Unbound Gravel is one of those races where it seems inevitable something will go wrong for just about every rider as they traverse the challenging terrain through the Flint Hills of Kansas – just ask winners Lachlan Morton (EF Education EasyPost) and Rosa Klöser (MAAP-Rose), who both had mishaps along the way.
Still, while Kloser managed to fight back from her ill-timed flat and Morton was even grateful in hindsight for a wrong turn that foiled his early attack, others had mishaps, or a number of them, that completely derailed their races. There may not have been the peanut butter mud that destroyed drivetrains like last year, but there were plenty of other issues to contend with over the 203-mile (327km) race.
Many riders who were expected to be right up there in the battle for victory had their chances destroyed, not by tactics, race fitness or preparation, but by a rock kicked up on a fast descent or a crash after either they or a rider alongside was bumped off course by the rough terrain. Unbound is brutal – that’s part of what makes it so special. But it also means that every year there is a long list of riders who have their race ruined by elements that are, at least partly, beyond their control.
It’s a race where the strength of a rider is just part of the picture, so to delve into the stories left untold by the results let us take a look at a catalogue of some of the mishaps and misadventures among those riders who entered with great hope but will now be forced to put those dreams of Unbound glory on ice for another year.
Women's pro race
Justine Barrow (26th) - The Australian champion, who was coming into the race fresh from a win at Gravel Locos, got caught up by a crash right in front of her at just 15 miles (25km) into the race and while she set off in pursuit, getting to within 10 seconds of the bunch at one point, she couldn't make the junction. With all the effort and expense that had gone into meticulously preparing, however, there was no giving up and Barrow chased through the field to achieve at least one objective, finishing.
Kristen Legan (30th) - After winning Unbound 360 last year Legan was a rider to watch but she too had a chase back to deal with, getting caught up in the same early crash as Barrow.
Emily Newsom (25th) - An early attack quickly came unstuck with Newsom struck by a mechanical while out the front, which meant the pack caught up and then passed on by.
Whitney Allison (33rd) - Tailed off the 15-rider lead group but had settled in nicely to chase with Tiffany Cromwell and Danni Shrosbree when a flat and subsequent CO2 canister mishap put her out of reach.
Matilda Raynolds (23rd) A mechanical where the chain wrapped around the cranks and then a flat left the Dirty Warrny winner out of the running but not out of the fight. She ultimately linked up with compatriot Justine Barrow to push on through to the line in Emporia.
Karolina Migoń (21st) – Winning the Traka 360 last month meant the Polish rider came into Unbound with the look of a contender for the top spots, but even the long-range winning form wasn't enough to overcome two punctures and a mechanical.
Sofia Gomez Villafañe (15th) - After coming second in 2023 and first in 2022 it was hard to find a bigger favourite than the rider who has dominated the US gravel scene in recent times. However fighting back from a flat was one thing, but two another entirely.
Men's pro race
Matej Mohorič (DNF) - The WorldTour professional may have been entering just his second gravel race but rivals were wary of the Bahrain Victorious rider who had the rainbow jersey on his back. Though gravel racing is a broad church, and Unbound didn't treat the rider as kindly as his first foray. 'I think we're going to stick to road racing' was his quip as he pointed out his cracked rim. Mechanicals and flats had spelt the end of the day for Mohorič and his teammates Matevž Govekar and Lukas Wiśniowski.
Thijs Zonneveld (31st) - The Dutch rider was ideally placed, out the front in a break with eventual winner Lachlan Morton and second-placed Chad Haga, and then all of a sudden the perfect scenario unravelled. "Everything was spot on today ... only that one stone was wrong," said Zonneveld, who lost prime position with a puncture, on Instagram.
Brendan Johnston (15th) - The Australian has every reason for the lament of "Oh Unbound you cruel beast" that led his Instagram post on the race. Last year was a disaster-prone DNF, then this year he had a flat while in the front group, chased back, then got hit by two more yet still held on in the front group while riding the inserts on an unrepairable tyre for about 70km to the second feed zone. The stop for repairs meant losing contact but even then he still managed a top 20 finish.
Petr Vakoč (41st) - Last year the former road racer got through the brutal conditions to take the runner-up spot but this year a sliced rear tyre on sharp flint stones brought him undone. The rider from the Czech Republic put in a tube that a passing rider gave him but by then the race for a top result was over.
Paul Voß (49th) - Mechanicals, punctures and a "really stupid" crash was something last year's Traka 200 winner said made it more of a "survival ride".
Connor Sens (46th) – The Australian gravel champion had held firm at the front through much of the race but after being dropped on some punchy climbs was pushing the pace on a descent and hit some big rocks and cracked his rim, but with a tube in the rider from Bendigo managed to get through the next 110km.
Keegan Swenson (14th) – Last year’s winner of Unbound and the Life Time Grand Prix series already had his back against the wall, given how heavily marked he was and to add insult to injury – or perhaps we should say injury to insult – he also came across the line bloodied by a crash.
Brennan Wertz (60th) - The US rider came into Unbound Gravel 200 with great form, having won the UCI Gravel World Series race at Fayetteville, Arkansas. But he may have won a new division at Unbound for most plugs - 14 - and spent Co2 cartridges - 9 - in the 200-mile race.
