Kansas Cyclist - Kansas Bicycle Guide and Reference

The Dirty Kanza is an ultra-distance bike race that takes place May 31st in the rugged Flint Hills. Billed as the “Ultimate Gravel Grinder,” the event starts and finishes in Emporia, and offers 200 miles of racing on blacktop, gravel, and dirt roads through remote and scenic east-central Kansas.

The event attracts ultra-endurance racers from all over the country, including (according to Emporia’s High Gear bike shop), luminaries such as former Olympian Travis Brown (inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame in 2006), Keith Bontrager (founder of Bontrager parts, inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame in 1994), and Cameron Chambers (2005 24-Hour National Champion).

As Guitar Ted says, “you better get your “hellos” in at the start line, ’cause these guys will be smokin’.”

Other local cyclists attempting the Dirty Kanza include Micah at Hiawatha Cyclist, Michelle at Meetzorp, and Lelan at The Life of LeLan, who also offers a great video preview of the ride.

But the big names won’t be the only stars you’re likely to see at Dirty Kanza. If you’re riding this race, and survive to the end, you’ll likely be riding well into the night. And if the sky is clear you can enjoy the waning crescent moon, and the stars in the heavens:

O wild and wondrous midnight,
There is a might in thee
To make the charmed body
Almost like spirit be,
And give it some faint glimpses
Of immortality.
James Russell Lowell, Midnight

The March/April 2008 edition of Masters Athlete magazine features an article on last December’s Kansas City Cyclocross National Championships (Cold, dirty victory), focusing on two local cyclists:

Catherine Walberg and Steve Tilford both hail from Topeka, Kan. The two defending cyclocross national champions train together, and they both race in the 45-49 age group.

The two champions took very different approaches to victory, with Tilford leading his race wire-to-wire, and Walberg (shown on the right) only gaining her lead on the final lap, but both riders emerged victorious.

If you’re interested in reading more, Steve Tilford has his own blog, and the Trek Bicycle Store of Kansas City features The Tilford Interview. CyclingUpdate.com offers an Interview with Catherine Walberg.

Congratulations, Steve and Catherine — all hail the victors!

The route for the second running of the Tour of Missouri, September 8th through the 14th, has been announced:

1. St. Joseph to Kansas City: 90 miles
2. Clinton to Springfield: 125 miles
3. Branson: 18 miles (individual time trials)
4. Lebanon to Rolla: 105 miles
5. St. James to Jefferson City: 100 miles
6. Hermann to St. Charles: 110 miles
7. St. Louis: 75 miles (circuit race)

Compared to the first year’s event, the 2008 edition of this professional stage race adds new towns to the tour, as well as another day of racing. The race will cover 623 miles and feature 120 of the world’s top cyclists.

Last year’s Tour of Missouri featured 15 professional cycling teams, including the last American appearance of the Discovery Channel team, which included Tour de France winner Alberto Contador, U.S. National Champion Levi Leipheimer, and the eventual winner of the race, George Hincapie. The race produced an economic impact of more than $26 million for the state, as over 350,000 spectators turned out to watch the race, lining streets and roads all along the route.