Dave's story: Gravel Worlds

BaseCamp athlete Dave Douglas shared his experience at the 2026 Gravel Worlds bike race in Nebraska.

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Great event!! Best gravel course that I have ever ridden. To be honest my expectations were really low going into this event. My longer training rides the last couple of months have not gone well and put me in a bad head space. At the completion of most of these training rides, I was questioning why I even continue to try. So, going into this event I had doubts as to whether or not I could even complete 75 miles. With no expectations, I had no anxiety. I started out the ride with the mind set of just enjoy the day, don't worry about what is happening around you and see how things play out.

When the ride started, I felt good both physically and mentally. A few miles in, I found myself with fellow BaseCamper Ken Carl. I am not very good at pacing my ride. It was quickly evident that Ken was sticking to a smart pacing strategy. I decided to try to model Ken's strategy. At times I did well. At times old habits kicked in. It was great to have a solid, experienced rider to watch and learn from. Thank you, Ken.

At about mile 40, my left leg started cramping. This is typical for me, so I wasn't surprised. I consigned myself to fighting through the cramps for the remainder of the ride. It slows you down a little and is painful, but I have been here before. So, I know it's doable. My normalized power dropped 15 watts after the cramps started.

Overall, I was very pleased with how I felt at the completion of the race. TrainingPeaks shows that I was in power zone 4 or above for 1.5 hours and heart rate only exceeded zone 3 for little over 2 minutes. I am pleased with how I rode. But not satisfied. Even with the leg cramps, I felt I had more in me at the end of the ride. I left this event in a better mental state than when I started it with. I am looking forward to training again.