From Fear
ful to Fearless
2022: 89th Place — Time: 5:36:11.6 — Speed: 10.5MPH
2023: 27th Place — Time: 4:55:13.6 — Speed: 11.2MPH
2024: 16th Place — Time: 4:27:00.1 — Speed: 12.4MPH
If you’ve ever biked through New England, you don’t have to go too far to find a warning sign for an upcoming unmaintained road. You’ll hear it called Class IV, Class VI, sometimes Pavé, but regardless of the term, you better get ready… you’ve been warned. Calling these roads “roads” is often a stretch as many of them are completely unpassable by anything other than foot (sometimes arguably by a raft). But for some reason the local cyclists keep including these in their weekend gravel routes for fun.
The Vermont Overland Gravel Race thrives on this spirit of adventure riding and inserts a traditional race format over 55 miles and 7200 feet of climbing. There are seven sections of class IV roads all with an identity of their own. Some are flowy dirt descents, some navigate up 20% grades, some jump between ruts as deep as your knees or water bars higher than your knees, some have puddles that span the entire track, others are mossy rock beds. You can’t avoid them. You can either ride them… or not.
My first Overland was in 2022. Being an amateur in the cycling world, my goal was just to finish the race. I chose a spot in the back of a pack of 900+ folks as I was intimidated to be anywhere closer to the front. I had recon’d the route a few weeks prior and walked most of the technical sections. But when race day hit, I seemed to have found some new bravery that kept me on my bike seat. I flailed down several of the class IV roads being bucked the entire way. It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t skilled. It was lucky. With my legs and arms cramping and fatigued, I made it across the finish line intact. As much as I want to say I “partied in the back”, it was actually the best biking I could have done. My time was 5:36:11 which averaged 10.5MPH. I placed 89/219 in the women’s overall category.
By the time Overland 2023 came, I was a few months into my formal training. I was excited to put it to the test. I remember feeling good during the first half of the race. I had somewhat of a race strategy and was working on my nutrition. Unfortunately, I lost all but two gels from my pockets after going down the first class IV section. I was able to pick up some spare gels at the rest stop midway but the sweet, sugary treats had other ideas for my GI tract. I spent the second half of the race under fueled and feeling ill. I still managed to cross the finish line but did not have much left to spare. Regardless of the hang-ups, my time was a whole 40 minutes faster then the year prior. I ended up placing 27/129 for the women’s overall.
The start of Overland 2024 was filled with anxiety. I had a lot of doubt and apprehension leading into this race as somehow I’ve managed to stay unscathed in the years prior. Would my luck run out this year? I knew I was riding better but better means faster descents and more people around me. The line up started. I made my way towards the front of the pack. The closer to the front I went, the bigger my imposter syndrome feelings grew. Several racers began to squeeze in around me tightly as if they already knew they needed to be ahead of me. And then I saw a couple of girls who I recently raced against and decided to tuck in behind them. I knew they were a bit stronger than me but perhaps for the first time, I felt like I belonged in that crew. If they could line up in the front, so could I.
The gun fired and off I went with the pack. The man next to me immediately lost his footing and ran into my shoulder from the side. After sarcastically thinking “off to a great start”, I continued on with the sardine packed peloton for the 1.5 mile lead out. Then the SUV turned off and the race started. I honestly did not want to work with anyone yet as I need some space to gather my bearings and control the environment the best that I could for what was coming up.
I arrived at the first class IV section which isn’t far into the race. If you are anywhere behind the front pack, this section will be bottlenecked due to sheer volume of racers of various skill levels trying to get through a narrow trail. As soon as one racer falls or has to dismount, the traffic jam ensues. I saw the majority of racers taking an “easy cut” on a double track section alongside the route so I decided to push ahead towards the muddy rocks fewer people dared to ride. I was able to gain a little more ground but was caught up in the masses at the merge point and came to a stop. Once I made it past, I pushed ahead to a clearing where I could remount. It was shortly into this section that I started realizing the progress I had made on my skills in the last year: I was now the rider who was confident. I had a line, I had control, and I wasn’t afraid. (Dare I say I was even having fun?) Now I’m still far from competing in the next enduro mountain bike challenge, but it was a personal win get through this class IV section with ease. I took a deep breath once the terrain smoothed out but remained apprehensive knowing what was still ahead. Each class IV came and went. I kept waiting to get to the parts that had previously forced me to put a foot down, but they never came. It wasn’t a new route, it was my growth as a cyclist that changed my perspective. What was once so feared, was now just familiar riding. This alone was a win for me.
The rest of the race was climby, pristine gravel with a tiny bit of pavement connectors. I had a little lull around mile 40 coming up on a series of five identical 0.3 mile climbs at >10% grades. Apart from that section, I rode strong and I finished strong. I was proud of my time of 4:27, taking 28 minutes off of last year’s time and landing me 16/111 for women overall and 3rd in my age group.
Every race continues to be an opportunity to learn and overcome challenges. VT Overland has been the perfect testament to my growth as a gravel cyclist and racer. In three years of doing this race, I’ve learned so many lessons beyond becoming a stronger athlete physically. I’ve learned the importance of positioning yourself at the start line, to descending rock gutted terrain next to people, to where to store your gels properly, etc. Progress is limitless if you’re willing to put yourself out there.
Copied from the SEEN.BY.SARAH blog post written by Sarah Skelly.