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While extra of a ‘wild journey’ than a real gravel occasion, the BMC Rock Cobbler delivered but once more for a twelfth version in central California, full with “a rattling difficult route with superior, distinctive options” together with a move via a cowboy bar.
Peter Stetina (Canyon) took the boys’s solo victory within the second version of the 96-mile Boulder Cobbler whereas native Bakersfield rider Denise Miller gained the ladies’s division. On the basic Rock Cobbler course, which got here in near 23 miles shorter, Lance Haidet (Specialized) and Ruth Holcomb (Santa Cruz htSQD) gained the boys’s and ladies’s classes, respectively.
The occasions will not be critical races, with no podiums or prize cash, however function an early-season gauge of health with a touch of ‘shenanigans’ to remind members that the punishing terrain was meant to be a ‘playground’, the emphasis on ‘play’, in response to Haidet.
“Racing via the Ethels Old Corral saloon was a complete shock to me. In reality, I virtually missed the flip to direct you to the again porch. Inside there was music, cheering followers, beer, [whisky] pictures, and a bunch of tight, twisty corners. I ended up getting a shot, and in some way proceeded to get 90% of it in my eye. It took the subsequent few miles to get my full imaginative and prescient again,” Haidet recounted to Cyclingnews concerning the journey with each mountain and man-made surroundings, together with a 24-foot fiberglass statue known as ‘Big Indian’ marked a pointy flip at Ethel’s Old Corral Cafe.
He described sections of the course starting from enormous berms, whoops, slalom singletrack and hero dust. The dry situations had been far totally different than when he competed two years in the past when he completed third, particularly on the notorious ‘hike-a-bike’ climb with below 10 miles to go, the steepness paying homage to the cliff known as ‘gorge of everlasting peril’ from the film, The Princess Bride.
“This yr featured a brand new Cobbler run-up that felt longer however was barely much less steep. I attempted to journey up, however solely made it a couple of couple hundred ft. There had been every kind of spectators cheering riders on, and we had been catching riders from the Pebbler (quick route), so it was fairly cool to have some firm whereas trudging drained legs up the climb.
“The climate and course situations had been in our favour this yr. The cheesy dust was tremendous quick rolling and had limitless traction, which allowed us to benefit from the playground of trails,” Haidet mentioned.
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For Holcomb, it was her first-ever gravel occasion, having began as a junior in mountain bike racing and spending the final two years with a US street workforce.
“It was so superior on the market. I liked all the only observe sections,” she informed Cyclingnews. “I believe the cowboy bar was fairly superior. I’m from Durango and we do a race the place you journey via a bar there, so I felt like I used to be racing at house a bit. I believe The Cobbler brings out a number of the greatest individuals.”
Coming off a win at Low Gap within the Grasshopper Adventure Series, Stetina earned a win on the Cobbler for a 3rd time in 4 years and known as it “probably the most enjoyable days you may have in your bike”, or off the bike when making an attempt to stay upright on the ultimate climb. Haidet confirmed that most of the amateurs on that climb “had been cursing Sam Ames’ (course mastermind) identify”.
All three routes had particular person mass begins from the Pyles/Lake Ming Picnic Grounds close to the Kern River on the east of Bakersfield. Friday opened with bicycle barrel racing in the course of the pasta dinner, and Saturday morning rides started in waves.
The 96-mile Boulder route included 12,600 ft of climbing, whereas the Rock Cobbler got here in at 75 miles with 9,200 ft of elevation acquire. Organisers provided support stations and course markings for the rides, with the tech information stressing “course markings over rule GPS”, preserving an emphasis on security in addition to uniqueness.