Podcast appearances and mentions of amy charity

This week's episode sees us go behind the scenes with Amy Charity, SBT GRVL co-founder and retired professional racer, to find out what it takes to organize one of North America's premier gravel races. Did you know that you can never have too many outhouses? Levy and Will take notes on how to find four hundred volunteers, and how to deal with permits, police, and politics while putting on an event that's both fun and safe. Additionally, we dig into the changes made to SBT, what the future of gravel racing looks like, and more Topics covered: Too Many Races, Too Few Weekends: Gravel Racing's Crowded Calendar is Headed Toward Collision APPRVD! SBT GRVL Secures Green Light for 2025 Velo Podcast: $16K Cannondales, Thoughts From The Traka, and DT Swiss's Not-So-Secret Weapon

Putting on a gravel event for thousands of people is no small task. Our guest this week Amy Charity knows that all too well. Amy is at the helm of the GRVL series which hosts gravel races in FNLD GRVL in Lahti Finland, RDL GRVL in Adelaide Australia, as well as SBT GRVL in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. This year their flagship race, SBT GRVL was met with an enormous new challenge as it faced major resistance from some residents of the small rural community that hosts the event. Amy talks through the challenges of putting on such a large event in a remote, rural community and how she and the GRVL team have had to work with stakeholders to make changes with the event so that it minimizes disruptions for residents of the county. She also discusses why it is so important that we, as gravel cyclists, act as good stewards to the places in which we ride our bikes to ensure that these places are being protected and preserved for all users of the land. Follow SBT on Instagram @sbtgrvl and check out their website for details on the 2025 event.

Putting on a gravel event for thousands of people is no small task. Our guest this week Amy Charity knows that all too well. Amy is at the helm of the GRVL series which hosts gravel races in FNLD GRVL in Lahti Finland, RDL GRVL in Adelaide Australia, as well as SBT GRVL in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. This year their flagship race, SBT GRVL was met with an enormous new challenge as it faced major resistance from some residents of the small rural community that hosts the event. Amy talks through the challenges of putting on such a large event in a remote, rural community and how she and the GRVL team have had to work with stakeholders to make changes with the event so that it minimizes disruptions for residents of the county. She also discusses why it is so important that we, as gravel cyclists, act as good stewards to the places in which we ride our bikes to ensure that these places are being protected and preserved for all users of the land. Follow SBT on Instagram @sbtgrvl and check out their website for details on the 2025 event. Follow us on Instagram:@girlsgonegravel @feisty_media Girls Gone Gravel Website:https://www.girlsgonegravel.com/ Feisty Media Website:https://livefeisty.com/ Support our Partners:Use the code gggfierce for 30% off at fiercehazel.com Tifosi: Use the code FM20! to get 20% off your order at tifosioptics.com To shop all LTH Nutritional Supplements, head to shop.lifetime.life/nutrition and use code FEISTY at checkout to get 20% off your order! Feisty's Lift Heavy Guide: Get your guide to lifting heavy plus a 4-week training plan at https://www.womensperformance.com/lift-heavy

This week, Velo's resident gravel expert Betsy Welch sits down with SBT GRVL co-founder Amy Charity for a discussion on the rapid growth of gravel events, the challenges that come with it, and what the future holds for cycling's hottest discipline. Charity's SBT GRVL event was a hit right off the bat when it debuted in 2019, and has managed to keep up the buzz ever since with the event selling out in a matter of minutes. Running the event hasn't been without its challenges though. Local residents had complaints about the event, forcing major changes for the 2024 edition that took place last month. And as gravel has matured in the last half decade, controversies over race tactics and debate over whether there should be separate starts for elite men and women have forced her race to adapt. Charity talks us through those challenges and why she holds some views that are contrary to what other gravel events are doing. At the same time, she and her team are also learning from rider feedback and implementing that into the event. Charity has branched out to several events around the world beyond the original marquee event in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. She discusses where she thinks gravel events as a whole may be heading, and what's next for the category.

Gravel Racing is moving face and Amy Charity is one of the movers. Amy is the founder of SBT GRVL in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. The race started on the back of a napkin in 2018 and has quickly become one of the premiere off-road events in the U.S. After a few short years of success, Amy expanded SBT to Europe and Australia. But before the dirt roads, Amy raced on tarmac. She was a pro roadie with a short but successful career. And before road racing, Amy was in high finance. Josh and Hottie talk to Amy about her days in the pro peloton, how her business education informs her work as a race promoter, and Josh and Amy have a college reunion of sorts.

Bobby and Jens sit down with Amy Charity and TJ Juskiewicz to discuss the inexorable growth of the El Tour de Tuscon - the rise and rise of gravel in the USA - plus how they're bringing gravel to a European audience... and how we can bring back the glory days back to the domestic road racing scene. Bobby and Jens is a Shocked Giraffe production for Velo. This episode was produced and edited by Mark Payne . Remember to follow Bobby and Jens on social media Facebook https://www.facebook.com/people/Bobby-and-Jens/100093419004559/ Threads: https://threads.net/@bobbyandjens YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdm7tkA_shHCsL0o1sV8biElMZd8-2y-g Twitter: https://twitter.com/bobbyandjens Get the Outside Watch app to stream films and series wherever you go: https://outside.watch/ios https://outside.watch/android Follow Outside Watch for the latest and greatest: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/outsidewatch/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/outsidewatch/ Get unlimited access to articles, courses, premium films, series & more with Outside+ The one subscription to fuel all your adventures: https://outside.watch/Plus

Amy Charity is the co-founder and owner of SBT GRVL and founder/partner of FNLD GRVL.  Ryan Steers is the marketing director for SBT GRVL and FNLD GRVL. Amanda chats with Amy and Ryan about their transition from bike racers to event organizers, what SBT GRVL will look like without Leadville happening the day before, the exciting premiere of FNLD GRVL presented by Alfa Romeo F1 Team and Kick and GRVL's upcoming gravel tour in Portugal. We also have a cameo appearance from episode 60 guest Alexey Vermeulen. Find out more about SBT GRVL at www.sbtgrvl.com and follow on Instagram at @sbtgrvl. Find more on FNLD GRVL at www.fnldgrvl.com  and follow the event at @fnldgrvl. Follow Amy on Instagram at @amymcharity. Follow Ryan at @rsteers.  Groadio is sponsored by Hammerhead and the Karoo 2. For a limited time, our listeners can get a free heart-rate monitor with the purchase of a Hammerhead Karoo 2. Visit hammerhead.io right now and use promo code GROADIO at checkout to get yours today. You can follow Amanda on Twitter at @_amanda_panda_ and on Instagram at @amanda_panda_. Follow Bill at @cxhairs  on Instagram and Twitter. Follow the show on Twitter @groadio and also on Instagram at @groadio. Email the show at groadio@gmail.com. Groadio is part of the Wide Angle Podium network. Please consider becoming a member. Go to www.wideanglepodium.com/donate to learn more and contribute. If you join and support Groadio, screenshot your receipt and send it to groadio@gmail.com for a free pair of socks.

Welcome to the Rodeo Labs Race Director Round Up! Over the next few weeks, as the gravel race “season” gets underway, we have decided to take on a mini-series focusing on gravel racing through the collective eyes of gravel race directors from across the country. Race directors are both the tastemakers and the police of the nucleus concept of “the spirit of gravel.” While race directors have a fantastic platform to voice their perspective for their own races, that voice is often limited to those narrow confines. The goal here is to use our podcast, as a small journalistically minded outlet with no skin in the game, to give them a collective platform to share their interpretations of the state of the sport. Part three is just two conversations, but they are with two folks who are undoubtedly two of the most influential promoters in gravel. First up is Michael Merckx (6:15) of the BWR series. Michael started BWR as an extra long cyclocross race over a decade ago in Southern California. Since then, BWR has become an international brand, with events planned throughout North America for 2023. Then, Stephen joins me to interview Amy Charity of SBT GRVL and FNLD GRVL (46:00). Amy, and her GRVL brand, started in 2018 and immediately made an impression with the SBT GRVL event in Steamboat Springs. This year, Amy is bringing the GRVL brand international with FNLD GRVL in Finland. The race is a new venture for an American gravel brand and is supported by F1 star Vallteri Bottas. Both of these conversations are unabridged, with the only editing meant to boost sound quality and clarity. We found that the quality of the interviews was interesting enough to run in full, so excuse the length. We won't blame you for splitting it up! If you do, we recommend taking the break at minute 46 when the conversations swap. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gravel racing has been one of the fastest growing sectors in mass-participation sports over the last decade or so, particularly in the US, where high-profile races like UNBOUND Gravel, Rebecca's Private Idaho and Belgian Waffle Ride have grown massively in popularity, attracting a broad range of both veteran and newcomer cyclists to the sport. It's against this backdrop that in 2019 professional road racer Amy Charity launched her own gravel race around the ski resort town of Steamboat Springs, CO, where she then lived. As Forbes magazine put it, SBT GRVL went on to become a remarkable overnight success, selling out in just 9 minutes in its second year and becoming one of the best gravel racing experiences in the world. So what has been the secret to the race's massive success? That's what we're here to find out with Amy's help - and in the process learn a thing or two about the unstoppable sensation that is gravel racing. In this episode:An "overnight success": planning and launching SBT GRVL The importance of local infrastructure in supporting a world-class raceBuilding community relations and being a respectful "guest" in the local communityThe appeal and insane growth of US gravel racingRoad racing vs gravel racing vs mountain bikingHow inclusivity helped propel gravel racing's growthThe cost advantages/disadvantages of organizing a gravel race vs a road raceMaking SBT GRVL a more welcoming event for female athletes and newcomersIncluding a non-competitive e-bike category into the eventActivating sponsorships year-round through grassroots and team-building eventsOffering a VIP package/experience optionBringing the SBT GRVL brand to Europe with FNLD GRVLThanks to RunSignup for supporting quality content for race directors by sponsoring this episode. More than 26,000 in-person, virtual, and hybrid events use RunSignup's free and integrated solution to save time, grow their events, and raise more. If you'd like to learn more about RunSignup's all-in-one technology solution for endurance and fundraising events visit runsignup.com.You can find more resources on anything and everything related to race directing on our website RaceDirectorsHQ.com.You can also share your questions about some of the things discussed in today's episode or anything else in our Facebook group, Race Directors Hub.

Good leadership is a tricky subject. There is no single way to lead well. To be a good leader, you must be consistent. It's not hard work; it is ongoing work.  Jess Dewell discusses elements of good leadership with guest appearances from Terry "Starbucker" St. Marie, angel investor, Amy Charity, author and speaker, and Jeffry Caudle, technology start-up founder, to talk about the elements of good leadership. —--------- If you want to continue to look for inspiration to creatively or innovatively approach decision-making and problem-solving, use the experiences of other business owners who have created great companies. Try Fast Track Your Business today to keep learning and growing and stay intentional as you work strategically on your business. -------------------- Feel like you need a bit of help with some business direction? Then ACT to Plan by contacting Jess for a 30-Minute Unstuck Quick Consult. You'll discuss your aims, where you are, and where you should be to move deliberately toward your team-building goals! -------------------- If you want to stay informed and plan for a successful year, download the Annual Red Direction Business Management Report and get access to survey findings and information to help navigate volatility and uncertainty.  You can get in touch with Jess Dewell on Twitter,  LinkedIn or Red Direction website.

A sport's popularity depends on the people and community to push it to new levels. Today we are joined by two such people, Amy Charity and Chris Lyman, Founders and Partners of FNLD GRVL, to talk everything about the gravel movement. Amy has been a guest previously on the show, where we discussed her career as a professional cyclist. Both Amy and Chris are respected figures in cycling and share a passion for expanding the impact of the sport and making it inclusive. In our conversation, we learn how Amy and Chris first met, the road to forming their professional relationship, and the moments leading up to the first official event. We also discuss an aspect essential to both of them, inclusivity, and why they think this is vital to keep growing the gravel movement. They also share advice and best strategies for people interested in joining future events and unpack the controversy surrounding the pro men's race event. Hear how the idea for FNLD GRVL first came about, how the partnership with Valtteri Bottas was formed, and what it is like working with a Formula One superstar. Don't miss out as we take a deep dive into the gravel revolution with Amy Charity and Chris Lyman!

Despite establishing a career in the financial domain after college, Amy Charity took a big gamble, trading boardrooms for race courses. She is now a former professional cyclist and member of a World Championship time trial team for the United States, and author of "The Wrong Side of Comfortable." Her new career is co-founder and owner of the SBT GRVL gravel event that has become one of the marquee cycling events in North America. Charity now focuses her efforts in the cycling community, bringing more diversity and new cyclists to the gravel roads of Colorado. Additionally, she's become a coach to several beginners learning and training their way to take on the various distances of SBT GRVL. She has created an opening for more riders to experience the gravel scene through partnerships with other cycling advocacy groups.

LIVE FROM EMPORIA, KANSAS, THIS IS...Girls Gone Gravel! This week, we have boots on the ground in Emporia to welcome athletes to the finish chute of Unbound. Kathryn speaks to MANY pro gravel cyclists and gets the run-down on the peanut butter mud and deluge of rain that have defined this year's race. Speaking to Heather Jackson, Rach McBride, Amy Charity, Taneika Duhaney, Ellen Noble, Betsy Welch, and many more, Kathryn hears the ins and outs of this long-distance gravel race. What's on everyone's mind? Getting their bike washed and a beer in hand. **Support the Podcast** Get 20% off at http://insidetracker.com/feisty (http://insidetracker.com/feisty) Subscribe to the https://livefeisty.com/category/podcasts/feisty-womens-performance-podcast/ (Feisty Women's Performance Podcast )to catch our limited Title IX series! This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Podsights - https://podsights.com/privacy Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

Like so many other gravel riders, Amy Charity started her cycling life on the road. The story seems almost templated: Charity discovered bikes, got so good she went pro, then retired and found fun off the pavement.Then Charity took it a step further. She used her professional business skills to start her own race. That happened after she experienced the joy of long gravel rides. More specifically, Amy Charity raced Unbound Gravel. That formative experience led her back home to Steamboat Springs, Colorado with a question on her mind.Why not here?Steamboat Springs already had vacation destination status. It stood to reason that a gravel race in one of the world's most beautiful places should be successful. That turned out to be very, very true.So Amy Charity co-founded SBT GRVL and brought a world-class race to the long and winding gravel roads in and around Steamboat Springs. The event experienced meteoric success and quickly became one of the top gravel races in the country.Charity attributes the success to a number of factors, including Steamboat's breathtaking beauty. But more than that, Amy Charity says the success of any event — especially one that draws as many women competitors as gravel races do — lies in the experience and the community around it.Indeed, the gravel community and its growth seems to be women-led. Charity joins host Dan Cavallari on the Slow Guy on the Fast Ride podcast to lend insight into the gravel world's unique growth with women at the helm. She also talks about what it takes to put on a successful event, and how SBT GRVL has impacted Charity's local community.Theme music: "This Year" by Angela Sheik.

Amy Charity is the driving force behind SBT GRVL, one of VeloNews' five Monuments of Gravel that exploded onto the scene in 2019 and now sells out its 3,000 spots within minutes. SBT GRVL was invited to join the UCI's new Gravel World Series, but Charity declined. On this episode of the VeloNews Podcast, Charity and host Ben Delaney discuss a variety of things, including the intersection of pro racing and recreational gravel riding, why she is happy to have SBT GRVL as an independent entity, the community of gravel race promoters, and that time she and Life Time vice president Kimo Seymour worked together racing at Unbound Gravel 200.

Nathan chats to founder of Steamboat Gravel Race and all around awesome person Amy Charity on running gravel races, where Gravel is going and diversity in the sport.  Presented by FulGaz   In Partnership with Colnago, Castelli, Campagnolo and F:izi'k

SBT GRVL is a world-class gravel race experience held on the amazing gravel roads in and around the iconic Steamboat Springs, CO. The combination of the great views and fun people make for an unforgettable gravel riding experience. Listen in as Glen and I talk to Amy Charity about the 2021 SBT GRVL (Steamboat Gravel race). She even reveals how you might guarantee a spot in the 2022 event. Amy Charity is an American professional racing cyclist. She rode for the Optum-Kelly Benefit Strategies team. She raced in the 2015 UCI Road World Championships. Wikipedia Amy’s personal website: amymcharity.comSBT GRVL website: sbtgrvl.comSBT GRVL Volunteers: https://sbtgrvl.com/registration/volunteers/Amy is the Co-founder and Owner of SBT GRVL

Today on the show, Payson talks to two influential behind-the-scenes figures in gravel racing. Michelle Duffy is Associate Marketing Director for Life Time, and oversees its  off-road events such as the Leadville 100 and Unbound (formerly Dirty Kanza). She came to cycling after spending years as a marketing manager for the New York City Marathon. Amy Charity is the owner and co-founder of SBT GRVL. She raced professionally as a road cyclist and spent 15 years in the financial sector before founding SBT GRVL. In this interview, they talk about how they turned a major scheduling conflict between two of gravel's biggest races into a collaborative opportunity. When it became clear that Leadville and SBT GRVL fell on consecutive days, they created LeadBoat, a 250 mile stage race combining the two events which is set to take place later this year. They also talk about expanding the gravel community, and what it's like being women in a sport which is still dominated by men. They also share their uniquely difficult experiences during 2020, when Amy lost her business partner and Michelle suffered from a life threatening health event. 

One of the most exciting parts of cycling currently, is the rise of gravel events, and who better to talk about this trend than the wonderful Amy Charity? Amy is the brains behind SBT GRAVL, the exciting event that had its first run in 2019 and is back again in August of 2021! Amy gives us the inside scoop on the event, its founding ethos, and what cyclists can expect from taking part. We also spend some time in the conversation hearing about Amy's somewhat unusual path into professional cycling, and how her how life pivoted in her 30s, from a career in investing, into her passion for riding! Amy explains why she now officially considers herself a 'gravel racer' and we get down to why gravel is such a burgeoning aspect of cycling culture.

This week Kathryn and Kristi catch up with Amy Charity, founder and race director of SBT GRVL, as well as coach and author. Amy details her late start to bike racing in her thirties, her pro career road racing around the globe and her later decision to move off road and to a more stable lifestyle. Plus the backstory on her book, "Wrong Side of Comfortable" and how we can all learn to push our limits.

The trajectory widens as you move away from that moment that changed everything. At the age of 34, Amy left the financial industry to pursue her passion and a career in professional bike racing. As an athlete, an Ironman, endurance trail running and finally cycling, consumed her time outside of the corporate workplace. Amy raced for the U.S. National Team and signed a contract with one of the top ten women’s professional racing teams in the world. Her team won a National Championship in the Team Time Trial and raced the World Championships.   In this episode we explored that pivotal moment, making the decision to leave, how she filtered it and how she managed all the head stuff that comes along with making such a decision. She describes life on the racing circuit and eventually making the decision to retire from pro racing. Because we are all a culmination of the experiences we have had, she now has parlayed all of this into a new way of living - she’s authored a book The Wrong Side of Comfortable, coaches, speaks at corporate conferences, and is a partner in SBT GRVL, a cycling race in Steamboat Springs, and coaches endurance athletes.   So with that, let’s listen in and gear up for what’s next.    Where to find Amy: amymcharity.com - for the book and contact Sbt Grvl - registration opens December 3   BEFORE YOU LEAVE - If you are enjoying the shows, I hope you’ll subscribe, rate, review and share with your friends!   About Lisa Gerber: Lisa advises CEOs and senior-level management on how to use the power of storytelling and effective communication to influence action and bring ideas to life.   She guides companies through the digital maze of constantly changing tools to build discovery, loyalty, and ultimately help them achieve their own big leaps.   When she is not in her office, she might be out skiing or trail running. This is where she does her best creative problem-solving.   To learn more about booking Lisa for consulting, speaking or workshops, visit www.bigleapcreative.com.

In today’s show, I host one of the founders of SBT GRVL, Amy Charity. She’s a former road racer and author, but also a key driver to the parity message behind the SBT GRVL event. Listen in to learn how SBT GRVL built and leveraged a community to launch an event and to catalyze more women to toe the line on Aug. 18 at the inaugural event.

Meet two women pro cyclists, Amy Charity and Adelaide Tillinghast talk about pro cycling, and how womens cycling is different and more dynamic. Fun discussion and a great look in the women's peleton!

Epiosde links.  SBT GRVL website, Instagram, Facebook    Automagical Transcript Below -- please forgive the typos. All right, mark, thanks for joining us on the podcast this week. I'm really excited to talk to you and learn more about your event. Yeah, thanks for having me. So we all just like starting out on The Gravel Ride, learning a little bit more about your background as a cyclist and how you got into the gravel scene. Sure, yeah, I, um, I've been riding bikes for a while. I'm, you know, I'm, I'm a for context, I'm 50 so I've been, I've been endurance athlete for what I would say a 30 year window for me getting into cycling, really came from having a mountain bike in college and then moving into maybe more triathlon type background and then as I got older and, and running was starting to take its toll on me personally. I really ended up just writing a lot of bikes and so I'm like a lot of folks, I think, you know, your race, road bikes, you want to get off the road, um, uh, exploring new places you have maybe liked the speed of a road bike. So maybe I'm not a. So I started mountain biking. I really don't mountain bike a ton nowadays, um, but I really found gravel which was kinda that, that best of both worlds scenario for me and I'm really, once I started doing that, there was, there was no looking back, I still raised the road, but I think I look forward to gravel rides more than anything else so that, that sort of a, at least my, my, my entry into it. You're located in steamboat springs at this point, is that right? Yeah, I am. I spent the last couple of years in La, um, and I was road racing for the race team if you guys are familiar with, with that crew and Los Angeles and um, but moved back to steamboat this, uh, this August full time and uh, we'll probably be here for good. Nice. Well, I'm eager to learn a little bit more about the terrain you called home around steamboat for the gravel bike and I'm excited to introduce our listeners to the event you're putting on. So why don't you tell us just in broad strokes about the event you just announced. Sure. Well, for, for everybody, um, uh, it's called SBT GRVL. We're fortunate to be presented by Canyon Bikes, which is, as you guys know, is based in California. And um, we, um, we wanted to put together an event, um, I have two partners in the race, a guy named Ken banished and a woman named Amy Charity. Both, um, you know, x or racers, amy, um, was on the US national team. Kenza a former, a really elite cross racer and uh, you know, the three of us all live in steamboat and, and we were really talking really a couple of days this summer saying, Gosh, you know, there's so many great races out there, but none of them are really that close to home. I mean, for us, um, for the larger races that exist. The closest one is the crusher, which is a fantastic event, but it's still a seven hours away from steamboat. And so, um, we either have to drive, you know, The Crusher in June or go out to a BWR or some of these other, um, land run these great races, but they're all pretty far away. So we had been riding gravel in steamboat for a long time. There's this amazing combination of the High Alpine with the ski area, um, and then these endless, endless, connected, um, gravel roads that support ranching and mining and an industry in Colorado and they just saw happen to come together and steamboat. And so the three of us were saying, well, look, why don't we introduced the world to our roads. Um, and so, you know, there were some other preceding a events and great introductions to too many people have the gravel roads in steamboat one in 2016. Rafa did a prestige ride in steamboat which hit 130 miles of gravel for the most part. Um, a lot across many of the same roads that we're going to have into the three courses. Um, the moots ranch rally, which has been going on to support agriculture in, in steamboat and get people out and about has been going on for a decade. And um, you know, some of the same roads are used. And so we had some good insights from some folks from, from prior years. And we started looking at courses and we started looking at what we could accomplish and you know, we came up with this really amazing combination of exploration, uh, where we can see lots of different aspects of our community or a north in the middle and then south is steamboat. Um, and then the beauty of just Colorado. And, and uh, as we got talking more and more, we said let's do it and let's put something together. And so here we are with it with SBT GRVL. That's amazing. And you decide your team decided on three different course. What are they and what was the rationale behind that? Yeah. So the three different courses, um, you know, what, one of the things, you know, I think every race has its own thing, right? And you know, I think a lot of people would would say similar things about what certain races are, what they are or who they appeal to or, or you know, what the feel or vibe was. And, and for us, we're no different. We wanted to, our race to be inviting. We want it to be engaging. We wanted it to be certainly a challenge, but what we really wanted a lot of people to be able to participate. And so, um, we put together courses that are challenging but they're fair. We've got three distances. So if, if you're, if you're new to a gravel racing or even cycling for that matter. And I think that's really important is that we've got a 37 mile course with a couple thousand feet of climbing over rolling terrain that is about 50 slash 50 gravel and road that you can do on any bike. And we saw that as a starting point. That was really, really important. Um, I think one of our jobs, if we're going to be a successful race promoter or an advocate for cycling, I'm not just gravel cycling, but cycling is to get more and more people involved. And so, um, we wanted to have something unique where, um, you know, many gravel races, it's a, it's a gravel race. You need to potentially new gravel bike or at least, uh, you know, a mount bike to participate at any level. And for this course, we wanted to make sure that if you have access to a bicycle and you want to give it a shot, you can and you can be a part of the weekends. And so that 37 mile course, we'll start with the dea with the big group, um, but about, uh, not really, only about six miles into the race, it's going to veer off to the left and the, the other two races are going to go off and hit some more challenging stuff. But we're actually really, really excited about that. That 37 mile course I'm in the middle is what we're calling sbt gravel blue. Um, and that's a 100 mile course. It's got about 6,000 feet of climbing, um, and it mirrors the black course, which is the big one for the first 85 miles. Then it veers off. And, uh, it really cuts out the back 40 miles of the, of the dig course. Um, the way that we're describing sbt gravel blue, it's, it's the best to steamboat in 100 miles. You know, it's something that most cyclists could, um, put on their calendar and, and accomplished, um, but it's not going to wipe somebody out, um, you know, for a long period of time, you know, it's going to be a fair challenge. But, um, we think a lot of people are gonna really be interested in, in that course. Um, and then, you know, the big one, spq gravel, black, um, that's a 141 miles. It's 9,000 feet of climbing and we can get into this course a little deeper. It, um, you know, this is if you really want to see what steamboat and Routt county and the surrounding communities have to offer for cycling and you're going to see it all in, in, in one day. And so, um, uh, we, we're really, really excited about it. We think it's really challenging. Um, but we think it's really fair. Um, and we think that the diversity of the terrain and what you're going to expect there is going to be really, really, really a fun different. Um, all types of variety. And uh, you know, it's all at elevation. So it's going to be really exciting. So. So, um, yeah, we can dig into that course as much as you would like, but it's going to be a, it's going to be a great one. Yeah. One hundred and 41 miles. That seems like a big chunk of work. It's interesting. We often talk with event organizers about the profile of their rides because it really is difficult to compare one type of terrain to another. I was just down doing Peloton scrabble mob in. Oh, hi. A few weeks back and that was 8,000 feet of climbing over 60 miles. I did it last year. Yeah, yeah, it was awesome. Yeah, it's so, it's so interesting to me that you can take a ride that's that much shorter in length and pack that much verdin that's similar to what we experienced here. I was just before this ride I went out for a lunch ride and I realized like, it's pretty difficult for me to do an hour around mill valley without accumulating a thousand feet of climbing. Whereas when I was on the east coast, you know, a thousand feet of climbing might be something I would get over a 60 mile ride. Right. No, totally. No, that, that's a, that's so true. I mean, the Gat gravel mob. Yeah. Going up that second section before you go into the, the really gnarly single track down hill section is, you know, you're questioning why you're still want to be out there, right? Because it, it just doesn't end right. But, um, but yeah, no, they're all different, you know, I think for our course to describe it to, to the audience and the listener, I think, um, it's, it, it, it gets a, what's the best way to put this? It's gonna wear on you. Okay. So we have a lot of climbing, you know, it's 9,000 feet of climbing, but it's not that much relatively speaking. I'm in 141 miles. Um, it's a lot but um, but it, it's spread out and then it's back heavy. So the last, um, 35 miles have about 3000 plus feet of climbing. And so I think the, the key to doing well, um, and defining well, right, whether you're racing, which, that, you know, that 10 percent of the field will be racing and 90 percent is going to be out there having a great time and just a personal accomplishment, which I think is the great thing about gravel in it in its own right. Um, but that lasts 30 miles is, is going to be tough. And so, um, we're gonna have a spg gravel sponsored gravel rides every Saturday and Sunday and steamboats starting in April. And now what we're going to be talking about with people as we dissect sections of the course, um, is that obviously pacing a nutrition are going to really important. I'm finding people that you can ride with, um, and to help you get through the day and certainly the first, um, 100 miles of the course with as much energy possible. I think going to be really important because you, um, you can and as I'm sure you've seen in the races that you've done or are your friends who have done, you can overamped in these things and get going and you know, you see, um, you know, these really fast guys up front and you say, you know what, I want to stay connected and, you know, come mile 90, you might be reconsidering. Right. Um, that whole strategy. So, um, so the lay of the land for the black is, um, you know, it, it basically goes into big circles around the north and south. The steamboat with a parallel section, the middle, that would maybe be the best way I can, I can describe it. And um, but the first 20 miles of that course though, they only have about 1500 feet of climbing, it will feel like there's a lot more. And I'm one of the roughest gravel sections, at least the way the roads were functioning this year. And they always change, you know, depending on how the winter goes. Um, but one of the roughness sections I'm coming out of the gate starts at mile seven and goes to mile 15. Um, it's called fly Gulch and um, it's got some punchy climbs. It's got some loose gravel and then it's got some silt. And so if it rains, that silt gets really mucky. If it doesn't, it gets really dusty. Um, and it causes problems. And so I think, um, there's gonna be opportunities for people to get away right away. I'm in that race, um, you know, it winds around for a little bit after that section and you hit 'em a little bit of a downhill. And then, um, we're fortunate we're going to get the racers on about four miles of private land, um, that no one ever gets to ride. I'm one of the ranchers in the community has been so generous and is offered up that a option for us. So we're gonna ride that it's going to go through his farm, it's going to go past, um, you know, in 19 forties, retired a greyhound bus. It's going to go through some really cool things and then it's going to get to really the first climbing section of the day, which is called steamboat lake. It's going to be a formal climb, um, it'll average in, you know, seven to 10 percent zone. And I think right out of the gate there, Mile Twenty five to 30, you're going to really start remembering that you're at, you know, seven thousand eight thousand feet of racing. I'm in steamboat. So, um, so that's kind of the first section of the course. Once you get to that, through that climb, you ride through some terrain, you do a long road descent, which I think a lot of people will actually appreciate when they can recover from, from, uh, really the first 35 miles will be almost exclusively on gravel. Um, and you'll get to that dissent. You'll retrace a little bit, um, and then you'll get to some really rolling ranch section. Then you'll get back into some climbing than some really fast gravel descending on, um, again, loose rocky terrain, which will, you know, make sure that you pick the right tires and the right equipment, which I think that will come into play a little bit certainly on, for this race or ride. Certainly for the descending. I don't think I'm, the tires are going to be a massive factor for riders. I'm on the flat sections or the climbing. Um, but the descending is where, um, you know, things like that are really gonna come into play. Are the writers mostly on fire roads to begin with? Yeah. Mostly, you know, and it's really, I'm not even, I wouldn't say it's defined as a fire road because you're not going up like the ski area or a big Alpine climbs, but I think it's comparative. Um, road quality to fire roads for sure. They're open gravel roads that are servicing the ranching community for the most part. So, um, vehicles can travel on those and they do, um, you might not see a car for four hours, but, but, um, that's the type of, of road. Yeah, that you would see, and then actually, once you get past this, um, this first, let's say 75 miles that I just described and the terrain shifts because you, you actually do then get out into more of an alpine environment again. Um, you go up a big climb at about mile 90, which is where I think the race is really going to separate, um, it's called Trout Creek. It's going to be about a nine mile climb. Um, it's gradual the first five or six miles and then it gets quite steep the last three and then you have this long sweeping 10 mile descent on fire road, exact description, but with really loose sections and some washboards depending on how, how the the summer goes. And so again, you're going to be tired. You're going to be four or five, six, seven hours into it by then and um, you know, then you're going to really be making, um, decisions on just how you get through that last 40 miles. So, um, so yeah, that's sort of a description of the first hundred, the last 40 miles of that steamboat gravel black. Um, the best way to describe it is that you're just going to get punched in the mouth. Um, by six or seven, one, two, two mile climbs, they're all going to be six to 10 percent. Um, some will be on the road, some will be on gravel. I'm at mile one slash 28. There's a climb called the corkscrew that's about one mile average, about 11 percent, which is going to be tough. Uh, you get outta there. You do two more clients and then need to send back into steamboat. So like I said, it's um, it's going to be challenging towards the end. Um, the, the, the riders that really have done well on nutrition and pacing, um, are going to do great. Um, everybody's going to have a great time, but it, um, it'll wear on you at the end. It sounds like it. I bet a number of my listeners are licking their lips saying this sounds awesome. And another banter shaking in their boots right now. Yeah, I think for those that are those guys that like a big challenge above climbing, they like, I'm back heavy courses, they're going to absolutely love racing it. Um, but I do think that everyone hopefully listening saying, wow, I'm going to get to see an incredible amount of steamboat and the terrain around there. It's all kinds of varied options. Um, you know, you're going to see Sam silt, rocky glass, fire roads, you know, as perfect as you can possibly get where you can make up some time or at least recover and eat and take care of yourself. And I'm the one thing that I think that we can really agree on, at least the of the steamboat residents. It's just going to be beautiful. Um, it's going to be really well supported. We're going to have the course heavily marked. Um, you're not going to get lost. You're going to have all the things that you need to get you through the day and, um, we're going to have a ton of volunteers out there. So, um, I, I think from that aspect it's going to be really, really fun. And, you know, the rider is going to be able to focus on writing, um, they're not going to have to worry about, um, a lot of those things that caused me stress. I know I always really get worried about making a wrong turn, you know, I just don't, I don't want to burn those attention units on that. Um, and we're going to do our best to make sure that doesn't happen. Everyone will have the gps of course, but um, we'll have it well marked. Um, you, we will have a ton of nutrition. You know, Google is going to be a partner for us. Um, we'll have maverick oncourse with neutral and um, and uh, it's going to be really, really fun. Now that the course distance, I've spoken about this on a number of occasions as well. It seems like you've got one camp of race organizers that are sort of tending towards this ultra distance type racing, which 140 miles I think we'd categorize there. And then the other side of it, it's a shorter, the shorter, faster races. Were there some races or types of races that you were modeling this around and said you're yourself, you know, five years from now we'd like people to be thinking of us in the category of this type of race? Yeah, yeah. Maybe I think, I think, as I said, maybe earlier that each of the races that, that we really liked doing. And I mean my, you know, my partner amy came in sixth dirty Kanza, um, this summer. My partner Ken was, I think 11th at the crusher. Um, you know, we all love dwr and are going to all race that, um, this, this spring. Um, and really love what Michael is doing there. So I think we were maybe inspired by all of those races. Just the ones that we do. The gravel mob was, was fantastic. I really had fun with that. Um, as an example. And honestly I think for us it was, we wanted something that was challenging. We didn't want something necessarily that people. I'm just bucket listed. Maybe we're, wow, I'm going to do that once and I'm never coming back. You know, we, and, and maybe some people will think that for sure, but, but we, we were more interested in having a variety of options for the racer and then maybe even, I think hopefully seeing some people say, well, this year I did a 37 mile course, next year I'll do the 100 and, and they have this big aspiration for the SBT gravel, black. But, um, I think, I think all the races are so different and their terrain so different. I think that's what makes them great. And they have these different profiles. Um, you know, if you talked with Michael Marks, he doesn't even like to have his race called a gravel race, right. You know, it's a spring classic. Um, and so, um, I think we, we tried to look at, um, the type of race that may be the three of us would want to do, right, well, you know, do we want to have our own navigation or do we want to have people telling us where to go? We all said we'd like to take that out of the equation. Right. Tell us where to go. Right. So, um, you know, do we want to have a bunch of people supporting us or not? Right. And, you know, we made a decision that we would like to, to have at least most of what you would need available oncourse and um, that's great. And you know, everybody has different versions of that. So, um, I think that the real delineation for us is that we really wanted us back in the racer, um, whether you're racing for prize money, which, you know, a lot of people have have debated if prize money should be a part of the gravel community. Um, you know, we see both sides, but we're looking at it. I'm not in changing gravel or changing the dynamic, which, you know, maybe it will do, maybe it won't, I don't, we'll have to see when our race goes, but, but we're looking at that more as investing back in eraser. We want people that are looking at doing this for a living or doing this as a, as a really, um, significant hobby, um, to potentially be rewarded for that. And so, um, you know, that was in, that was a decision that we had to make, you know what I mean. So I think for us, I'm investing back in the racer introducing people to the beauty of, of the region and then having a really strong option for people to race in the rocky mountains that had something for everybody. But those were probably, um, you know, the big motivators and you know, we'll see, you know, registration opens next week and we'll hope that a bunch of people want to want to be a part of it. And um, you know, we hope that we can come through as organizers and have a great experience for them. Yeah. I liked one of the things you said earlier, which was just you and your partner is just wanted to showcase how great a gravel riding destination steamboat is. And I think with, with that or would that origin the course is going to speak volumes, right? Because you guys live there. These are the roads do you are choosing to share with your community, which should be really excited citing for anybody from out of town to come in and participate in. Yeah, totally. And I think it's, it's really gonna be fun. I think this spring, um, you know, we hope and, and uh, are really anticipating a bunch of people once they register and are planning their calendar and how they're going to train and all of that. Um, to come and visit, you know, steamboat once or twice, you know, for, as you said, this is a, it's a long race if you're going to do the, the, the black horse and um, you know, I know for sure back to any race I've ever done. If I have familiarity with the course, I've just so much more confidence. Right? And how my day's going to go and how I plan, how I manage. And so we're hoping that on these weekends, spt gravel sponsored rides, that's a lot of people will come up, whether they're, you know, just from the front range of Denver, Boulder, um, they drive over from Salt Lake or, or they make a weekend or a week of training out of it. Um, the beauty of it is that you can get to any part of this course from downtown steamboat in about an hour and a half ride time, you know, so you can bite off, for example, if you want to come for three days and, and hit the three primary sections of spt, grab a black. You can do 3:50 mile rides from steamboat and see it all and, you know, not totally wipe yourself out, right? A couple of sections multiple times. Really get an understanding of, you know, maybe where you'll be at this point in your day and how to plan for it. And, you know, we'll have a bunch of support for those rides. I'm Amy Ken and I will be on them every weekend. Um, I think, I think for us, we think that's really, really important that, you know, the, the organizers, um, understand what's going on with the race and the course. And so, um, we're excited to have a bunch of people visit, show them around and go have a beer, have dinner with them, talk about the course and talk about steamboat. I, we, we, um, in every sense of the word. I think we want this to be an ambassador type event for our community and um, you know, really bring, um, this aspect of it. Speaking of which, what else should we expect during the weekend if we come to steamboat? Yeah, no, great question. We have a lot planned and we're racing on Sunday. Um, and that was really on purpose. We wanted people to be able to come to steamboat with their families. We didn't want to. Maybe this is the road racer in me personally, but I didn't want to have people show up late Friday, you know, get up, get your race number it on, do your race Saturday morning and go home, which is, you know, the majority of the road races I've ever done personally have gone that way. And um, we wanted people to have the ability to bring their families or bring their friends, race with their friends, um, and enjoy the weekend because there is so much to do for your family member, your spouse, your significant other, your kids in steamboat in the middle of August. It's just amazing. It's an amazing time to be, to be in this part of the country. And so, um, we've got all these things. You know, the steamboat is famous for its hot springs. It's famous for its ski area. I'm hiking, fishing, mountain biking. We're going to have an expo on Saturday. We're going to have a group ride Saturday morning, um, before that. Um, but the expo and registration or check in for the race is going to be held in conjunction with the steamboat farmer's markets. So you're going to have 150, um, food and, and other types of vendors. I'm part of our race expo where all of our sponsors and other folks that want to hang out with us and ride bikes and talk about their products and businesses are going to be, um, we're going to have, um, a symposium on a variety of topics, uh, sponsored by some folks. You know, one of the things that, um, you know, aspirationally we have is, is the parody angle of, of cycling in general. Um, and so with our race, you know, we have big goals. I'm certainly of having 50 slash 50 participation men and women. Um, we're certainly having a with our prize purses, you know, we're paying five deep to the men's and women's pro field, equal prize money. Um, we think that's really, really important. So think we're going to have some partners talking about women in sport, women in cycling. There's some other topics that are really, um, important to us that we may get to, talking to around potentially a Tbi, mental health, things of that nature. Um, at this symposium. And then certainly having a lot of our elite athletes hopefully be interviewed and, and be able to engage and talk with some of the other racers. So we'll have that all going on on Saturday. And then Sunday 6:30 sharp, we'll get off and race and you know, hopefully last finisher will come in around 9:00 PM. We'll um, we'll have a great support for people all weekend and they want to keep making it an annual thing. That's, that's really, um, at the end of the day, that's the goal is to have people come with their families and, and have a great time and then maybe come back even in the winter and now we're even linking up some winter ski benefits for all the racers that they enter. So it, uh, it's a, it's a big, it's a big a rallying cry for our community. But I think people are going to have a great time. That's great. You touched on it a little bit earlier in passing, but just just to nail it home from an equipment perspective on the black roots, you, you've mentioned sort of on some of the descents that was going to be where tire choice may come into play versus on the climbs you might be able to get away with something fairly narrow. Yeah. Yeah. I, I mean, I, I absolutely, and we say this on our website and our race or guide right now. I mean, you could get through this course on a bwr style with a, you know, a robot in 28. Um, I think it'd be very challenging to win. I'm a, or get through it as fast versus being on a road bike, you know, um, our race, it's 140, one miles, 125 of those are on grass, you know, Michael's race, which is amazing, but it's 100 miles on the road, you know, and so his, his race is certainly way more complicated from an equipment standpoint. You know, it's, I mean, I, I, I bet you, I think about his tire choice for his race most days, right? Because I just don't, there's so many different, different options and um, but for our race, you know, I think, you know, what we're recommending is, is um, you know, panel racers sponsor, so we, we think that, you know, the gravel king that they have in a 38 or the gravel King Ski, a 35 are, are probably the best ways to go, but that with, regardless of the brand that you, you know, you select, do you want a ride? Um, we think is probably right. Um, you know, there are some pretty rough desense, um, there's some really fast corners where, you know, that that sk or a Knob I'm a or tread pattern is going to really help you around those corners. Um, you know, it, it's just going to be, I think important and especially if it gets washboard, which we've seen. So, um, and there are some pretty long descents on, on gravel, so, so that's sort of the thinking there. Yeah. It's always an interesting conundrum going into a new event, trying to figure out what tire is optimized for the course that sits in front of me. Yeah. And we, you know, all of my partners and I, everyone in steamboat that rides a lot of gravel has written all these roads. I'm on 28. Um, I can tell you all of the Klms and all of the KLM is on defense and fastest times today have been on gravel tires and those are just going same exact rider, same fitness. I'm against the road bike with 28. So, um, so I, that would be our recommendation for sure. But um, you know, we'll see every, it's always interesting to see what people show up with and um, you know, the, the only thing that we're saying that, um, we, we really aren't going to want his arrow bars because there's just so much time on, on a, a mountain up and down. Um, and, and you're going to need your breaks a lot. And Man, I hope if you show up on a road bike, at least have disc brakes. That's really cool. Really. It's not mandatory, but, but man, it would be highly recommended. Well, this is a lot of great information, mark. I appreciate you joining us on the show. I think it's a great adventure. The website. Super Informative and I'll post a note to that in the show notes so everybody can go check it out. And remind me again what the url is and when the exact date of entries open up. Yeah, the url you can find us@sbtgravel.com. And a registration for general entry opens December fourth, but if you go to sbt gravel.com before the weekend, um, you can guarantee entry and get 20 percent off by opting into our email. So we're going to send, um, a, an entry code basically out, um, for everyone to get in. And then that registration for people with code is going to be actually on Monday, 7:00 AM mountain time, December third. So, um, we, we, uh, we have no idea on how fast the race has kind of fill up, but we have had a lot of interests. So we hope that people take advantage of, um, you know, the discount and get guaranteed under the race on December third. Great. And once we've got our entry, are there some social channels that we should follow to get a little sneak peeks of the course and some of the training rides if we're not local to Colorado? Yeah, absolutely. I mean we've got everything is at SBT GRVL for twitter, facebook, instagram and youtube. And um, there's actually a couple of really good videos out on the course already. Um, uh, Jason O from Gravel cyclists was out and did a really cool review of the course. He was able to prewrite it and so he put a video up on gravel cyclists.com. That's pretty cool. And um, we've got, uh, and we'll have a full analysis of every section of the course monthly, um, on our sbt gravel youtube channel. So, um, I would highly recommend checking those out. They're going to be anywhere from two to three minutes, you know, nothing too big from a time commitment standpoint, but we'll really dive into going through that course section. Talk about really what you should be thinking when you're in that section where you might be in a proximity to aid stations, the sense other support and things of that nature. So we'll really dissect the course, I think, um, some other races have done a great job. Leadville with their podcast talks about sections and we really thought that was a good idea. So we'll add some video elements to that, but it should be pretty cool. That's great. I think sharing all that information will be awesome for anybody preparing for the event. So mark, thanks again. I'll let you go. You have a good evening and you know, we look forward to talking to you again soon. No, thanks a lot. I really appreciate you having me on.

Chase your dream. Discover your potential. Transform your life. These are the inspirational words that grace the cover of Amy Charity's book, "The Wrong Side of Comfortable."Amy Charity is a professional speaker, author, and former U.S. women's national team cyclist who shares her journey on the often difficult, uncomfortable, and competitive world of professional bike racing.Her message is one of hope and how to conquer our fears and follow our hearts to push ourselves to the next level and actualize our dreams. Support this podcast

Each of us faces obstacles when we encounter BIG change. Whether it's how we evaluate, what's the first step, or even knowing the end goal – the execution is difficult because of the commitments and obligations we already have. Amy Charity joins Jess Dewell to talk about how to get uncomfortable … and succeed!

On the long list of innovations and products women weren’t permitted to use throughout history, add this gem: Women weren’t supposed to ride bicycles. In the late 19th century, a few gutsy ladies did, however, despite often being labeled unfeminine. As one writer stated in an 1896 editorial, the bicycle was a steed on which women rode into a whole new world. Bikes enabled women to travel free of chaperones and restrictive clothing. Do you know what that meant? Independence. What’s the one thing in your life that gives you the feeling of the wind in your hair and your petticoat left at home as you embrace your freedom? From your own savings account to your first roommate-free apartment, let’s celebrate all those victories, Destiny’s Child style, like the magnificent independent women we are! The post Amy Charity: She’s on the Ride of Her Life appeared first on On The Dot Woman.

Dr. Jeanette welcomes Amy Charity, author of The Wrong Side of Comfortable: Chase Your Dream. Discover Your Potential. Transform Your Life. will be sharing how she pushed her limits to find a life that she could only dream about.  Amy went outside her comfort zone and became an award winning cyclist by pushing barriers that she could never dream about.  Her life was very successful but it just was not the story she wished to write.  By listening to the heart, the journey can take you to a place that only you can define and it is life transforming. Can you enjoy the experience of life along the way or are you stuck in the beginning, middle or end of your story? For more information visit: www.AmyMCharity.com For health challenge support visit:  www.MyPersonalAdvocate2.com for time with Dr. Jeanette

Today's guest is Amy Charity

Amy Charity is a former professional cyclist and the author of “The Wrong Side of Comfortable: Chase Your Dream. Discover Your Potential. Transform Your Life.” Amy raced for the US National Team and signed a contract with one of the top 10 women's professional racing teams in the world. Her team won a National Championship in the Team Time Trial and raced the World Championships. Amy hosts annual Grinta Cycling Camps every summer and she is the Executive Director of Bike Town USA. She lives in Steamboat Springs, CO with her husband Matt and their boxador Lucy.

Lisa Tuminello and Amy Charity run Grinta Cycling Camps based out of Steamboat Springs, CO. Lisa joins us to discuss the upcoming junior, women's and ultra endurance camps. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.