The middle of May might seem like a strange time to introduce a group of new brand ambassadors, but there is some method behind the madness! Although the 2023 Shimano Gravel Alliance have all been part of the roster since the start of the year, this was their first time to meet in person.
Image courtesy of Yorit Kluitman
“If you need rescuing, blink three times” said Sofiane with an impressively straight face as he pulled smoothly alongside Erwin and I. It was the second day of the Gravel Alliance (GA) Get Together and I’d been riding next to and chatting with Erwin for what seemed like hours but was probably only 15 minutes. “He can talk *quite* a lot” continued Sofiane, now smiling broadly.
“The majority of the riders on the GA roster had never met each in person.”
Considering that the majority of the riders on the GA roster had never met each in person before the end of April, they had clicked as a group with impressive speed. The shared love of gravel riding gave them endless conversation topics. Despite some of them having been members of the GA for the past four years, the problems caused by Covid19 meant I hadn’t met the majority of them either. But four years’ worth of zoom calls and WhatsApp messages meant a lot of them felt like old friends already.
Image courtesy of Emmie Collinge
The riders had travelled out to Valkenburg in southern Holland, home to Shimano’s Experience Centre for their meet-up. The SEC provided the perfect venue for a training session/get together with conference rooms, on-site catering, accommodation a matter of metres of away and an unbelievably well-equipped bike workshop. But perhaps most importantly, Valkenburg has a spectacular network of gravel riding trails which start practically on the doorstep of the SEC.
Image courtesy of Yorit Kluitman
The meet-up was designed partly to get as many of the riders as possible together in person*, partly for the team at Shimano Europe to run some training sessions with them, partly as a chance to shoot some images for use later in the year and partly as an excuse for some gravelly fun! The timing was planned to coincide with two huge gravel events – the LtD Gravelfest and the UCI Gravel Fondo Limburg world cup. The riders were all given entries to the two events, with everyone choosing to take part on Saturday’s relaxed and fun LtD Gravelfest and the speed merchants also choosing to race at Sunday’s UCI event.
*Unfortunately Liam Yates, the 10th member of the GA wasn’t able to join the get together, so doesn’t appear in the images.
Image courtesy of Yorit Kluitman
“What bike would you choose if you were only allowed one?”
After an evening arrival and welcome dinner on the Wednesday, Thursday morning was a “back-to-school” session. The dinner had broken the ice on Wednesday night and friendships were practically developing before our eyes by Thursday morning. They kicked off with a hilarious show-and-tell where the riders were asked what they would order at a mid-ride café stop, what their favourite music was and what bike they would choose if they were only allowed one. It’s amazing how much insight you can into someone’s personality and character with such innocuous questions!
There were presentations from different members of the Shimano Europe marketing and product design teams, sessions on new (and still top secret) Shimano products and the launch of Rebound, which all the GA riders will hopefully be taking part in at the start of June. After a super-healthy Scandi-inspired lunch and a quick change into cycling kit, komoot’s Dutch community manager Carola got everyone ready for an afternoon “Grally”.
Playtime
komoot’s grallies are Inspired by the “alleycat” races of bicycle couriers in USA where participants are challenged to complete all the assignments in the manifesto in the shortest possible time. As it was King’s Day in Holland, where everyone traditional dresses in orange, the GA riders were all tasked with wearing something appropriate, but also finding a list of items which were themed around King’s Day. The riders were challenged to plot the route in komoot and then head out on their chosen course, collecting the required number of items and return to base by a set time. It was incredibly good fun and the combination of sunshine, some amazing trails and a good dollop of competitiveness meant everyone came back smiling.
Erwin should have probably won some king of award for his combination of “stylish” (ahem) outfit and impressive haul of souvenirs from the ride, including this cheese shaver, but we knocked points off because he is Dutch and that made it way too easy for him.
Image courtesy of Yorit Kluitman
Dinner was a 10-minute ride away and the incredible cycling-friendly feel to the entire area made me want to move there instantly.
Image courtesy of Yorit Kluitman
All of the hills
The morning of Day Two was when we had scheduled in a “no-drop” group gravel ride. I had volunteered to plan the route, using my trail knowledge from riding in the area from when I visited at the end of summer 2022 and my route started as I meant to continue with a short sharp climb out into the hills behind the SEC. “How did you manage to fit so many hills into such a short ride?” was a question I was asked part way through the ride, which made me realise that my love of climbing might not be everyone’s cup of tea :-)
“How did you manage to fit so many hills into such a short ride?”
Unfortunately, the weather gods were not playing so nicely and heavy overnight rain, followed by a dramatic drop in temperature and frequent showers during the ride, meant we arrived at lunch looking slightly less well presented than when we set off. Luckily the restaurant staff were incredibly understanding and the combination of plenty of climbs, plus the cold, damp weather meant everyone ate enough at lunchtime to make up for the pools of mud we dripped on the restaurant’s floor.
Some mid-ride mechanical issues during the ride meant a few of the riders had already had some practice of trailside gravel bike repairs, but the afternoon session included four different planned in maintenance sessions, so anyone who hadn’t got their hands dirty in the morning still had an opportunity.
Image courtesy of Yorit Kluitman
With sessions on brake bleeding, gear indexing and Di2 set-up, along with a chance to ask questions about any foibles that their own bikes were demonstrating meant everyone went home with some new skills. The fact that one of the instructors was Tim Gerrits, who was one of the lead designers of Shimano’s GRX groupset, meant the riders received some amazing insight and tips.
Image courtesy of Yorit Kluitman
Bonding
What was incredible to witness was that despite having only met in person for the first time 48 hours previously, the group felt like they were old friends meeting up for some gravelly fun after a bit of time apart. The mix of cultures, languages and backgrounds didn't feel in any way to be a barrier, in fact if anything, the differences allowed everyone to bring something unique to the party. Their shared love of gravel riding ran deep, but it was their enthusiasm, openness and willingness to share and learn which made the get together such a success. By the time the Valkenburg meet-up drew to a close, everyone had swapped numbers and were already hatching plans to ride together again soon.
Who’s who?
The 2023 Shimano Gravel Alliance is made up of ten riders from around Europe. They have different backgrounds, interests, skillsets and preferences, but all have a shared loved of gravel riding in common.
Anke Eberhardt. German. Joined the Gravel Alliance in 2023. In real life, she’s a freelance journalist from Germany, who tested a gravelbike for a magazine feature in 2018 and got addicted. On the Internet, her evil alter ego makes fun of social media as an ironic “bikefluencer” and she has a bike tutorial series on YouTube – even though Anke had previously only changed a single inner tube in her life. Her motto is “look pro go slow” and don’t take cycling (or yourself) too seriously – but always pose hard!
Claudia Gerosa, Italy. Joined the Gravel Alliance in 2023. A former footballer and softball player, I first started cycling in 2015. Gravel riding for me is the answer to the need to stay away from traffic and the desire to explore new roads and countries, cycling in nature with a hand always ready to take a photo. Cycling fun also starts from your front door!
Dalila Lecky, UK. Joined the Gravel Alliance in 2021. Having discovered her love of gravel in the patches of woodland dotted around South London, Dalila is truly in her element when things get a bit muddy. She loves a fast descent, with some small drop-offs to keep her on her toes and likes to head off-course just to find out if the path goes anywhere interesting. Her mantra when it comes to all things cycling is 'if it's not fun, I'm probably not going to be doing it', and that frames her approach to each new adventure.
Erwin Sikkens, Holland. Joined the Gravel Alliance in 2020. Erwin is a Gravel Alliance veteran and early gravel adapter gone bikepacking, gone ultra racing, gone back to party pacing. He's the one you invite when you want to bring the party into you gravel fest, shooting pictures with his right hand, drinking a beer with his left - all while on the bike.
Florian ‘Flo’ Nowak, Germany. Joined the Gravel Alliance in 2020. Hi, I am Flo. Born and raised in the German Alps. Mountains have always played an important role in my live. After skiing, mountain biking and finally professional road cycling, I found myself back in the mountains on a gravel bike after a few years in the pro peloton. Nowadays I enjoy sports, rides and events more than ever. * Pre-planned route or follow your nose/heart? Pre-planned route with the option to rethink everything during the ride * Favourite gravel terrain? Mountains * Ride solo or with friends? Mostly solo * Post ride: Coffee or beer? Beer First memory of riding? Forcing my dad to carry home my bike after crashing into a tiny creek. One word you would use to describe why you ride gravel: Nature
Henna Palosaari, Finland. Joined the Gravel Alliance in 2021. Henna is from the far north of Finland, but she is not usually too long in one place. She lives for the outdoors whether it’s gravel riding and bikepacking in the summer and fall, backcountry snowboarding in the winter or surfing in between. For her a gravel bike is most of all a tool to explore and experience new places the best possible way, to go on an adventure that wouldn’t be possible any other way. Bikepacking has offered her some of her most unforgettable experiences and broadened her idea of what she is capable of last time on a bikepacking and snowboarding trip through the Dolomites.
Ibai Fradejas, Spain. Joined the Gravel Alliance in 2021. Ibai, who lives in the Basque Country, in the north of Spain, has been gravel riding for about 10 years and he is a fan of all kinds of bikes. Although he is passionate about gravel ultra-cycling, he is now focused on fast-paced medium distance events and above all on boosting the gravel community. So he never says no to a race or a social ride (party pace) with pizzas! Self-sufficient bikepacking adventure trips are his way of understanding life in a simpler manner. His goal is to continue to enjoy the simple and easy to achieve feeling of freedom that riding a bike brings.
Liam Yates, UK. Joined the Gravel Alliance in 2023. A lifelong cyclist from the Ashdown Forest in the South of England, Liam is not one to turn down a new opportunity or adventure and has cycled his bike as long as he can remember with everything from BMX to racing road, time trials and fixed-gear crits, and more recently bikepacking and a more adventurous way of seeing the world. With his father, Sean Yates, a former Tour de France stage winner and Olympian, it’s no surprise Liam feels at home on two wheels. As well as adventures of his own, he also has also started his own event and cycling team to help give back to the community and encourage bikes and an outdoor lifestyle to people in his local area.
Saoirse Pottie, UK. Joined the Gravel Alliance in 2023. I'm Saoirse, I am a wildlife biologist. I got into cycling in my late 20s when I started working in research and was desperate for an excuse to get outside and away from my laptop. For me, cycling has always been about adventure, challenging myself and exploring new places with friends. In particular gravel and bikepacking have opened up a whole new world for me. It brought me a lot of joy and now I'm on a bit of a mission to help others share that experience.
Sofiane Sehili, France. Joined the Gravel Alliance in 2021. There's two things in life I'm passionate about: cycling and traveling. So it's no wonder that I became a bikepacker. Nothing makes me tick like exploring remote areas in a far away land. Preferably off road. Incidentally, I also love competing, which is how I found some success in bikepacking races. But whether it's for fun or to win races, the place I feel most at home is lost far away on a gravel track.
Where will you find them?
The Gravel Alliance team are roving ambassadors for gravel riding and each have their own favourite type of event and destinations for riding. Sofiane can generally be found at the front of ultra distance gravel events, Anke might well be found on a film shoot in the German Alps, Dalila could be urban gravel riding in her native south London and Erwin will be found wherever there's a good gravelly party!