I stopped again at mile 75, where I was pleasantly surprised to see that Twin Six and Banjo Brothers, two Minneapolis cycling brands, had set up an oasis offering riders free beer, soda, food, and shots of whiskey. I was just going to fill up on water until I heard a shout from fellow GearJunkie, T.C. Worley, who insisted I share his beer with him. I happily obliged.
Refueled and ready to go, I set off towards the finish. Those last few miles were tough! Out of water and beginning to feel crushed, we turned a corner and came face-to-face with a hill that seemed to be more like a wall of gravel.
Shifting down into my lowest gear, I attempted to spin up the monster but my legs couldn’t keep up. I unclipped–totally burnt out. Thankfully, the end was in sight. I put my head down and mustered up every remaining bit of energy I had left to push through.
As I rolled in to the finish line 7 hours and 23 minutes later, I forgot about the pain I was in. The rush of crossing that line, and getting high-fives and cheers from friends, is what this race is all about. That feeling is why I love to race gravel. I’m already counting down the days until next year’s Almanzo!
—Amy Oberbroeckling is assistant editor of GearJunkie.
