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It is always neat to see yourself in a video! I hope you had as much fun as I did on the course. That climb near the end at Jeter road had quite the bite. I was so spent that I actually rode past the turnoff onto the gravel downhill and did an extra 50 meters of climbing before I realized it. :-)

Yes, some of the downhills were rather technical. Even though I have done mountain bike in the past, it has been a while, and the gravel bike is set up much more like a road bike than a mountain bike. There was a significant re-learning curve !

Thanks for the encouragement! Regarding gearing, when I was younger I accidentally goofed one year and rode the course on a 53/42 with a 27 in the back. It wasn’t a pleasant experience. How experienced are you with 5-10km climbs that average at least 6% the whole way, and add the follow-up question of if you are capable of sustaining over 3w/kg for 40 minutes or more. Repeatedly. 6 gap has 3 of these climbs, Neels, Hogpen (3km of the climb are @11%) and Wolfpen. The greater your ability to hold over 3w/kg for time, the “easier” the climb will be. I can do this and I prefer a 34/30 f/r for gearing. Ping me again if you have any follow-up questions.

Glad it was helpful! Best of luck and enjoy the ride.

Thanks for the feedback. I am also perplexed as to why so many more people do 6Gap. Your suggestion that it might be due to lower fitness coming out of winter is a likely cause. I love both courses. This one is definitely "easier" in that all the major climbing in done in the first part. I would recommend this event to anyone who wants a challenge and a way to focus on an early year riding group activity / race / event.

It was! Thanks for the feedback.

Hey Betsy. Thanks for putting on such a great event! Very positive and friendly vibe out there. I look forward to next year!

Thank you! Cheers!

That is amazing!!!! Great job. I can imagine how hard Ventoux was, It felt brutal doing it on day 3. Doing them all in one day is a whole different level of difficulty.

Great! The GFNS format of timed sections, but not a timed overall provides an interesting dynamic. You race, but don't have to be in "race mode" the whole the whole distance. I found the non-race sections nice to meet and chat with people. You also aren't having to strategically plan and rush through your feed stops.

@@TheTschramm I figure it will help me out with my pacing too. Recover on the non-timed sections and not just try to go full out at the start - which is what I usually do but then end up regretting it. Funny how that first hour everything feels amazing and then mile 75 its like 'oh what was I thinking earlier'

I know what you mean! For this course it is especially important to pace. The last timed section is very near the end on a progressively harder climb. By the time you reach the top it is +10% grade. To paraphrase Motorhead Pace-or-Die! :-)

Hey Bernard. The Stelvio is always tough, no matter which way you climb it. 2:40 is very respectable when fasting! Nice to see another Florida boy who isn't afraid of a little elevation change. Yes we very well might have passed by each other at some point. Keep it up, and good luck with the other two climbs!

Awesome job getting up Mauna Kea! I have seen some videos of cyclists going up it and that is a true beast. I will bet the views were amazing.

@TheTschramm the views were amazing even at 12,000 feet. Unfortunately, I had to turn around before the summit (13,800 feet), but still an amazing day on the bike. Especially compared to my usual riding. I was able to get some great photos since I had perfect weather on the day I chose to do the ride.

Thanks amigo! Appreciate the feedback. Were you able to attend the event this year?

Living in Florida, I love it every time I get the opportunity to ride in the hills. I can imagine how much you miss having the ability to ride there regularly! I think that Wolfpen is probably my favorite climb of the six, but the downhill afterwards isn't as fun as several of the others.

@@TheTschramm yes Wolfpen was my favorite climb as well… Nestled in the woods with all the green foliage in the trees. Doing three gaps Wednesday evenings after work was amazing… No cars, no motorcycles… Very peaceful .

Thank you very much for the feedback, and I am glad you enjoyed the video. If you rode the course this year, I hope you had at least as much fun as I did.

Thanks for the comments and the insight of what you liked! Glad to hear that you also had a great time at the race. I know what you mean about sometimes missing the scenery. This year I wasn't going for time, so I was able to capture more. Frankly, I like watching an editing the raw video because it does let me see the beauty better (especially when it is from when I was going full gas). I can then select some of what I think is the best for the final cut. If you didn't see it, I have a video of my experience at the 2023 Tour of Georgia. ruclips.net/video/soVGiTsSsWs/видео.html

Just found your video today. I am from Oklahoma but besides the Hotter N Hell Century rise in Texas, I have done The Big Dam Bridge in N. Little Rock which looks similar to this. We have kids moving to Dahlonega the end of the year and may try this ride in 2025. Great job on the video!