With pros now flocking to the 350-mile Unbound XL, has the elite race lost the gravel spirit?

Without a doubt, Unbound Gravel has become the premier gravel race for professional cyclists around the world. Elite fields for the 200-mile event number in the hundreds, with athletes committing to highly specific preparation and training for a shot at Unbound glory. Gone are the days of self-supported adventure racing with paper maps, gas-station snack stops and embracing whatever obstacles the unpredictable Flint Hills of Kansas could throw at racers.

But as the 200 becomes more professionalised, more professional gravel athletes are turning away from it and to the 350-mile XL instead. Has the 200-miler become too fast and competitive, or are athletes turning to the 350-mile XL in a pursuit of the original gravel spirit?

"The line of adventure distance keeps getting redrawn,” says Yuri Hauswald. Hauswald, who won Unbound 200 in 2015, was part of the inaugural group of 34 riders who tackled the XL in 2018. This year, more than 200 riders are signed up for the XL, including almost a dozen professional men and women looking for something different.

“It’s more about the experience,” says Laurens ten Dam. “It’s more about the adventure now, instead of trying to win races. I did that already for more than 20 years as a professional, and now it’s time to really do the adventure stuff.” Ten Dam first raced Unbound in 2021 and, for three years, never finished outside the top five. However, in 2023—arguably the most competitive year for Unbound 200—he finished 50th. “To be honest, I think the younger guys are just too strong for me,” he adds.

Like Lachlan Morton, last year’s 200-mile winner, ten Dam is ready for a change. In addition, several other former WorldTour professionals, each having competed in the Unbound 200 at least three times, are also registered for the XL. Ted King, who attempted the 350 in 2023, is back for redemption, while Rob Britton, who has leaned into ultra-distance racing over the past year, is also testing his luck.

“Gravel racing for me is very much part two of my career and was never intended to be a continuation of road racing,” Britton explains. “I still search out the new races, ones that get me excited and that are different than what I did for 15 years [racing on the road]— something a little less serious and stressful.”

While ten Dam, Morton, and Britton all say they are in it for the adventure, the front end of the XL field will still be incredibly fast and exciting.

“I think the longer events get, the more you need to prepare a bit more meticulously,” Morton says. With no outside support allowed and higher chance of things going wrong over the course of 350 miles (563km), mental preparation is just as important as physical.

“I’ve spent the last couple of weeks dialling in what bags to carry, what lights, how much nutrition I’m going to take, and then [figuring out] the store stops,” explains Heather Jackson, a professional triathlete turned gravel racer who’s also racing the XL this year. “I’ve been going over the course—where am I stopping, what am I getting there, am I carrying a bunch of hydration powder and just getting water?”

Last year, Jackson was part of the lead group of women in the historic Unbound 200, ultimately finishing fifth—a career highlight. But like her male peers, she sees the XL as an opportunity to test her personal limits in a new way. “At this point in my career, I’m trying to explore my personal limits and just go on these adventures,” Jackson says. And while she’s preparing for the XL with the same precision and determination she brings to all her athletic pursuits, it’s also a stepping stone toward her next major goal: the Western States 100 ultra-trail race.

“It’s sort of a weird thing that we have to go longer to get back to the origins of gravel, because of the professionalisation of the sport,” says Serena Bishop Gordon, who will be lining up for the XL at her first Unbound. “I was never very excited about the 200, because it felt—especially as it got bigger—like you had to have the best pit crew, the best equipment. One of the reasons I gravitated toward gravel, and I think a lot of people did, was the adventure, the unknown, the element of being self-supported and self-sufficient out there.”

As the 200 becomes more like a road race, it makes sense that many pros, especially those with backgrounds in other disciplines that, until recently, had stricter rules, are searching for a race that still embodies the true spirit of gravel. “I love the idea of the unknown, and also recognising that all I can focus on is having the best performance I can, and all the other factors and variables will fall as they may,” Gordon says.

Ultimately, what drew people to gravel in the first place was the desire to do something different and difficult. The history of Unbound is rooted in the spirit of adventure and self-discovery. It wasn’t about results, sponsorships, or power numbers. And now, more than ever, the 350 miles of the XL may better reflect that narrative than the 200 does.

It’s an adventure race, full of unknowns—just the kind of event that attracts ultra-endurance athletes like Lael Wilcox, who has built a career on fastest known time (FKT) rides in some of the world’s harshest conditions. “[Unbound XL is] always been competitive, I just think no one cared about it before,” Wilcox says. “I’ve raced unbound XL twice before– in 2019 and 2021– and it’ll be cool to see how it’s changed. The thing about the XL is it’s always hard, no matter what.”

Gravel racing is evolving. The 2024 edition of Unbound 200 showed just how competitive and professionalised the discipline has become. It’s a positive thing: it’s creating new opportunities in cycling and helping foster a new generation of professional athletes. But some pros haven’t forgotten why they turned to gravel in the first place: the adventure, the challenge, the unknown.