SBT GRVL Runs Afoul of Local Ranchers & Residents in Colorado

[tomato coupe]

Originally Posted by mstateglfr

The county has 11 people per square mile.

At 11 people per square mile, how many people is this actually hurting?

The county has 11 people per square mile ...

You keep repeating this, but it's a fairly meaningless figure because it represents the average density for the entire county. The population density along the SBT GRVL route is certainly a lot higher than this.

[redir]

From the article title they, "want to protect their heritage."

I find that amusing on a lot of levels.

[ridethecliche]

Originally Posted by redir

From the article title they, "want to protect their heritage."

I find that amusing on a lot of levels.

I was trying to figure out how to say this but... Here goes.

I snowboard and try to make it out west once or twice a season if time and funds allow. I'm Indian and grew up in Delhi moving to the US at 11 which makes me a huge outlier in many ways. Hilariously one of my friends whom I travel and ride with the most is also Indian, which is hilarious because we've only known each other for like two years, but we always point out all the brown folks we see on the mountain because it's rare.

We also spend time in town. I've been to steamboat twice. Jackson hole once. SLC a couple of times including one time when we did a road trip to the Idaho border to ride and even drove and ate a meal in idaho.

I'm saying all this because there were a lot of things I felt like I didn't belong in these spaces.

It hasnt escaped my notice how there's all this talk of heritage creeping up at an event that's going out of its way to be inclusive.

Fact is that these spaces benefit economically from these events. You're never going to have 100% buy in from a community which is fine but you need to build up good will and do things to help. If you're doing all that and have majority buy in then...

Fact is. Gravel events need the support of communities like this. There needs to be some leadville esque energy to help these things succeed.

[AngryScientist]

The more I read about big events like this that invariably attract the type A personalities, the less and less interested I am in participating. Riding alone or with small groups of like minded friends is so much better for me.

I think a lot of these "gravel" type of events have been allowed to get too big. Too many cyclists riding on what are intended to be rural farm roads is going to cause disruption and resentment, even if everyone acts perfectly, and we know the more people you accumulate, the more jerks will be present.

[tommyrod74]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

The more I read about big events like this that invariably attract the type A personalities, the less and less interested I am in participating. Riding alone or with small groups of like minded friends is so much better for me.

I think a lot of these "gravel" type of events have been allowed to get too big. Too many cyclists riding on what are intended to be rural farm roads is going to cause disruption and resentment, even if everyone acts perfectly, and we know the more people you accumulate, the more jerks will be present.

Every discipline of cycling has gone through this. Cyclocross went through it here a few seasons back. MTB, years (decades) ago. Cyclists discover or invent a "new" version of cycling, it gets more popular, events get larger (and eventually have prizes and awards), and people get surprised that racers take notice of their races and start racing them.

Just because "type A" personalities show up doesn't mean that you have to race them if you don't want to. You can always go and ride your ride. And if we aren't allowed to generalize about rural people (and I agree we shouldn't), we also shouldn't assume that competitive riders are the "jerks" in any group. There's no demonstrable correlation between racer types and propensity to litter, poop in someone's yard, etc.

I agree that field limits are just a smart call for these events.

[mstateglfr]

Originally Posted by tomato coupe

You keep repeating this, but it's a fairly meaningless figure because it represents the average density for the entire county. The population density along the SBT GRVL route is certainly a lot higher than this.

I do a yearly gravel race about an hour from me. It starts and ends in Newton IA which has 15,000 people. It passes near a couple towns, but only rolls thru one other town and that has 2,000 people.
The race is 55mi within the Jasper Co with a density of 52 people per mile. Newton has 1,390 people per square mile. You spend the first 10 minutes and the last 8 minutes in Newton. Besides that, its straight rural farming country.
Remove Newton and the rest of the county is 30 people per square mile...which even that seems high.
I spend maybe 5mi in the populated part of that county and 50mi in the rural farm part.

Same applies here.
How much of the 140mi route below is densely populated? I am surprised we are even using the term 'densely populated' at all here. I have only been out there once- thru the town into WY, but from what I saw- it quickly goes to rural outside of the immediate town. That was 2018, so maybe its exploded in growth while the population stayed down in the last census?

[tomato coupe]

Originally Posted by mstateglfr

How much of the 140mi route below is densely populated? I am surprised we are even using the term 'densely populated' at all here.

Has anyone except you used the term?