Packing for Unbound: The Never-Ending Struggle
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- Опубликовано: 28 май 2024
- This day and age, there are lots of 200 mile races. But Unbound stands alone in the amount of hardware, stuff, parts, bits-and-pieces that are required to put together a fun, fast day. I put together this video to help show what I pack to prepare for our Gravel Locos-to-Unbound road trip and have my bike and Laura's bike ready for the action!
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Man, very thorough rundown of the insanity that Unbound has apparently become....Ted, you don't look super happy with needing all of this stuff, nor the F1-style pit stops...I feel for you...hand in there and all the best!
Good luck!
The spirit of gravel sounds alot like a road race 😂
That's why Ted rolls with a bit of a straight faced oh well here we go vibe. Let 'em rip I say! Ya don't train for a joy ride ya know.
@@scooter2163 exactly! Good luck to them both.
Except the (mostly) self-supporting. and either no team or just a couple buddies. That makes a big difference.
100% Unbound started out with strong SoG but when the purse started getting big in 2019 that ended.
Whenever money and reputation are on the line tactics become a thing. If not already clear, this year's event put the final nail in the coffin that Gravel is somehow pure and unlike a road race in its benevolence. It's now big-time bike racing - with its own tactics - but no better and no worse.
@@obikedog Yeah true, but really only for the lead pros. For the masses, it "should" be the same old fun rally ride IF they remember they don't have to kill themselves with marginal gainz to still finish in style. We saw this in triathlon. Let the top pros get crazy with trying to kill each other while age groupers can still have fun. The distance and time cutoffs haven't changed, the only pressure to finish faster is self-induced. A couple of guys did it on Walmart beach bikes, single speed with coaster brakes.
Hey Ted just check that your pump is compatible with the turbolito tubes - I found that the Lezyne pump head didn’t securely fix to the plastic valve stem of a turbolito tube. Good luck mate, hope you give them all carrots!
Emporia has the most trains I have ever experienced in any town I have ever lived in! We are glad to host you guys though! Good luck!! 🚴
Looking forward to the after video for an AAR on what worked and what didn’t. Most of us will never roll around at that level. But a lot of the lessons do apply. Thanks for these videos and I hope you have a great ride this year.
Awesome Ted, thanks for sharing and good luck in race!!
Best of luck Ted & Laura! Great video.
Have a great race. Fingers crossed for good weather.
Best of luck Ted!
Good luck this weekend to you both!
I hope you have a great race! Memories are being made.
I hope y'all have a great time and finish well. Been a fan for a few years now.
Fellow New Englander here, best of luck to both of you! Thanks for sharing!!
Great demo of the prep needed. The "Spirit of Gravel" remains. The pointy end of the pack is even sharper but the "Spirit" for the rest of us reflects what we bring in our hearts. Now, where's the mud removal tool? Best wishes
Great video and sorta funny in a way. It's nice to know I'm not the only one over-prepping; at least one person is more OCD than me about spares and bottles!
One thing that worked well for me this year (as a non-elite!) was not wearing the hydration pack and trusting in my bottles to get me to water and aid stations. (Last year I skipped the water stops and wore the packs - but I was better conditioned last year.) This year I knew I'd need the stops for breathers so this worked. I had full packs at both aid stops just in case -- and for the last one I wore it not knowing how long I'd take for that final 54mi.
fwiw I did not use it all and finished with two full bottles - in the dark - with two of those beach cruiser dudes pulling me the whole way lol!
Wishing you the best of luck from Alstonville NSW Australia !
Ted and Laura, your two kids are soooo darn cute! Best of luck in the race!
Good luck and "Enjoy" the race (type 2 fun for sure)
Ted, you have a special place in my heart. I chronically over plan and supply. Even with riding the 50 of unbound, mid south, and our local Octagon I still am over prepared
Great stuff!
Good luck !
Good luck from rainy Vermont.
See you there, Amigo. Gonna be a wild time
Go well Ted best wishes 👊🏼 from 🇦🇺
Ted, awesome info and a peak inside a pro racer's prep for a race like Unbound. Us common folk would not be able to prepare like this. I have a bike, bottles, a spare wheel set, and a couple hydration packs that I would be able to bring. I look in the back of my truck and make sure I have shoes, a helmet, a bike, a pump, bib shorts and a jersey. If so, let's go!! Good luck this weekend! Rep the US well!! Good to see you competing again.
Happy to help! Thanks for watching.
... its me from the future... take something for upset belly... else you'll fall behind 10 spot ;-) Great video Ted !!
Good luck at the race! Really wish it was streamed
Great vid. When you're done saying what you have to, end it :)
Good luck Kings this weekend. 200 miles I can't imagine. I wish they live streamed Unbound.
They have previously, not sure if they are again this year. Coverage can be a little spotty because the course is so long though.
ha! This reminds me of how I pack for a weekend of racing... I always somehow manage to fill our VW Atlas to the roof just with stuff for myself...'just incase'! Sorry to hear that your race had a few hiccups, but here will be another opportunity. Cheers man.
That is a lot of money in gear! I know you have sponsors for a lot of it, but probably not all of it. The six USWE packs alone...damn!
Well I would have to conclude that the "spirit of gravel" has gone to the great beyond. After watching Dylan Johnson's video, yours was just another nail in the coffin
Anything that a lot of people like will lose a lot of what the early participants enjoyed about it.
I’m proud to have been able to experience this race over nearly a ten year period. It has a charm still for sure! It’s just changed a lot too.
That's just like your opinion, man.
Ted, you have been such a great ambassador for so many types of riding … Road, Cross and Gravel. Best of luck
Your comment goes against the spirit of gravel tho
Crossing fingers for no mud. I've done the 110 Gravel Locos twice. Crawled into the finish. Not training properly and not getting the nutrition right killed me. 150 Gravel Locos is hard for me to comprehend. 200 mile Unbound is super human.
And somehow you found time to steal my KOM a week before the race. I enjoyed your video.
Best of luck,
+1 on the slick tires and light weight road shoes.
Looks less and less fun every year 😜 (ps. This makes for better viewing)
Unreal you're self supporting for the race. Doing your own mechanical work!? Well done.
All that maple syrup and you aren’t from Vermont? 😂. Secret Canadian, just slsm some poutine in a feed bag!! Unbound is starting to sound like a miserable pro road race now…. Best of luck to your both! Tailwind in every direction!!
The Gravel Spirit is sending two days of rain before the race.
As an aging recreational cyclist who has never even ridden 200 miles at once, competing in Unbound seems like joining the Navy SEALs for fun lmao
uh, there’s no swimming
Can't wait to race with you at Jon Bon Pass Out! Good luck in Kansas.
Looking forward to it!
Ted go and rock this…. I hope all your gear selection is correct for Mudbound!
10:47 damn bro, I’m sorry. You just sound so bummed. I hope you do well. It’ll restore your faith in the spirit of gravel.
Best of luck, Ted! Bust out a can of Dad Watts and go school the youngsters! 🎉
For me you are still the one that has the true gravel spirit, together with Laurens, Ian and so on.
Going on adventures, doing crazy stuff, be out there with your mates. Not that stressed hyped up shit. Good luck!!
I absolutely love that the spirit is dead.
Dudes got 700 in just hydration packs. Damn. I was thinking about just trying the 50 but damn. Ima spend 5 to 600 in just supplies to try out a race 😢
Good luck Ted, hope you get better weather this year.
I hope so too! Forecast is questionable 🤨
so when someone tells you that you helped kill the spirit of gravel, of course you will say yes I did. The new formula 1. congrats
...and I thought I took a lot of stuff to a bike race or triathlon race 😀.
The life of a family man privateer 🙂
Are you by chance affiliated with Cannondale? ;-) My fave bike brand in my youth.
I didn't find the Quoc gravel shoes to be comfortable. The toe box bumper was way too hard on my big and little toes and there just wasn't enough room in the toe box. Bont's toe box has a great shape but lacks vertical volume. I'm looking at Lake's new 'comfort' semi-walkable MTBish shoe with a 'barefoot' toe box shape. I haven't tried it on yet. We shall see.
Nice vid! Good luck for the race.
Caught you taking a moment to pray with another rider before the race. Respect, bro’. May He continue to bless you beyond your imagination.
Kinder words have rarely been spoken. Props for supporting those taking the time to pause and reflect.
Good luck this weekend to you and Laura! PS: Which bike boxes are those?
ShokBox. It’s amazing!
9 bags: Did you get crushed on baggage fees or what.. LOL
Having priority status sometimes pays off! $0 (but they got a lot of money from us over the years. I trust the airlines are still ahead on this deal 😆)
Ted King -- Tree powered
Go Crush it!
The obvious - all this stuff is needed if you intend to finish in the top 10(ish) not for the rando-spirit-O-gravel bike racer.
No Rene Hearse TPU tubes?
What is the hard case you have back there?
Just curious how many carbs per hour are you shooting for during the race? I know some riders at the recent Giro would consume between 100 and 125 carbs per hour.
I’m in a 90-140g CHO/hr window depending on the part of the race. All UnTapped. Pretty rad 🍁
Does anyone know what bike travel cases those are?
Did you ever make videos during rides? Like I was waiting for a Levi grand fondo video about the actual ride not the preview
What brand of bike boxes are you packing your bikes in?
ShokBox!
What bike case do you use for travel? Any recommendations ?
ShokBox. They’re great!
Super curious what cleat adaptor that is? Anyone got any info there? Ted?
Just Google something like “road shoe spd adapter”. Maximal nerdy gains 💪
😵💫
Totally understand using road shoes if they are more comfortable but isn't the rotational weight thing a myth? When one foot is going up the other is going down. No extra effort required. There is only the miniscule extra energy required to increase cadence. I thought when people used road shoes it was because they wanted to use road pedals with a bigger platform. If you are putting on SPDs wouldn't it make sense to use shoes that'll be better if you need to run across a mud section or something?
Not trying to be a smartass just genuinely curious.
What are your goals for unbound? winning, top five, top ten??
Love the cynicism. Gives me hope.
Why can't they simply provide a few faucets at hydration stations, and everybody just refills their original water bottles and Camel Backs?
Good luck but this seems like too big overkill.
Wait tell us more about the Dutch Mafia and the (Canadian) Poutine Mafia. Is there a New England Gang?
One eats French fries with mayonnaise and the other eats them with gravy and cheese curds.
So practically Unbound is in the middle of nowhere and you have to pack everything bcs you can't get anything there :)))))
Who watches your kids while you both race?
HAHA mtn bike cleat on a road shoe.. Who wouldda thunk it 10 years back
No it doesnt, ou complicated a lot
I know you love racing your bike but it didn't sound like it. Carry on.
Now thats what i call prepared.
Im not a fan of the F1 style pits. Not really self sufficient.
Its turning pretty elitist . You have no chance even if you are fit as hell but cannot afford that sort of back up .