GRUSK (Gravel Ride Up Spruce Knob) Race Recap

 

Bike Race Number 2: GRUSK (Gravel Ride Up Spruce Knob)

With the blink of an eye, our much anticipated second bike race of the season was upon us.

This adventure-cycling event is called GRUSK which is an acronym for Gravel Ride Up Spruce Knob, West Virginia’s highest point. What once was a race is still a timed event, but with no overall or age group winners; however, segments are broken into Strava challenges. The 54.4-mile course is a combination of some paved, but mostly unpaved gravel and rocky/grassy double track with 4,477 feet of climbing. The course is challenging, but the view from the top makes the climb so worth the effort.

 

GRUSK Medio 50: About the Event

This was our first time participating in GRUSK, a bucket list ride after hearing stories from fellow VeloPigs who’d ridden it in previous years. Advertised as an event where people come for the gravel, but find a family, it seemed like something too fun for this adventure loving couple to miss. And when the afterparty is touted as one of the best, count us in!

Organized by MountainRides and presented by Lauf Cycles, there was no shortage of distances from which to choose:

• • Non-Competitive Ride (27 miles short option and 32 miles long option)
• • Medio 50
• • Tall 80
• • Grande 100
• • Vente 220
• • Lungo 280
• • Trecento 316-Mile 3-Day Bikepacking Adventure
• • Trecento 316-Mile 2-Day Grande Depart

We opted for the Medio 50 which in reality was nearly 55 miles. There were e-bike options for the non-competitive distances and the Medio 50, and tandem team options for the Medio 50 and Tall 80. All distances had a Ride with GPS course available to download onto our bike computers.

All events started and finished in Circleville at Spruce Knob Mountain Center located within the Potomac Highlands of West Virginia. Camping sites for tents and a few dorm bunks in a hostel type setting were available for a nominal fee for those choosing to stay close by.

From the GRUSK website…

“This event helps support the work of the Experience Learning, Inc.’s Spruce Knob Mountain Center, the local emergency management organizations and fire departments, and the West Virginia University Amateur Radio Club.”

 

The Ride in a Nutshell

We got incredibly lucky when the weeklong heatwave broke just in time for the ride. The temperature at the start of the race was 72° and sunny with reasonable humidity, gradually climbing to 87° by the time we finished. We were beyond lucky with this kind of weather for mid-July, but the east-coast drought left the roads extremely dusty. With more cars than anticipated kicking up dust, we were absolutely filthy when we cruised across the finish line, but a thick layer of mud or dust at the end of a gravel ride greatly elevates a rider’s level of badassery.

My husband and I stayed together for the duration of the ride while constantly playing catchup with a friend who traveled with us for the event. We saw a variety of VeloPigs friends before the ride and along the way, stopping to chat at aide stations or while riding side-by-side.

There was more traffic than I’d expected, but as the highest point in West Virginia and located within the Monongahela National Forest, Spruce Knob is a popular tourist location. Easily accessible by car, the beautiful views should be enjoyed by everyone, not just crazy gravel cyclists.

 

About the Course

All distances started and finished at Spruce Knob Mountain Center close to ample parking and porta potties aplenty. After an approximate 1-mile crowded and dicy descent on the driveway from the center we turned onto a state road where riders’ varying abilities thinned us out naturally.

As the scenic and well-marked course wound its way through Pendleton County, we rode on mostly gravel roads lined with dust-covered weeds and wildflowers. When forests weren’t shading us, open fields welcomed us with views of farmland, tidy homesteads, and the occasional small community. The view from Spruce Knob was spectacular, but riding through a herd of cattle made this farm girl turned suburbanite grin from ear to ear.

From the GRUSK website…

“The course will cover some of the most scenic country in the state of West Virginia and will take riders up huge climbs, down fast descents, through deep valleys and across high ridges.  Amazingly, racers will navigate across the eastern continental divide and through the watersheds of the mighty Cheat, Greenbrier, and Potomac Rivers.”

The gravel roads were sprinkled with the typical potholes and washboards of this time of year making for an exciting obstacle course. One gravel road had recently been paved with what looked like West Virginia coal – the surface was much chunkier and rougher than regular asphalt.

 

Packet Pickup

We arrived at the venue just prior to 9 AM and were able to cheer on the departure of the Grande 105 and Tall 80 riders as we walked from our SUV to the registration yurt. With almost an hour to kill, we had plenty of time to pick up our packets and browse through the various t-shirts and hoodies for sale. My husband had ordered the race jersey and matching socks so we picked those up as well.

 

In addition to our bibs, race packets also included a shirt, mug, and event poster. Shirts were gender specific (yay!); however, when I looked at mine, I thought it was 100% cotton, and assuming I’d never wear it, didn’t try it on. Once home, I realized it was indeed a cotton/poly blend, but too small…

 

Ride Overview

• • Ride With GPS Name: GRUSK Medio – 55 Miles
• • Ride with GPS: Link to turn-by-turn navigation cue sheet
• • Location: Pendleton County, West Virginia
• • Start/Finish: Spruce Knob Mountain Center
• • Course Type: Loop with two loose ends
• • Course Surface: Gravel, grassy/dirt double track, some paved
• • Bike: Salsa Warbird
• • Distance: 54.49 miles
• • Moving Time: 5:05:47
• • Net time: 5:55:53
• • Average Speed: 10.7 MPH
• • Maximum Speed: 36.5 MPH
• • Elevation Gain: 4,262 feet
• • Elevation Range: 2,774 to 4,798 feet
• • Temperature Range: 72° and sunny with reasonable humidity, climbing to 87°
• • Date of ride: July 13, 2024
• • Course Map:

 

Getting Ready to Ride

With race packets in hand, we walked back toward our SUV, stopping for a picture at the VeloPigs tent.

 

After attaching our bibs to the front of our bikes, we checked the air pressure in our tires, stashed fuel in our back pockets, hit up the porta potties one more time, and rode over to the starting line to wait for the 9:50 AM pre-ride briefing to begin.

 

 

Let’s Go Climb a Mountain

We rode past a few of our much faster VeloPigs friends who were near the front of the starting line, stopping to chat and take a picture before self-seeding ourselves much farther back in the pack.

 

Listening to the pre-ride briefing…

 

Promptly at 10 AM we were off and riding! Our excitement grew as we cruised mostly downhill for the first 2 miles dodging large rocks and washed out ruts for the first mile until we turned from the mountain center driveway onto the road.

 

The first climb began two miles in when for the next ten miles we would climb 1,228 feet working our way up to Spruce Knob.

 

No matter how early in the race, it’s demoralizing when a SAG (support and gear) vehicle passes you, even if they’re not yet “sagging.” BTW, this kind driver was going extremely slowly so he wouldn’t kick up dust. Most vehicles that passed weren’t going so slowly and left a cloud of dust in their wake.

 

At long last (12.3 miles into the ride) we summited Spruce Knob and were treated to a well-appointed aid station. After refilling our water bottles and grabbing some snacks, we continued on, stopping for many more pictures before leaving the top of the mountain.

 

Our view from the top of Spruce Knob – what a glorious day!

 

My husband has an eye for great pictures!

 

One last photo before the fun began!

 

After summiting Spruce Knob we were treated to nearly 25 miles of mostly downhill soaring while dropping 2,157 feet.

 

We turned onto a rough dirt road (maybe not a public road?) that turned into grassy double track. It was a blast flying down the double track.

 

We came upon an aid station as we exited the double track. The guys manning the station told us they were out of water, but that more water was on its way. We had plenty of water to do us until the next aid station so it wasn’t a big deal. I thought it was funny that they were out of water, but had a bottle of bourbon and when I mentioned that, they offered me a shot. I declined.

 

Immediately after the aid station, we turned left to start our next climb which where we would gain 1,317 feet over the next 15 miles.

 

Shortly after leaving the aid station we crossed a cattle guard and soon came upon a herd of cattle. I stopped for pictures while my husband and friend rode ahead. Check out my filthy face and amazing dirt unibrow where dust settled between my sunglasses and hat!

 

Roads were well marked with directional and warning signs for the riders and reminders for drivers that a bike race was in progress.

 

We arrived at the Whitmer Volunteer Fire Department aid station about 36 miles into our ride. We stayed at this aid station a little longer because they had a solid assortment of food, plenty of shaded seating, and an indoor restroom.

And they even had pickle juice!

 

We bumped into Benita who rides occasionally with the VeloPigs. It was great catching up while she and I rode together for several miles after leaving the aid station.

 

We’d been warned in an email that one of the gravel roads was in the process of being paved and to expect possible delays, but by race day the paving had been completed and we had no issues. My husband and I thought the road looked like it was paved with West Virginia coal. Whatever it was, it was much rougher than regular asphalt, but certainly smoother and not as much fun as gravel.

 

After completing the 15 mile climb, we stopped to catch our breath and grab some water before heading downhill for 2 miles while dropping 396 feet. One thing a gravel cyclist must get used to is drinking from a dusty water bottle unless you opt for a covered cap.

 

Slightly rested from our descent, we began our final ascent of 2 ½ miles while climbing 441 feet. The Spruce Knob Lake aid station appeared like a mirage, but it was real and a welcome sight.

 

Shortly after leaving the aid station we turned onto gravel again and by then I was so ready to be done. Benita and I started talking about how delicious an ice cold soda would taste when we finished and I pretty much couldn’t think of anything else during those last couple of miles.

 

We rode back up the rutty driveway to the mountain center, this time with cars coming toward us taking finished riders back home. Most were courteous and pulled over to allow us to navigate the best path forward, but a few forced us to the far right side of the driveway even when it wasn’t our preferred path.

We topped the hill, turned left onto grass and made our way down the curvy finish line chute.

 

My husband finished about a minute before me.

I finished with an official time of 5:55:53 (9.1 MPH average speed) which put me at 14th out of 17 in the female 50+ year old age group. At 66 years old, I was the oldest in the Medio 50 age group. When combining all distances, I was second oldest female participating.

My Garmin is set for auto-stop and shows moving time only which resulted with a time of 5:05:46 (10.7 MPH average moving speed). We spent at least 20 minutes on top of Spruce Knob and another 20 minutes at the fire house aid station, both well worth the time added to our ride.

Once finished, I added my bike to the pile and went in search of the ice cold soda I’d been dreaming off for the last few miles.

 

Cold beer was available on tap with lots of brews from which to choose, but I found what I’d been dreaming of loved every ice cold sip.

 

Paying tribute to a well-loved ambassador of the local gravel cycling scene who as known for putting Hello Kitty stickers on friends’ bikes. RIP Pete…

 

Garmin Stats

Post-ride Garmin…

 

Garmin map and elevation graph…

 

Final Thoughts on the Ride

MountainRides did a great job with the event. The communication leading up to the day of the ride was thorough, the course was beautiful, and the volunteers were very friendly. An added bonus, which was out of the control of the event organizers, was waking to a blue-sky day, cooler than normal temperatures, and lower humidity. We had everything we needed from start to finish making GRUSK a fantastic adventure!

 

Questions:

• • Do you prefer organized rides/tours or just heading out and seeing where your bike takes you? ~ I like a little of each.
• • Have you been to West Virginia? ~ It’s a neighboring state, so yes, many times.
• • Do you stop and relax occasionally to fuel or take pictures, or barrel on through when on a long run or ride? ~ Even though this was a race, I knew I wouldn’t be competitive so I chilled and took a lot of pictures.

 

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