2023 BWR KANSAS RECAPS

Thanks again for joining us for the BWR Kansas

Below you will find race recaps from winnaarsCecily Decker andTorbjørn Røed, plus a recap from breakout performer of the day,Daxton Mock, who spent most of the day solo off the front in his debut BWR - only to get caught at the levee (mean ol’ levee).

You can review your results here:

Overall Results

Q/KOS, Q/KOM, QKOD Category Results

Quadrupel Crown of Gravel Standings

If you have any questions, please email -contact@omnigoevents.com

This is the link to FinisherPix, where you can procure photos of you out on the course -https://www.finisherpix.com/en/event/6959/

Relive your ride with these videos:

Waffle:
https://youtu.be/J4lOZi2DL4A

Wafer:
https://youtu.be/_78QN2ziDP4

Wanna:
https://youtu.be/PJNK4cz3ZjM

DANK U!

It was only earlier this year for the BWR CA that Cecily Decker emailed us to ask why she wasn’t on the call-up lists for the race when she had already done four BWRs and podiumed at all. And she was right, why the heck wasn’t she on that list? We corrected our folly back then and ever since Cecily has only increased her power and sense of place at the front of any race. Her year has only continued to get better and better.

It is with great pleasure we share with you her first of many BWR victory recaps. Congrats, Cecily.

If I could design a course that would give me the best chance of winning, it would probably look something like BWR Kansas. The short punchy climbs with the long, technical single track sections at mile-50 and right before the finish suit my strengths well. I also really enjoy racing in colder temperatures so when the high temperature for the day was forecasted to be 55 degrees, I knew it would be ideal for me. 

Going into the day I was anticipating a strong, sustained wind out of the Northwest. I knew it would be important to be in a good-sized group, particularly in the first half of the race. After the hectic start, I found myself in a small group with Whitney. Flavia was up the road so we quickly went into chase-mode. About 30-minutes into the race, Whitney and I had bridged back to Flavia's group and we settled into a easier, more comfortable pace.  

On a straight section of gravel road, with no apparent cause, a crash occurred in the middle of our group. I had some time to slow down but ultimately went right into the middle of the crash. Someone fell into my left side and I came off my bike but I was able to somehow stay upright on my feet. I was quickly back on my bike, as was Whitney and we pressed onward with the group. Flavia, on the other hand (as well as Tiffany who was racing the shorter course), had clearly gone down hard and were left behind.

Whitney and I stayed in this group together until we hit the cyclocross-like section of the Perry Lake trail. I knew that this was an area where I might be able to gap Whitney. I was able to ride a fast pace through this section and stick with the faster men in our group. When we emerged from the trail, onto the pavement, I was with a good sized group of men and Whitney was a minute or so behind. From that point on, our group moved at a faster and pretty uncomfortable pace for me but I knew the longer I could stay with them, I would be putting more time into Whitney.  

With around 40-miles to go, I bid my group farewell (got dropped) and continued on solo. I had heard that Whitney was also solo and was about 5 minutes back. I paced myself to the finish, focusing more on riding efficiently than my power output. When I entered the single track with 10-miles to go, I knew I had a comfortable lead so I rode the section carefully, not wanting to risk a crash or a puncture. I finished with a 12-minute lead and a ride that I am quite proud of. 

My equipment choices for the day also played a huge factor. As always, I raced on my Pinarello Grevil f9 with a Shimano GRX drivetrain. I went with a somewhat unique tire set up with an IRC Boken 40 in the front and an IRC Boken Double Cross 38 in the rear. The side knobs on the Bokens allowed for excellent grip when cornering and provided stability in the sand. The center tread of the Double cross gripped well in the looser sections and were especially key for good power transfer on the climbs. I rode my Shimano GRX wheels that I started using a couple weeks ago and have really come to enjoy using in technical terrain. They have enough compliance to handle really well on the single track but are still fast and responsive on the smoother sections making them a perfect wheel for this race.

To those in the pro cycling world here in the US and Norway, they know Toby is a force of nature. While he’s had plenty of success on the road, including winning stages and nearly the entire Tour of the Gila, he was also third at the first star-studded BWR of the year in Arizona, besting an incredibly deep field and finishing third to Keegan Swenson and Christopher Blevins. Toby was just seconds way from both of them.

Congrats to Toby for this stellar victory and we look forward to more exploits from him in the future. Here is his race recap.

My friend Daxton and I decided to leave Grand Junction (CO) Tuesday morning and head to Lawrence for a thorough course recon and get the 11 hour drive out of the way early in the week. I prefer to do it this way after racing all year figuring out how to feel 100% on the start line and feel confident in my race plan on race day. I learned at BWR Arizona this spring, that there are so many variables to the BWR races that I wanted to know how the gravel and singletracks were so I could pick out a good tire and pressure. With the help of my teammates, I ended up running Pathfinders 42s with 29 psi up front and 31 psi in the rear on my Giant TCR.

Raceday

An early cold morning in Kansas, ready for 123-miles of gravel, singletrack and a bit of pavement. Standing on the start line with my Above & Beyond Cancer Cycling teammates, the sun started to rise and we headed off into the dust. I decided to use my Borah Teamwear long sleeve skinsuit paired with Velotoze aero socks and aero gloves due to the low temperatures and high winds.

The racing started fast and we carried some good momentum over the first rollers, and after an acceleration at mile 12 I found myself with 5 other riders ahead of a big group chasing. This was a strong group including the likes of Nicholas Roche, Finn Gullicksen, and Adam Roberge who bridged from the chasers. Shortly after, we were rolled by the big group.

The next few miles included some smaller attacks and my teammate Isaac Bryant ended up in the breakaway with four other riders, leaving me in an ideal position not having to chase it back. The pace was on and off in the chasing group before Brendan Johnston, Carlos Quintero and I bridged away to catch the breakaway which was falling apart. I had made it a goal to enter the singletrack section by Perry Lake first, which I did with 4 others on my wheel and a chase group roughly 30 seconds behind. 

Entering Perry Lake trail first was my goal, and due to this section of course being filled with sharp rocks and dry river crossings, I knew anyone could easily lose the race with a flat or bad crash, but not a spot you wanted to get away because of the strong winds outside of the woods. As we rolled out of the trail, I sat in a group of 4 with 2 guys up the road with a small gap. We quickly became 9 riders going over the dam, since no one wanted to pedal in the wind. 

Once again we left the pavement on our way back to the finish, my friend Daxton Mock managed to get ahead of the group of now 8 riders. I didn’t want to pull him back, so I stayed in the back of the group conserving energy for the finale, and Daxton built up a gap of 4-minutes.

From this point, there were attacks right and left in every steep kicker we hit while we dwindled down to a 6-man group behind the solo leader. This group was Brendan Johnston, Finn Gullickson, Adam Roberge, Drew Dillman, Joe Goettl and me. I tried to save my energy and only followed the attacks, because I had looked out a climb at mile 100 where I wanted to launch my attack. At this point Brendan had gotten a 30 second gap on the rest of us, but I committed to my attack and caught Brendan leaving the others behind. I tried to drop him as I didn’t want to pull him onto the final single track, but he was strong and stayed on my wheel. 

We slowly caught up with Daxton going into the Levee, and I chose to attack by the gate and gained a gap. Brendan stayed just 5-10 seconds behind for a few minutes, but I knew this terrain suited me and my road background, so I kept pushing and worked the gap. I looked back and saw the gap had increased a bit halfway, and with the additional confidence boost I pushed on and built up a 30-second gap into the final single track. 

Tired and full of adrenaline, I blew out some sandy corners and had to calm down to keep my lead. There was a dropped chain while passing a Wafer rider, and that had me off the bike and scared of being caught, but I wasn’t caught yet. I found my flow on the trail again and was happy with my choice of 42mm tires over the 38mm I was originally planning on racing on, since the trail had become a lot sandier as more people had ridden the course.

 I came out of the woods and onto the final stretch by myself, an incredibly hard day which was perfectly executed on a super fun and technical course with everything you want in a gravel course. Thrilled with the outcome and a huge thank you to the organizers for the event and my team Above & Beyond Cancer Cycling for making it all possible.

Dax Mock is this event’s winnaar of the coveted Belgian Hardman Award - given to those very few riders who exhibit the the grit and work ethic, plus a little insanity to go for it and make others suffer. This was Dax’ first BWR, and boy did he leave a mark. Less than halfway through the race, he was one-minute down entering the Perryberg single track with 30 riders ahead of him. He someone managed to use his MTB skills to pass all of them and exit the Thunderdome first. From there, in Hardman fashion, he attacked those looking to hold his wheel and spent the rest of the day solo all the way back to the levee. He had amassed a 4-minute plus lead on the chasers at one point. He also was held up by 15-seconds at the highway intersection and then was held up by the train stopped in the course’s path, having to sneak through between two train cars.

Here is Dax’ recount of the story for us. Congrats, Dax.

I managed a solid fourth place in my debut at BWR, where I embarked on a three-hour, full-send mode solo breakaway after Perryberg! The race kicked off at an unrelenting pace as soon as we hit the first climb. My legs were cooperating, but my hearty breakfast of bacon, eggs, and potatoes was weighing me down, making it a bit tough to push as hard as I'd have liked. Consequently, I found myself playing catch-up, trailing behind the early frontrunners. 

During the initial 50-miles leading up to the Perry Lake single track, the group kept fracturing, with various packs of riders surging ahead and then getting reeled back in. As we entered the singletrack section, my stomach settled, and I was itching to flaunt my cyclocross skills. Although the leading group had a one-minute lead upon entering the singletrack, when we emerged from it, another rider and I had a 15-second lead on the chasing pack. We decided to ease off and regroup as we turned around and began the journey back to the finish. 

I had a strategy in mind – conserve my energy until the final singletrack section, relying on my MTB skills to potentially gain an edge. However, my "plan" was thrown out the window when we encountered the initial set of gravel rollers on the way back, and I noticed a considerable gap had formed between me and the chasing group. My coach's advice echoed in my mind – once you're out in front, don't look back, commit wholeheartedly, or risk getting reeled in and feeling more fatigued than ever. So, that's exactly what I did, maintaining the lead for the next 60-miles, all by my lonesome.

During that solo stint, I ate energy gels, utilized my descending skills to the fullest, and pushed myself on the climbs with every ounce of strength I had left. It was motivating to hear that my lead was steadily increasing, and my friend Torbjorn was making life difficult for the chasers. What began as a one-minute gap reached a peak of four minutes, but after an arduous hour and a half battling a relentless headwind, my power started to wane. Yet, I had to persevere, with a singular thought in my mind – just make it to the final singletrack first. 

I caught a glimpse of the chasers when we crossed the railroad section, just four miles from the singletrack. It was disheartening to see them bridge a four-minute gap so swiftly. Torbjorn and Brendan, the leaders, caught up with me just before the levee, and they accelerated through the gate, leaving me no option but to ride at my own pace for the remainder of the race. I was overtaken by one more rider, Andrew Dillman, but managed to cross the finish line in fourth place. There's no greater sense of fulfillment than knowing you've given your absolute all and left everything out on the course. 

A massive shoutout to my supporters, including CXD, Trek Bikes, the Bear National Team, and my ever-supportive parents. I mustn't forget the Nelsons for offering a fantastic place to stay. And, of course, huge thanks to BWR for hosting such an outstanding event. I'm already eagerly anticipating the next one! 

For the category results, two things are evident. 1) Cecily Decker dominated the day and won every category in the women’s field! 2 In contrast, the men’s race was incredibly dynamic and each of the categories was won by a different rider. Overall, the race was much, much faster than anyone had anticipated, especially considering how much wind there was out in North Lawrence. If Dax had uploaded his ride to Strava, the results would be different still.

Registration for the Tripel Crown of Gravel and the early 2024 BWRs opens tomorrow morning at 8am PST. Please join us again, perhaps someplace new ad exciting. There are plenty of options…

We expanding the BWR calendar for 2024 with an exciting new Tripel Crown of Gravel Series to kick off the spring racing calendar with three grand events all taking place within seven weeks. The Tripel Crown will feature the Second Annual BWR Arizona (March 2), the Fifth Annual BWR Utah (April 6), and culminate with the grandaddy of them all, the 13th Annual BWR California (April 28). Another BWR has also been added to the spring calendar in Zapopan, Mexico, which complements the fall BWR in Queretaro. The BWR series will also be returning to Canada on May 18 – 19, for the Second Annual BWR BC and N. Carolina on June 21 - 22 for the fourth annual BWR NC. Additional fall event dates will be announced later this year.

The Tripel Crown of Gravel Series has been recreated to give riders, both professional and amateur alike, the chance to compete in three very different environments over a short period of time, offering the perfect blend between recovery and fitness gains for the early season competition. The Tripel Crown will be contested for both Waffle and Wafer distances in a points-based omnium format, for professionals and age-group riders, across the Southwest region of the 2024 spring BWRs. Riders competing for the Tripel honors and prize purse will be scored based on the total points achieved over the three races. The BWR CA will carry extra weighted points to complete the series, which is being contested at North City in San Marcos, CA, April 28, 2024. There will be prize purses and prizes for the Male, Female, and Gender Diverse categories. Registration for the Tripel Crown and individuals events will open on Monday, October 16, 2023, at 8:00 a.m. PST.