit, and sunscreen. (Full disclosure - I should’ve used the sunscreen, but ended up too caked in mud for it to be effective. Turns out, mud is a decent sunscreen and I didn’t get burnt!)

For technology, I used the WAHOO ELMNT ROAM bike computer which gave me all the info I needed on the route, speed, and climbing. Perhaps most crucially, I set up custom alerts to remind me to EAT, DRINK, and HAVE A GOOD TIME, each popping up every half hour. Being reminded to HAVE A GOOD TIME while in the middle of a sufferfest of mud definitely provided a good chuckle and kept my spirits up. Sometimes it’s good to be reminded that I chose to do this and this is fun! :) 

For most of the day, I also had my cell phone on my handlebars, secured with the Peak Designs universal magnetic phone mount. I’ve seriously never trusted any phone holders until this one - I don’t know what kind of magic they’re using, but my phone has never come close to falling off - even on crazy descents, water crossings, and mud pits. It’s legit. 

Ok…that was a lot. More coming soon, I promise. Still processing feelings.

Fueling for the Long Haul - How I'm Prepping for Unbound Gravel

This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase using one of the links below, I’ll receive a small commission (at no cost to you.) Your support helps me continue to do this work.

In less than two weeks, I’ll be taking on my first century ride. For anyone not familiar with that term, that’s 100 miles all in one ride. To make it even more fun, the ride will be all on gravel. In June. In Kansas. Unbound Gravel 2022 here I come!

Last year I rode the 50 mile fun ride and swore I wouldn’t do the 100 this year. I’m not sure what bug got into my brain when I was signing up, but I’m definitely on the Start List for the 100 mile. Crap.

My goals for this ride are pretty simple:

• Have Fun & Enjoy the Ride

• Hydrate Properly

• Eat Eat Eat

• Finish the Ride. Time doesn’t matter. Just Ride.

With those relatively straight forward goals in mind, my focus has been on my event day nutrition. Last year I had no idea what to expect and went to the start line with water and four peanut butter & jelly sandwiches. I quickly learned that my plan sucked - with the oppressive heat I had a hard time choking down those sandwiches. I ended up relying way too heavily on the rest stop gels, pickles, and chips. I’m determined not to make that mistake again.

I know that I like to eat real food while riding - gels are great for a quick boost, but I’m looking at 12+ hours on the bike - I’m going to need more calories than that. To figure I used The Feed Zone Portables Cookbook from @skratchlabs to come up with my plan - 3000 calories, 64 oz of fluid, and a goal to eat at least every 30 mins. ⁠

I’ll be taking Curry Chicken ricecakes, PB&J rice cakes, Skratch Anytime bars, and Skratch Superfuel as my primary nutrition. I’ll also have M&M’s, gels, and pickles, along with 2 liters of water on my back.⁠ I’ll have another bottle with Skratch Hydration to make sure I’ve got the electrolytes going too!

⁠Making this food was fun - eating it is going to be even more fun. Wish me luck on this endeavor!!

p.s. Stock up on your nutrition needs with CompetitiveCyclist.com - they’re one of my primary sponsors and I’m so grateful for their support. Use the code MARLEYB15 for 15% off your first purchase, some exclusions apply.⁠

Unbound Gravel - The World's Largest Gravel Event Ride Report

Disclosure: Some of the links below may be affiliate links, meaning if you click through and make a purchase, I earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

I’m a Yes person. When given the opportunity to do something new, I try and always say yes (unless it involves olives - then it’s a hard no.) Life is way too short and fleeting to not experience every single thing I can. Which is how I found myself in Kansas last week riding 50 miles of gravel at the Garmin Unbound Gravel event with absolutely zero idea how big of a deal it was. 

Unbound Gravel is the world’s largest gravel race and event, taking place in tiny Emporia, Kansas and drawing over 4,000 cyclists from across the globe. After a name change, skipping the event for obvious reasons in 2020, and making a few logistical changes for COVID, this year’s event was good to go for June 4-6.

For most, Unbound Gravel is either a 100 or 200 mile race. Some super endurance athletes (like Lael Wilcox) challenge themselves with Unbound XL, nearly 357 miles of gravel all at one go. Y’all know me though- I don’t race and I don’t think I’ve ever ridden 100 miles at one time. (The closest I’ve ever gotten is 97 on bike tour and that was by accident.) Hell, I don’t even like to drive that far in one go. 

Thankfully for us ‘everyday folk’, Unbound also has two shorter distance options- 25 miles and 50 miles. Both of these are also “fun rides”, so no podiums and no racing. SIGN ME UP.

This is part 1 of my report, covering my prep, training & travel & my ride. Part 2 will be coming soon which will cover the rest of the event including the 100 & 200 Mile, the XL ride, and my time in Kansas City! 

Preparation, Training & Travel

To be fair, I didn’t prep much…. I didn’t intentionally not prepare a ton for Unbound. Life is just really super busy right now and I (accurately) assumed all the riding I’ve been doing this year would be adequate prep for the ride. 

The little that I did read about Unbound Gravel warned of sharp gravel in the Flint Hills, unrelenting hills, and wind. The only variable of those that I could really prep for was the sharp gravel. To do so, I outfitted my bike with new tires - the SimWorks SuperYummy tires with reinforced sidewalls which performed beautifully. I also carried 3 spare tubes and a patch kit which I didn’t need for my bike (but did get lots of use on other bikes. More on that later.)

As for training, by the time I found out I got an entry to the event, it was a little late to train. To be fair, I’ve been riding more this winter and spring than most years, so I felt pretty confident that 50 miles was easily doable, especially since I wouldn’t be racing.

My biggest anxiety was travel. I hadn’t flown since November 2019 - way before COVID. I’d also never flown with my own bike before, so there was a big learning curve there too! Thankfully, I have a hard shell Serfas bike case that a friend found at Goodwill for $19.99. Deal of the year, as these are typically hundreds of dollars. 

I watched many YouTube videos on how to pack a bike for travel and sure enough it was actually quite simple. Here’s my quick write-up on how to travel with your bike. 

The Event Itself

Thursday - Pre-Ride & Getting my Bearings 

I arrived in Emporia on Thursday morning about an hour before the pre-ride I was scheduled to lead took off. My first stop was Gravel City Roasters, where I got my first taste of what the the rest of the weekend would be like.

Hanging in front casually drinking coffee next to some very fancy bikes were a bunch of very fit (and cool) looking cyclists and an equal number of photographers. (This was a common theme throughout the weekend. Nearly anytime there was a pro or pro-team, there were accompanying photographers or camera people. On me too.) 

 I was recognized almost immediately and any nerves I had melted away, as we all introduced ourselves and folks told me how stoked they were for the inclusion efforts we were doing! 

At 10, I met up with Crystal Kovacs, a fellow Shimano ambassador, who helped me lead a Shimano All Bodies on Bikes Pre-Ride. I’m so grateful to the Unbound organizers for creating this intentional space for inclusivity and community building. It was honestly so cool - 80ish people showed up, including the TIBCO Race team, a former winner of the race, and two people who had never done a group ride before! (There was definitely some mutual fan-girling going on…)

Crystal led the ride for the first 8 miles while I was sweeper, staying in the back of the pack to make sure everyone stayed with the group. (This is one of my recommended best practices for group rides.) Midway through, we swapped and I had the opportunity to move to the front and lead the group for the rest of the ride. This felt surreal, as I’ve never gotten to ride with elite athletes and feel included - but that’s exactly what happened. I set the pace (about 14 mph - which felt fast to me) and we cruised through 17 miles of gorgeous Kansas farm roads in a nice preview of the upcoming rides. 

Around mile 13 I stopped the group at the top of a short climb to regroup and take a group photo and took the opportunity to explain All Bodies on Bikes. I also noticed at this point that my back wheel was about to come out of the dropouts!! This is why we do shakedown rides!! 

The rest of Thursday was spent getting mentally and physically ready for my big ride the next day. I checked into the dorms at Emporia State University and spent some time at the Expo, picking up my rider packet, chatting with all sorts of vendors, and meeting fans (which might be the strangest thing I’ve ever written.)  The wonderful mechanics on-site from Shimano also gave my bike a once-over, and it’s a good thing they did as apparently my derailleur was loose! 

I closed out Thursday night with dinner with the entire team from Shimano, who invited me to join them at their team dinner. It was so lovely to meet Nick and Meredith and Ryan - all the folks I’ve been working with for nearly a year on All Bodies on Bikes, but haven’t actually met in person! I’m so grateful to have them as a sponsor and getting to know the team casually over dinner was the perfect introduction. 

Friday - 52 Miles of Sun Baked Gravel

I slept surprisingly well considering how over-stimulated I was and woke up feeling excited to ride. Our lodging at Emporia State University included food, so I headed to the dorm cafeteria with my new bestie, Rachel, who I met on my pre-ride. I tried to keep my food intake consistent to what I eat while I’m at home before a big ride, so yogurt with granola, some scrambled eggs and a banana. 

The 25 and 50 mile rides didn’t start until 10:30am, so I had plenty of time to get ready. I stopped by the donut shop and picked up a dozen donuts for the Shimano tent (to say thanks), grabbed coffee (the aforementioned 4 shot iced latte - oops), and filled all my water bottles. I then waited for the start under the shade of the Shimano tent, as the temps were already in the high 80s. 

Around 10:15, I lined up at the start line and was surprised to see no less than 5 cameras on me. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by this now, but I still feel like a regular old person. Oh, I was also doing a takeover for the Pearl Izumi Instagram, so lots of things going on in my head besides just riding my bike.

At 10:30, we started, led by a neutral support vehicle for the first 2 miles. This meant that I was in the very front of the pack with the strongest riders, going nearly 18mph for the start of the ride. While exhilarating, this pace was way too fast for me and totally unsustainable, so as soon as we left town and hit the gravel, I was able to slow down and start riding at my own pace. 

Thanks to a combination of nerves, way too much caffeine, and starting out too fast, my heart rate was at 180 and I was struggling by mile 8. I’ve been riding with the Wahoo Tickr heart rate monitor since October and I’ve found it’s a really good way to keep an eye on my efforts and exertion level. I find that for long rides, I try and keep my heart rate around 130-140 which is comfortable for a long period time. 

I battled through mentally and rode until mile 10, where I found the first spot of shade on the side of the road. My plan was to turn on my headphones (one ear bud only), eat a quick snack, and get back on the road. Well, the universe had other plans for me, as the first flat tire of the day found its way to me. 

As I’m getting ready to get back on my bike, I see a young teenager walking towards me, looking upset. As a serious empath, I can immediately sense something is wrong and sure enough, he has a flat back tire with no means to fix it. He was on the route with his uncle, who had gotten ahead of him with all the repair supplies. Pro-tip: carry your own supplies! If you get separated from your friend with the flat fix supplies and you flat, you’re screwed! We patched up his tire and got him back on the road. By this time, I was feeling fully rested and ready to ride, but had also stopped for nearly 20. minutes. Ugghhhhh…….

The first rest stop was at mile 15, in a tiny little town called Americus. It felt like an oasis in the desert. Cold drinks, pickles, snacks, cold water. I could’ve stayed there all day. But after a quick snack, wetting down of all my gear to try and stay cool, and live update for Pearl Izumi, I was back on my bike. At this point I also met up with the filmmaker again, who would ride along side me getting footage for the next 15 miles or so.

From here, the ride got a bit more challenging physically, as we started entering the rolling hills of the Flint Hills. To my surprise, my legs felt super strong and I didn’t walk any of the hills. I don’t think that has ever happened to me on a ride, ever. I found myself passing people left and right while climbing - seriously something that has never happened. They all ended up passing again, as I continued to check on people I passed and often ended up offering aid (either water, food, or three more flat fixes.) 

Sidenote: I don’t know if it was the weather or what, but there were a lot of people who were truly underprepared on the 50 mile route. There were a few where I was actually concerned for their health and safety and felt bad leaving them on the side of the road to wait for a car rescue while I continued to ride. I don’t know what can be done in the future to prevent this, but so many people were not prepared to be self-sufficient. 

The heat continued to build and became my true struggle as the day wore on. At mile 30ish, I went past a private lake - a PRIVATE LAKE?!?! Can someone please explain to me how you privatize a lake? As I rode by it, I kept seeing signs that said “No Swimming, No Fishing, No Trespassing” and man was that demoralizing. As I rounded the corner, however, and faced a wall of a hill, I saw a few folks sitting by the side of the road cheering on riders…turned out they lived on the private lake and gave me permission to jump in!! Hallelujah!! 

Turns out the Pearl Izumi PRO Bibs and Quest Jersey make a decent swimsuit too :) For reference, I wear a 2XL in both of these pieces.

The dip in the lake cooled me down and I felt ready to take on the last half of the race. My body was still feeling good (although I definitely was not consuming enough calories) and I was able to get through some punchy little hills on my way back to Emporia.

I rolled back through the checkpoint at Americus (mile 43 on the way back) and mentally was ready for the ride to be over. While there, we were told that the timing point would be turned off at 4pm, which was a bit of a surprise to those of us who were out there. Getting the hint that I needed to get my butt in gear, I got back on my bike and ground out the last 10 miles. 

With 5 miles to go, my new friend Rachael appeared out of nowhere and was just the mental boost I needed to get back. She was doing a final pre-ride before her 100 mile race the next day and was the perfect cheerleader to get me those few miles back into town. She also met me at the finish line with my sandals and pickles -and took me to ice cream after the ride. True friendship right there. :) 

My new friend Rachel to the rescue. She rode with me the last 5 miles into town as I was struggling!!

After seemingly forever, I rolled back into Emporia, where most of the festivities for the day were over. I was greeted kindly by some local high school kids volunteering at the finish line with an ice cold towel, cold water and a finishers medal. I was overwhelmed with pride, emotion and exhaustion and promptly laid down in ice that had been dumped on the grass. 

Once my body cooled down, I did some post-ride interviews and hitched a ride back to the dorms to clean up. I don’t know if I’ve ever taken a more welcome shower. 

Overall, my body still felt great. No hot spots, no super sore areas - just really really warm and nauseous (which I’d been battling all day.) I had a bit of pasta for dinner to try and recoup the calories lost, but found that I had zero appetite. I’m still perplexed by this, as I’m typically super hungry after a hard ride. I’m guessing it was the heat but who knows. 

In true Marley fashion, instead of being responsible and going to bed early, I took advantage of being vaccinated and had some excellent, consenting fun - thanks Tinder. Definitely looking forward to a good summer of making up for COVID ;)

You’d totally swipe right, don’t lie.

Reflections - What I learned and Will do Differently Next Time

The Good:

My bike set up was 100. The tires, gearing and overall setup were excellent. I might consider wearing different shoes next time, as I did have some numbness.

Clothing choice - With practically zero experience riding in hot conditions, I didn’t know what kit to wear. I chose the Pearl Izumi PRO Bib Short and Quest Jersey - turned out to be a perfect combo. I rode with the jersey unzipped most of the day which gave lots of air flow and was able to take it off quickly to dunk in water whenever I could. 

On-Bike Food & Water - Even though I didn’t eat most of what I had on my bike, I had more than enough for me and the couple of folks I ran into who needed it. I carried 2 liters of water on my back plus 3 bottles, which turned out to be the perfect amount for a hot day. I also refilled twice throughout the day.

Mechanical Prep - I carried 3 tubes, a flat kit, tubeless repair, multi-tool, frame pump and zip ties. I didn’t need any of it for my own bike but ended up using nearly everything for other people. It feels good to be self-sufficient, but also a good example for other people and to be able to help out. 

Things I’ll Change Next Time

Travel. I’ll use Bike Flights- the bike case was great, but lugging it through the airport was a pain in the butt. I’ll spring for shipping it next time to not have to deal with transporting it.

Caffeine - Keep it consistent to what I normally drink. When the barista accidentally gives you a 4 shot latte, its ok to politely say “I only need 2 shots. Thank you.” Your heart rate during the ride will thank you.

Nutrition - less real food if its blazing hot, more gels and shot blocks. And pickles.

OK!!! That’s all she wrote for now. Part 2 with my experience as a support person for Rachael in the 100 Mile Race, a Recap of our All Bodies on Bikes Ride in Kansas City, and the KC Fun Ride Coming Soon!!