“The Cascade Gravel Grinder is a 3-day stage race; however, this year, I opted for only the Queen Stage and trained through in my final prep for Unbound 200. The course was altered from the original plan due to snow and trees, and it is hard to believe that what was delivered was plan B. Central Oregon always delivers and makes the suffering worthwhile. I went hard from the start, pushing the pace, and soon Flavia took the lead and I got to yo-yo with my training buddy Sarah Von Max (who went on to get second on the day and the overall). Another long climb came, and I conceded defeat. With over 20 miles to go, an always late-closer I was content to cruise into Sisters, feast on the catered meal in the park, and make the slow ride back home to Bend in order to wrap up the biggest volume training block of my life.”
