Originally published at: Gravel Worlds Adds Triathlon to Suite of Off-Road Cycling, Running Races - Slowtwitch News
Athletes take part at the Gravel Worlds Training Camp in May. Photo: Kevin Mackinnon
Gravel cycling has seen a boom in recent years, and its popularity has slowly but surely seeped into the world of triathlon. That is more apparent now than ever before, as USA Triathlon has a Gravel Triathlon Series and gravel national championships for both triathlon and duathlon. This year, those national races will take place at Gravel Worlds in Lincoln, Neb., and although this is their first time hosting for USA Triathlon, the organizing team is far from green when it comes to organizing and running gravel endurance events.
The growing world of gravel
On the Gravel Worlds website, there is a banner that reads, âExploring together since 2010,â but as Jason Strohbehnâthe eventâs chief experience officer and lead promoterâpoints out, it has actually been around longer.
âTechnically, it started in 2008,â Strohbehn says. âIt was called the Good Life Gravel Adventure back then.â
In 2010, the team changed the name to Gravel Worlds.
âThe name started out kind of as a joke,â Strohbehn says. âThere were road, mountain and cyclocross worlds, but our team said, âNo one knows about gravel cycling, so weâll call it Gravel Worlds.ââ
Almost a decade later, gravel cycling saw a massive surge in popularity, and all of a sudden, the Gravel Worlds name didnât seem like so much of a joke anymore.
âWe actually got the trademark in the U.S. for Gravel Worlds in 2019,â Strohbehn says. âThat was a big step for us in the history of the event.â
It is, of course, difficult to pinpoint exactly when gravel cycling took off and began to change from a fringe part of the sport into a legitimately recognized discipline in the eyes of cyclists, but Strohbehn says it was in and around 2017. That was the start of exponential growth for Gravel Worlds.
âEvery year after that, itâd get 10 to 15 per cent bigger,â Strohbehn says. âBut the growth really came in 2021. It increased by 80 per cent.â
As popularity in the sport took off, so did Gravel Worlds, and soon enough, the small, niche event went from a few hundred competitors across multiple races to more than 2,500.
A family affair: Jason Strohbehn rides with his mother, Kim. Photo: Kevin Mackinnon
Racing at Gravel Words
The 2025 event will mark the 16th running of Gravel Worlds (under that name). It will feature four cycling races, four running events, and a pair of triathlon and duathlon races over four days, from Aug. 21 to 24. There is quite a bit of variety for the cycling and running events. For cyclists, there are 35-, 75-, 150- and 300-mile options. On the running side of things, athletes can choose from 5K, 10K, 25K and 50K races.
The triathlons and duathlons have two options each: sprint or standard. The sprint triathlon includes 750 metres of swimming, 13 miles of riding and a 5K run. The standard tri is a 1,500-metre/28-mile/10-km split. For the duathlon races, there arenât opening run legs to make up for the missed swim. Instead, the races start from the bike.
There has been a triathlon on race weekend for the past three years, but Strohbehn says it was not officially a Gravel Worlds race.
âIt was the Great Plains Gravel Triathlon,â he says, âso 2025 will be the first year itâll be called the Gravel Worlds Triathlon.â
As already mentioned, it will also be the first time that the event will welcome athletes vying for national titles. It wonât be the last, however, as USA Triathlon has agreed to a two-year deal with Gravel Worlds as the host of the national championship.
Photo: Kevin Mackinnon
All About Community
The first thing that Strohbehn said about gravel racing when he spoke with Slowtwitch was that the atmosphere at these events is unparalleled in any other competition he has attended.
âEvery athlete is celebrated,â he says. âSome events in triathlon do an incredible job with that, but gravel races in general have always had that mentality.â
People want to perform well, yes, and there are of course athletes who are showing up on race day hoping to win. But Strohbehn says that those things are secondary to most gravel cyclists and triathletes. âI personally think itâs one of the big differences of gravel racing.â
Strohbehn points to the raceâs DFL award.
âItâs the Dead Freakinâ Last award,â he says. âWhoever comes in last literally gets a special prize. Itâs kind of a known thing in gravel events.â
This year, the Gravel Worlds team will have 40 bottles of champagne at the finish line, and Strohbehn says they are âgoing to light up on this guy or gal.â At any other race or sporting event, itâs the winners who pop the champagne, but at Gravel Worlds, itâs the last finisher who gets to kick off the party.
âThatâs really what drew me into the sport,â Strohbehn says. âIâve never been a fast person. I have a heart condition. Iâm never going to win, but Iâve been celebrated and cheered on at gravel events like I never got at road or mountain races. Community is definitely a priority.â
On that note, Strohbehn adds that the Gravel Worlds team has a big focus on women racers this year. âRaces are often really male-dominated,â he says. âWe hope to see at least 1,000 women at this yearâs event.â The team hit this goal in 2022, and Strohbehn says theyâre confident they can clear that bar once more this year.
âWe will be donating $10 per woman up to $10,000,â he says. The money will go to Girls Riding Together, a Nebraska initiative that supports and encourages the next generation of female cyclists in the state. Strohbehn referred to the recent all-women Ironman World Championships (the race split from mixed-gender racing to separate menâs and womenâs championships in 2023). He says he has spoken with many women who raced at the Ironman worlds in 2023 and 2024, and they have told him that it was an incredible experience.
âThey said that being surrounded by so many women at a race was very empowering,â he says. The Gravel Worlds wonât be a womenâs-only event, but there will be some activities before the races that are solely for women, including a shakeout ride and inclusion in a WhatsApp group where they can connect, ask questions and discuss plans ahead of the race weekend.
All told, Gravel Worlds is poised to be a unique event. It will present challenges to its many racers while staying true to its gravel roots, maintaining an emphasis on fun and community. So, really, the question isnât whether you should sign up to race, but rather if you should enter more than one of the weekendâs many events.