Bighorn Gravel Celebrates Fifth Anniversary in Gypsum

The gravel crunches under tires, a dry, rhythmic hiss that cuts through the crisp morning air in Gypsum. It’s 6:45 a.m. on a Friday, and the scent of fresh coffee from the new Vail Brewing Club mingles with the damp chill of the Eagle Valley floor. People are stretching, checking gears, and whispering about climbs they’ve memorized but haven’t conquered in months.

This is the quiet before the storm at Bighorn Gravel. And for the fifth year running, the goal isn’t just to get bodies across a finish line. It’s to make sure they remember the feeling.

Jake Wells, the founder and organizer, has spent five years refining this specific slice of off-road cycling culture. He doesn’t want a chaotic mass start where riders get lost or starved. He wants a race that feels "well run, well supported, challenging and beautiful."

“I want people to say, ‘This race, event, ride was just really well run... I had a blast,'” Wells said. “And I want to do it again next year.”

That’s the pitch. And for locals who have watched this event evolve from a niche gathering into a regional staple, it’s a pitch that’s starting to land. The festivities kick off Friday with shakeout rides at the brand-new Vail Brewing Club, which now hosts packet pickup and the mandatory racer meeting. It’s a shift from the old days, moving the logistical heart of the event into a place where people can actually sit down and digest the route map before the adrenaline kicks in.

Saturday is when the rubber meets the road. The flagship 85-mile Ram’s Horn Escape pulls out for its neutral 2-mile rollout at 7 a.m. right after the 50-mile Little Bighorn starts at 8 a.m. The 20-mile Gravel Curious follows at 8:30 a.m., designed for those who want to test the waters without committing to a full day of suffering. The expo opens at 10 a.m., just as the first Gravel Curious athletes are expected to roll back in, creating a seamless loop of activity centered around the Gypsum Town Hall, the start and finish hub.

Wells says hitting the five-year mark “feels like a bit of a milestone.” But it’s not just about the calendar. It’s about the landscape. “What we set out initially to achieve was showcasing this beautiful landscape we have here in Eagle County and creating an event that allows people to test themselves and explore the backcountry a little more than they would on a given weekend,” he said. “And I feel like we’re checking that box.”

The route is no joke. With over 10,000 feet of climb, the long course demands respect. Yet, it’s accessible enough that you can cross the finish line intact. It’s also strategic. For elites like Life Time Grand Prix star Howard Grotts and two-time winner Cecily Decker, the topography offers tactical advantages. They’re chasing a $10,500 purse, sure, but they’re also there to prove they belong among the best. For the rest of us, it’s a person-vs.-self battle, made possible by the high-quality support of volunteers who know every switchback and gravel patch.

Wells believes part of preserving the experience has been ensuring world-class pros line up with everyday joes. “Then, you get a chance to see where you stand,” he said. It’s a rare thing in a sport that can sometimes feel exclusive. Here, Jack Diemar, an Eagle cyclist who placed fourth in 2022 and now rides for the Kelly Benefits Cycling Team, is using the Ram’s Horn Escape as a launchpad. Meanwhile, a novice might tackle the Gravel Curious as a stepping stone, not a sprint.

The result is a broad range of participants, each with their own reason for showing up. Some want the massage chair and the prize money. Others just want to see if they can make it up that one hill without walking. And that matters because it keeps the event grounded. It’s not just a pro circus. It’s a community gathering on wheels.

By 2 p.m., the awards ceremony will begin. The sun will be higher, the coffee gone, and the gravel dust will have settled on the town hall steps. The winners will hold their trophies, but the real victory is in the shared exhaustion, the high-fives between strangers, and the quiet promise that next year, they’ll be back.