When a gravel event is run by a company called Struggle Events, you’ve been given a bit of a subtle hint that it might be *quite* a big day out. Paul Errington headed south to take part in the recent Struggle Events Borderlands 100 held in the Yorkshire Dales. Beautiful scenery, perfect late summer conditions, great organisation and quite a lot of climbing were the order of the day.
CLIMB! What feels like a mere few pedal strokes from the start of the inaugural Borderlands 100 event and the Wahoo alert gives what could be used as a fitting summary for the rest of the day. The event is set in the Yorkshire Dales … famed for its character-defining road cycling. On offer were two distances - a challenging 50 km and a should-have-known-better 100 km.
Hosted by a fairly recently expanded and enhanced Dales Bike Centre, the facilities were on point and the small selection of brands in attendance added to the flavour. Having ridden this area previously I knew that any flat ground was going to be in short supply and the day was going to be pointing upwards or downwards ... mostly upwards it turned out.
A healthy field of riders was in attendance and the start was a flexible approach, offering a window of time to set off. Always good not to have to rush. Sign-on was brief, as all riders had received the relevant information well in advance of the event. This saved the need for a detailed rider briefing and just required a few words on the start line for each staggered group.
A top tube sticker of the featured climbs was part of the registration pack and this became a good point of reference for progress. That and my Wahoo telling me how many featured climbs it thought I had to do out on the course.
If you haven’t ridden in the Yorkshire Dales, firstly you should, but also the terrain here aside from stunning scenery, throws at you many gradient changes. Every single climb profile is a multi-coloured affair and as often as the gradient changes, so does the surface. We had everything from steep grassy inclines to what can only be described as lunar landscapes.
As challenging as the climbs were, the descents left you with pumped arms and sore hands. The trails were definitely on the chunkier side of gravel for the most and nicely challenging. It was often difficult to stay on a good line as your focus was drawn to the stunning views, which on this occasion were bathed in glorious sunshine (disclaimer, this is the north of England and sunshine cannot always be guaranteed).
For me, this was a return to taking part in organised events, not having ridden much other than those I consider work and it afforded a great opportunity to ride with a friend, switch off and just follow what was a well-marked course. I barely glanced at the Wahoo other than when it was craving my attention … CLIMB, CLIMB, CLIMB.
This is the joy of organised events. Yes, I could have researched and planned a ride in this area myself, but I got to sample someone else’s take on the area and what they personally felt made a great gravel ride. I would have to agree with their opinion - they nailed it.
The day's ride ended in just over five hours, just short of the advertised 100 km, but somewhat more climbing than the gpx file indicated. Did I mention the climbing already?
A finisher’s mug was the reward and it was quickly filled with a complimentary chilled alcohol-free beer. Is there a finer way to finish a hot day's gravel ride?
As a first-year event, it felt like the seasoned organisers had taken this well within their stride and it was thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish. This may have been in part by the late arrival of perfect summery weather, but that said this area rides well in all conditions with its rocky-not-muddy nature.
The Borderlands 100 is organised by Struggle Events. More information about the event and riding in the area can be found on their website
Stunning images courtesy of Dan Monaghan/Cadence Images