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“Gravel Earth” Series to Debut in 2023

photo credits @GravelEarthSeries23

Organized by Klassmark, the Girona-based company has culled together upwards of seven gravel races around the world under the umbrella of the Gravel Earth series, which will make its debut in April 2023.

According to Klassmark co-owner Cristina Freixes, the idea behind the series was to expose more cycling fans to off-road racing. To wit, “what we wanted is to choose different kinds of styles of races but all in amazing places. To provide more of an experience than a competition,” explains Friexes. 

Despite Freixes promise to make the event more of an experience than a competition, there is still a slight competitive element incorporated into the events, wherein a points system has been set up so that the top male, female and non-binary finishers of each event will be awarded a certain amount, while each gravel event will also be weighted differently depending on the difficulty of the course.

Klassmark’s inaugural Traka took place in April of this year, with the Belgian rider Gianni Vermeersch winning the first event.

Since then, the race has attracted the attention of gravel proponents like Lachlan Morton and Nathan Haas, who have since become consultants to the new Gravel Earth series.

Here’s a schedule of next year’s events, with the possibility of one or more races being added to the calendar. 

2023 Gravel Earth Series qualifying events

The Traka – Spain

When: April 29-30

Format: three single stage options

Distance/Elevation: 100k/1,000m, 200k/2,000m, 360k/4,500m

Migration Gravel Race – Kenya

When: June 20-23

Format: stage race (4)

Distance/Elevation: 650k/8,000m

Nature is Bike – France

When: June 26

Format: single stage

Distance/Elevation: 300k/2,640m

Octopus Gravel – Switzerland

When: July 1

Format: timed segments

Distance/Elevation: 155k/4,450m

The Rift – Iceland

When: July 23

Format: single stage

Distance/Elevation: 200k/2,165m; 100k/1,050m

Nordic Gravel Series: Bergslagen – Sweden

When: August 12

Format: single stage

Distance/Elevation: 180k; 116k (elevation TBD)

 

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