GRAVEL TOWN, USA

DAVID EPPERSON / COURTESY OF STEAMBOAT SPRINGS CHAMBER

ROUTT COUNTY’S DIRT ROADS ARE GETTING WORLD-CLASS ATTENTION STEAMBOAT SPRINGS IS “GRAVEL TOWN, USA”

Words by Kim Fuller

There may not be an official trademark attached to the moniker, but hundreds of miles of dirt roads and gravel bike events are giving Steamboat Springs its new name to cyclists: Gravel Town, USA.

Steamboat is home to more than 600 miles of dirt and hard-packed gravel roads. Seemingly endless route options paired with the love of wide-open spaces draw more and more dirtpedalers to Steamboat and the surrounding area of Routt County.

“Our ranching heritage is the reason we have so many of these roads in the first place,” shares Laura Soard, marketing director for Steamboat Spring Chamber.

Soard says the sport has been gaining popularity in the area for a while now. Steamboatbased bike manufacturer Moots Cycles has put effort into creating equipment and events for gravel riding, which has certainly helped spread the word, and Soard says gravel riding is a welcomed alternative for road cyclists and mountain bikers looking for something new. Not to mention the safety element. Gravel riders frequent more rural roads with far less high-speed traffic than road cyclists often endure. Around Routt County, riders may encounter cattle drives and slow-moving tractors more often than the hazards of riding on the side of a paved road.

“The pace is a little slower than road riding, so you have more opportunities to look around you,” Soard shares. “You have to pick your lines but it’s not as intense as single-track mountain biking. It’s a good thing to do with kids because

it’s just a different pace. And, you don’t see many cars — but what you lack in vehicles you make up for in animal sightings.” SBT GRVL is a gravel race attracting top cycling talent to Steamboat every August. Having just completed year three, the excitement around this event continues to keep its cadence. In 2020, SBT GRVL was held virtually during the pandemic, but the race didn’t lose momentum as the 2021 race sold out 3,000 spots in just 10 minutes. SBT GRVL co-founder and race director Amy Charity says the solid infrastructure of accommodations, restaurants and transportation that already exists in Steamboat as a resort destination, paired with all the connected gravel roads of Routt County, has made it the ideal location for a world-class gravel race.

The lightning-fast registration proves athletes have their eyes on this race, and Charity says big prize money has attracted the best of the best. A $22,000 purse is spread evenly between the top five overall racers.

Charity is a former professional road cyclist and has lived in Steamboat since 2008. Her last

COURTESY OF SBT GRVL pro road cycling race was the Colorado Classic in 2019, yet at that time she says she was already enjoying gravel racing more than road racing.

“It’s pretty exciting to see that this alternative to racing is becoming so popular,” shares Charity. “I think gravel appeals to the adventure side of people. It’s something different and interesting and lets you check out an area in a new way.”

Steamboat has started to host many gravel riding events and racing throughout the year. While cycling events in Colorado will take a seasonal pause as winter rolls in, riders will be rearing to go come spring. Check out Steamboat Gravel Fest in 2022, held May 16-22. This week-long festival showcases the vast network of remote dirt and gravel roads crisscrossing Routt and Moffat Counties, featuring a free, daily group ride, social opportunities and route recommendations for “on your own” gravel experiences.

More options to experience the gravel grind in and around Steamboat include Gravel Camp with Veloscapes, a small tour operator founded by pro bike racer J.R. Thompson and specializing in custom road and gravel cycling experiences. :

Here are some options for hitting the dirt — one moderate, one intermediate and one advanced. Find a comprehensive list of rides in and around Steamboat Springs on The Dirty Roads website thedirtyroads.com, created and curated by Steamboat Springs locals.

n Emerald Circuit (partially paved)

Length: 27.6 miles. Difficulty: easy/moderate. Ride-able:

April to October. Minimum tire size: 28mm. This “classic

Steamboat ride” is perfect for those who haven’t done much gravel/road riding.

n The Darkside of Fly Gulch

Length: 31.3 miles. Difficulty: moderate/intermediate.

Ride-able: May to September. Minimum tire size: 34mm.

Climb into North Routt’s Elk River valley, ride along

Deep Creek and enjoy the rollers on the ride back.

n Strada Sporche

Length: 106.2 miles. Difficulty: hard. Ride-able: May to

September (CR 45 — Cow Creek — may be impassable when wet; stay on CR 33 to bypass). Minimum tire size: 35mm. The Strada Sporche (Italian for “dirty road”) is one of The Dirty Roads first published rides.

Words by Kim Fuller | Photos courtesy of Dave & Matt Vans

Increasing interest in “van life” has only accelerated in the time of COVID-19. The pandemic resulted in a surge of career shifts and remote workers, offering the freedom to move from a stationary home to a mobile one and hit the road. Dave & Matt Vans is a lifestyle vehicle company that builds and rents vans out of Gypsum, Colorado. The company exclusively builds out RAM ProMaster vans, with a focus on keeping each project as cost-efficient as possible for every client. “No matter the activity, environment or condition, Dave & Matt Vans are purposefully designed and built to offer folks the freedom to pursue their personal passions,” shares Matt Felser, co-founder and CEO. “We actually call our vans ‘lifestyle vehicles’ for this exact reason — because your life defines how they’re used, rather than the other way around.”

Felser’s friend and now co-founder, Dave Ramsay, began the company together out of the personal passion they shared for van life. Now while helping others access this passion, Ramsay and Felser are bringing awareness to a lifestyle that can be for either a weekend traveler or for a full-time van lifer. The tight housing market can be hard for renters and buyers right now, so the company has messaged how a lifestyle van can be an alternative housing option for full-time living. For those who are saving money for a down payment on their first home, financing for the vans is available as low as $629 per month — substantially more affordable than renting a home or even just a bedroom.

The base build-outs of Dave & Matt Vans feature “everything you need, and nothing you don’t,” as stated in the company mission. Their vans are built with the key necessities most people are accustomed to at home and feature creative solutions for optimizing small spaces that don’t break the bank.

The intentionally open layout displays a minimalist approach that still checks all the boxes.

“Most vans we encounter are over-built and make an already small space feel even smaller,” says Felser. “By leaving the space open underneath our platform bed system, we provide ample storage for whatever accessories your lifestyle would want to bring on the road.”

Extra features are always an option. Beyond the living space, kitchen and electrical built into every van, custom upgrades include more storage, a compostable toilet, shower system, power boosts, a cabin heater and more. The team at Dave & Matt Vans works in close collaboration with each prospective owner through every step of the process. From their initial “van builder” application to assess their intended usage and unique needs to their personal “New van day!” pickup date, the team walks each customer carefully through all customization options to ensure they’re getting the vehicle best suited to their lifestyle.

“Our foremost goal is to create a positive experience for each and every customer,” explains Fesler, “to help provide them with the life-changing opportunities our own team has had through van life.” Their Eagle River Valley location provides some challenges with supply chain and manufacturing, says Fesler, but it’s all worth it to have home and work in such an amazing place. “We love being based in the Rockies, particularly in Western Colorado,” Felser shares. “Inspiration is everywhere here, and the access to the outdoors is second-to-none, which fits handin-hand with our mission of making van life accessible to everyone.” Dave & Matt Vans start at $64,982 with various sizes and upgrades available. Learn more at dmvans.com. :

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ATHLETE PROFILE AMITY ROCKWELL

Words by Kim Fuller | Photo courtesy of Backbone Media

Gravel, says Amity Rockwell, is the “great equalizer.” As a professional cyclist currently dominating the national gravel biking scene, Rockwell appreciates how, as a woman, she can roll up to the start line alongside all pro riders — not just other females — and all go out to race the same course and the same distance. “We are basically just treated as another human being,” Rockwell explains. “It’s not a short course, toned down, women’s-only race at an inconvenient time. You’re in the race and you’re another cyclist. Unfortunately, nothing else in cycling can really offer that right now, but hopefully someday.” Rockwell’s momentum in gravel racing has seemed to propel at the same rapid rate as the sport itself. Now 27, Rockwell was a crosscountry runner growing up and into her early college years. She also pursued an interest and talent in the ultra-running scene, but nagging injuries and burnout led Rockwell to riding, then racing, at age 20.

Her increasing success as a cyclist can certainly be attributed to her impressive endurance engine and a family history of very strong athleticism, yet it’s apparent that Rockwell’s determination and focus is what keeps her climbing toward greatness. When Rockwell started riding, she owned only a road bike. The hashtag and ideology of #roadbikesoffroad was gaining momentum where she was in Northern California. “We all had road bikes, but looking back we rode a lot of dirt,” she recalls. “We would just do it. You flatted a bunch, you messed up your bike and you would come home kind of wrecked, but we loved it.”

Rockwell is currently based out of the San Francisco Bay Area, yet she comes to Colorado often for riding and racing. “Colorado is a place that never stops asking if you want to ride just a little bit farther,” shares

Rockwell. “It’s seems like I barely scratch the surface every time I go ride there. It’s impossible not to ask what’s around the next corner, and the next, and the next, and every time, what you find is worth the effort.” When Rockwell leaves the Colorado border and heads west into Utah, she mentions one area that creates a “ride experience like no other.” “White Rim is relentless,” she explains, “both in how difficult it is and in how content the draw-dropping views are.” Rockwell’s Pinarello GREVIL gravel bike gets her around, that’s for certain. I had the joy of riding with her up and down the steep Boulder foothills. She mentioned how she could just ride the winding canyon roads all day — up and down, then up and up and up. This past summer, Rockwell finished an impressive 2nd place at Unbound 200 in Kansas (formally Dirty Kanza), quite arguably the largest North American gravel race and the race of which she was defending champion.

Rockwell says support for women in the sport has increased in the years she has been riding, yet she always feels like it could, and should, be happening faster. Whether it’s getting women into cycling or keeping them in it, Rockwell says it’s important to focus on continuing to break down financial and social barriers that exist. “It is encouraging and it’s nice to feel like I am a small part of advocating for it, as one of the rare and lucky women who has been able to take it professional in such a short amount of time,” says Rockwell. Making used gear accessible for new riders can help get them into the sport, and for women, more visibility on a global level could serve to balance the male-dominated culture. “When cycling first piqued my interest, I got really into watching world tour races, and I found them really interesting,” shares Rockwell, “but there was not a way to watch a women’s world tour race. And, there just weren’t that many happening to begin with.

“So, tuning in to watch a men’s Tour de France and knowing there is no equivalent for women,” she adds, “how then do you as a young woman be like ‘Here’s something I want to work towards’ when it doesn’t exist?” Rockwell’s soft green gravel steed isn’t the only support she gets as a U.S. ambassador for Pinarello. The Italian bicycle manufacturer and global brand has set out to support each of their ambassador’s personal goals, projects and organizations to benefit their local cycling communities. To give back to the sport she loves, Rockwell started Fast Friends, an online discussion forum about all things biking that engages and includes women and non-binary individuals. Rockwell says to message her Instagram @amityvil to receive a link to join Fast Friends. “We talk to each other and share resources, knowledge, advice and gear, and just generally communicate about cycling,” says Rockwell. “It’s not gravel specific and it’s not competition specific — it’s literally like ‘Do you ride in any capacity and how can we help stay unified as a community?’” :

Compiled by S+B Staff

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