Race Recap- Texas Chainring Massacre 105 Mile Gravel Race

This past weekend myself and Jon Cavner loaded up the bikes and drove 10 hours down to Gainesville, TX for the unofficial US gravel season opener- Texas Chainring Massacre. We had the option of choosing either the 100k race with the cash purse or the 105-mile race that did not have cash. Originally, my plan was to support Jon in the 100k race since he had a good chance of winning and we are teammates on a new pro gravel team- Rodeo Labs! We got about halfway through the drive and decided it made more sense for me to do the 105 mile so we would both have a chance of getting on the podium as it would be better exposure for our sponsors. I was totally cool with this decision since I prefer the longer stuff anyways and for a 10-hour drive this greatly increased my drive: race time ratio (10 miles for each hour drive haha).

We stopped in the middle of nowhere halfway through the drive to spin the legs and both had really good sensations likely due to taking some rest prior in the week and dropping down in elevation to close to 1000 feet. We finally arrived in Gainesville around 9 pm (after losing an hour in time change), ate a quick Italian dinner, drove to the hotel, and went straight to bed as my race started at 7 am and Jon’s was at 9 but he would have to wake up with me to drive me the 20 minutes to the race start in Valley View.

We both passed out hard and the alarm came too quickly at 5 am. I scarfed down some breakfast and we drove to the start. It was a little chilly (40 degrees) and pitch dark during the registration and the warm-up and took my eyes a while to adjust. At 7 am prompt myself and 300 other racers embarked on our 105-mile journey through the heart of the Lone Star State and some of the most beautiful, green, rolling, gravel roads I have ridden. It’s been raining quite a bit in TX so the roads were primo for racing, super hard-packed, fast, and grippy. Watching the sun come up over the horizon was totally epic as the sky was a mix of orange and purple, definitely one of the highlights of the race for me.

About 8 miles in, a guy on a Specialized tucked deep in his aero bars shot off the front on a little descent and pulled away from the main group. No one chased as there was still close to 100 miles to go and he slowly pulled away from the group. I knew this was a threat as you can never trust a guy in his aero bars in this type of flat racing (especially since I didn’t have any). Being that he was alone and there were some strong men at the front of the race I figured we would be ok and eventually would work together to reel him in. I tried to get a group to rotate and chase him down but no one was willing to organize and stay consistent as racers just shot off the front for 30 secs or so then pulled back to the group. I attacked 3-4 times hoping that someone would come with me but no one ever did so I eventually rolled back to the group and sat in as there were a handful of very strong guys on big teams who hadn’t come to the front once yet and we were close to 40 miles in. Aero boy was completely out of sight by this point and I had the gut feeling we were all racing for 2nd, classic.

Finally, at mile 50 a strong Air Force guy came around me and said “let’s go” and I knew this was the move I’d been waiting for. I latched onto his wheel as he took a strong pull and came around him and took another. I looked back and there were only 5 of us and we blew apart the rest of the field. Sweet! 5 strong guys with 55 miles to go, we will surely be able to catch the leader (so I thought). We spent the next 2 hours working together like a well-oiled machine, each taking 1 minute pulls through some killer terrain. I forced myself to look up and enjoy the scenery even though my legs started to feel a little heavy from doing too much work at the front the first 40 miles and those little attacks started to add up by mile 70. Props to Amp PR Lotion- my legs never cramped (I was pushing big power due to the low elevation) and Carbo Rocket in my bottle (I never bonked and drank three 24 oz bottles of Half Evil).

Our chase group continued to work together until mile 80 when there were a few short, steep, punchy climbs, and the Panaracer guy with aero bars (who I thought was the biggest threat and Cavner told me before the race I did not want to sprint against him) fell off the back and the group was down to 4. I was stoked because this meant I was going to finish top 5, although my goal was to win or at least get on the podium (top 3). At mile 85 we started overlapping with the 100k racers as our courses merged and we had the same finishing loop. This is when things got super spicy and the 100k racers had fresher legs which started to blow our chase group apart as brutal attacks and surges started going off every couple of minutes (ouch!!). I almost got dropped from the now larger group of the 2 races coming together but suffered HARD and sucked wheel at all costs. At mile 90 another attack went off from a 100k racer and I couldn’t bridge the gap and got dropped from that group which had one of the 100-mile guys in it (who would eventually finish 2nd). That meant it was just me and the Air Force guy battling it out for 3rd and 4th (and the final podium spot).

This is when I knew I had to turn on my inner roadie, sit in, and do as little work as possible for the remaining 10 miles. I took a few half-assed pulls and forced him to bridge a few gaps so he would wear himself out in hopes I could win the final sprint. Coming into the last mile I made one last attempt to separate myself from him but he was able to bridge up to me. I had studied the finish and knew the last kilometer was tricky and had a few fast gravel corners leading into the sprint so I made sure to be at the front going into those turns and sure enough I was able to beat him in the sprint and solidify my 3rd place podium!

All in all, I was super stoked with how my legs performed and happy to make the podium in an early-season race against guys who have the luxury of training in warm weather all winter. I was a little bummed to never catch the guy who eventually did end up taking the win (impressive 95-mile solo win), but learned some valuable lessons. The most important being never discount an early attack to a guy in aero bars on a flat course and go with him at all costs as it may just be the race-winning move. I am still relatively new to this gravel racing scene (this was my 3rd race) and I am learning so much about how to channel my inner roadie but still use my mountain bike skills in hopes to win some races this year.

Next up- Old Man Winter in Boulder in 2 weeks! Thanks for reading and see you at the races!

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Strava File: https://www.strava.com/activities/3042738056