Every so often, something comes along that resets what we think hard looks like, Metheven Bond delivered one such ride this weekend, finishing 6th at Badlands. Badlands is the biggest event in the gravel endurance calendar, for Metheven, this meant 43 hours and 6 minutes of riding through Eastern Andalusia with no sleep and barely an hour off the bike.
Badlands - what is it?
For anyone who doesn't know the event, Badlands was born in 2020 to showcase Eastern Andalusia, and six years on, it has become the benchmark for gravel endurance racing. The route runs 817km with 14,420m of climbing, starting and finishing in Granada and passing through Europe's only deserts and Almería's most iconic corners along the way. This year's edition drew a record 400 riders from 45 countries.
What sets Badlands apart is the rules. It's fully self-supported, so there's no drafting, no bottle or nutrition hand-offs, and no planned outside help of any kind. Riders carry what they need, buy what they can find along the route, and fix whatever breaks themselves. It strips racing back to rider and bike, and it's as pure a test of both as the sport offers.
Not an easy ride
Metheven crossed the line in 43 hours and 6 minutes. Across nearly two solid days of riding he was off the bike for barely an hour, and he rode through both nights without sleeping, working his way through a field that included some of the most experienced names in ultracycling.
His Ultra-Grit carried him and everything he needed the whole way. Ultra racing asks different questions of a bike than a start-to-finish race does, because when there's no help coming, everything has to keep working for two days straight, and it did. There's more to come from this one, words from Metheven and, we hope, a longer look at the ride itself. For now, chapeau Metheven. Sixth at Badlands. What a ride.
Follow the Ribble Outliers on Instagram for more from the team, and see the Ultra-Grit.
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