Holy Spirit of Gravel

EMERGENCY COVID EPISODE!!!

HSOG came down with Covid (in 2026? really?) on the 25th anniversary of 9/11 which also happens to be the day before a gravel ride she had actually believed she could win. Wow lofty!

Anyway, since the deep state anti-gravel forces decided to reintroduce COVID into the cycling population and nullify HSOG's effort friend of the account and legend in her own right Laini Bones came to the rescue to keep the show rolling. Has any cycling podcast host ever recorded an episode during peak infection while actively nursing a foggy brain? This might be a first. Anyway HSOG and Laini come together to talk about how they met at the Philadelphia Cycling Classic, what it's like being so hitter-coded on the road, USA Gravel Nationals picks and more. Or something.

you probably already do but follow Laini Bones here

Adam Curtis: The Power of Nightmare documentary series

I've been meaning to do this one for awhile!! Piotr and Merida are my real life gravel homies. What does that mean? I do more than just banter with them from the side of ATVs at gravel races (that is cool too mind you).

Piotr is a Dutch privateer who's as good as any of the big US based names you know (multiple top tens at Unbound) and he just won Badlands ultra gravel race!! Merida is a professional "hypewoman" who started her own non-profit in Amsterdam called Project Fearless to get more girls in sports and just won her age group in the Gravel Earth Series. They're now based in the gravel capital of Europe, Girona (a suburb of Kansas). We met at Gravel Mexico last year and instantly became friends, they are a huge part of why I was able to go to Traka earlier this year and I'm the reason they hung out so much at the Contiential tires tent at the Unbound expo...it's a friendship built off mutual trust and respect I'd say. We've been meaning to do this for awhile and Piotr's win at Badlands with Merida by his side seemed like a perfect occasion. This is less of an interview and more of just a group of friends catching up after a few months in different continents.

You need to be following these two online. They are some of the best people and are always down for a chat in DMs if you're only slightly insane.

Merida Miller instagram

Piotr Havik instagram

I felt like this was recorded in a fever dream or something. Is the title even what we talked about?

HSOG is on the move. Exotic locations like Iowa and Nebraksa are the setting. Race day coverage was the name of the game for the two races now known as together as the "Corn Cup".

The setting of the two races might have looked similar but experiences, vibe and assignment were quite different at both. How do we offer insight into racing for the pro gravel field when resources vary vastly between races? Well this past weekend was the perfect sampler for that.

Listen this pod to hear everything about what it's like to work gravel race media for two weekends straight in the cornfields and maybe even a bit about how the races were won.

is this a good title for the episode?

I do a short and vague update on some gravel races that happened in Europe and one that I participated in here near the original Buccees...then my co-host tries and fails to trigger me about the FEMMES. We alsk talk Jon Berenthal movie vibes, WNBA enforcer culture and what the next couple weekends holds for myself and the gravel season at large.

It's been a whirlwind 4 stages of the Tour de France Femme avec Zweeeeft so I figured it was time for a nearly mid-race vibe check. My regular co-host is currently walking his dogs (one is very overweight) so I figured I may as well bring in Gravel Racing A-lister Cécile Lejeune to banter with. She's French, she's done some pro euro road stuff and she's got insights into the chest sizes of her competitors and meme admins. She's also about to race Leadville so listen on to see if plans on bra-doping up in the clouds!

Let me remind you tho, this is a satirical, irony poisoned, vibes oriented podcast. Think more meandering thoughts on how Québécois French sounds weird or if I should invest in Ma Petite Enterprise than heavy tactical analysis...there are other podcasts for that. I was glad to have Cecile on for as long as I did. She was late to an appointment because of it! Cool!

you can follow Cecile on instagram

does anyone read podcast episode descriptions? Can I just make stuff up?

Motogate was real. Have I said too much? hmm

Should Christopher Nolan remake The Prestige but this time its about two rival cyclists who will do anything to take each other down but its also like that tennis movie where Zendaya makes out with two dudes?

I commentated on a live stream, 7 hours straight, my hosts were the race organizers and their basement was very chill.

It's been a few weeks since my bro and I have sat down together and talked about GRAVEL RACING and GRAVEL CYCLING. But we're back and the story seems to be "how to make a story".

What does that mean? Well, we talk about the races that happened, namely USA Road Nats, BWR Montana, SBT Gravel, Oregon Trail etc but we talk about how those stories were told, how we perceived them and what it all means for the state of gravel today. This might be one of our worst episodes yet! Enjoy!

Other topics include:

Use code "HSOGSEAL" for 15% all STANS products!

This is a groundbreaking episode in Gravel Podcast history.

TWO different meme accounts talking to each other and getting truly in the weeds about what it's like to be hyper fixated on a niche sport AND have a platform to joke about it.

You already know TRmemes.Good from their quality use of reels, carbs per hour humor and dialed use of fonts. Now you can meet the human behind the account. If you don't already follow the account get on it!

This is an extra long episode too because when you get two people like us to connect in the digital landscape you know we're just like a couple toddlers who have made their own language and won't stop babbling to each other.

We tackle hard hitting topics such as:

and many more!!!

Hope you have a depressing commute/trainer ride long enough for this episode, we do think its a good one!

In this episode of the privateer deep dive series we bring in not one but two young gravel heads to find out what's going down in the world of gravel U23.

Are the kids indeed alright?

We talk to Mach1Devo team member Oskar Stack-Michasiw and substackian bike journalist Kyle Dawes about Unbound in particular but also what the general vibes of being a U23 athlete is all about and what the media landscape for this division is shaping up to be. Life Time is working towards legitimizing their league as a space for younger athletes but it is still a bit of a mystery for many of us normies what all is going on and it can look weird a bit weird if you ask about children-coded folks (they are all of draftable ages as far as I know). We also get into how we all know each other and bonus chat about the viral Canadian Gravel Nattys (Oskar is Canadian if it wasn't obvious from his accent).

Anyway it was fun to link with these guys again after the time we spent eating rural Kansas diner food (very good) and stacking bike cases into airport shuttles.

Read Kyle's great piece on Mach1Devo here!

who is the Wemby of gravel?

who is the Cape Verde goalkeeper of gravel?

do you not know what I am talking about because seemingly many cyclists do not know about other sports?

BWR Utah and a UCI gravel race in France happened and we might be one of the only gravel pods that mention it? Maybe not! But we drop some names regardless.

We talk some post-Unbound content and run a vibe check on the overall state of the sport. (As per usual some stuff in this sport doesn't make sense but if it's important enough to pod about it, that means its all good).

Is Team Specialized not going to the expo to chop it up with gravel dads the true death of the spirit of gravel or does no one care because they're winning and hop on pods after races?

Fan favorite Maddy Nutt explains ultra racing to me (someone who thinks 100 is a long ass ride) and I don't really get it but you can imagine me nodding along like you do when a crazy person is telling tall tales. Except the tales here are all real!! Maddy got second at Unbound XL just a month after winning Traka XL.

She tells me how to rode through thunder and lightning, walked for 5 (FIVE) hours in the mud and how the vibes are different from regular ol 200 mile distance racing. We also chat about Laufs because we both have one and they're fun to talk to about. I think you'll enjoy this one!!

Maddy Nutt on instagram and youtube

Use code HSOGSEAL for 15% off all Stans products!

I went to Unbound Gravel, the SUPER BOWL race formerly known as DeeKay 200 and I was there to WORK. It's not at the end of the season but it's still the most important race of the season. Even though I was kept busy the entire time, I still managed to have lots of fun. I work better after a few cold ones anyway.

But more important than myself, the race was really activated. Wheel swaps, sprint finishes and YOU, the normie, were there. Doing something. I'm sorry the live stream doesn't show you but it is what it is. You have a real life and real jobs, that's consolation.

Is gravel racing gaining fans or is the culture just deepening in a way that makes it feel more real? Wild Card list of dropped right before we recorded and we actually talk about it.

Topics include:

Use code "HSOGSEAL" for 15% off Stans products

My Traka experience brought to you Girona sponsored by G-Town.

As always, vibes based analysis and deconstruction of a race, a sport and its place in hearts and minds.

The meme admin x privateer collab the world has been waiting for..... HSOG x SOFIA SCHUGAR. Yes, THE Sofia, as we call her.

The world of gravel has longing for this meet up and Traka 2026 in Girona it finally happened. If I am the meme admin who dreams of being a pro athlete, Sofia is like my counterpart, the pro athlete who dreams of memery.

And in this pod episode it shows. It's the nearly two hour long gravel equivalent of the convos girls have in the bathrooms at night clubs. We talk about ourselves, our friends, this deranged sport we love and gravel tires. I don't really understand how people can say the "spirit of gravel" is dead with homegirls like this are 'diplomats' for this sport.

Follow this crazy chick on da gram, you wont regret it: https://www.instagram.com/literallysofiaschugar/

The season is official underway! (even though marquee races and other leagues have been going on for weeks now)

But still, it was Sea Otter weekend!

A trade show-cum-influencer showcase, in case you hadn't heard of it. It was also the start of the Life Time Grand Prix. A series with consequences. Really good stuff for a meme sport!

My cohost watched 15 minutes of the Sea Otter Gravel Classic live stream and I caught pretty much all 6 hours of it. And with that we recorded a podcast episode for everyone with depressing work commutes and sad trainer rides.

Topics include:

or in other words, How My Podium at Rattlesnake Gravel Saved the Sport of Gravel Racing

topics include:

- the spirit of gravel

- gravel racing

- gravel bikes

- gravel cycling

- my life

- my rich aunt

- my podium

- rattlesnake gravel

- VCletsgetit being a good influence on young men

- Bridgerton

- being non-verbal

- new life time website

- life time grand prix pregnancy policy

Winner of the Men's Midsouth Elite/Pro/Friday racer/Privateer/normie XL race, we had Durango native Cobe Freeburn of Trek Driftless on the pod to chit chat about how he rode 28c tires to the win (maybe a bit wider) and how that finish went down, what exactly is the Cliff Family Foundation, why Fort Lewis college is cool and what his plans are for the rest of the year.

My audio is a bit glitched out but Cobe's is fine and that's the most important thing.

follow Cobe on instagram and comment to make him addicted to instagram since he currently is cool and definitely not a screen addict

Those vibe check snipers on the rooftop will make sure of it.

I was at Valley of Tears gravel race in Turkey, TX and I got high-key activated!

I don't really know what I was doing there to be honest...vibe checks, instagram story coverage, gravel dad mogging, dirt crit alt-stream analysis, camping with my friend, drinking lonestar beer...a bit of everything.

All the instagram stories and some reels are up on my instagram page but listen to this episode to hear the answers to questions like:

-which privateer did I get to shotgun a La Croix?

-which PAS racer was sharing a house with Lunchbox racing?

-who flatted out early and had to get ride with us back into town?

-why can't we say "enve mog squad"?

-what was it like bantering with sofia?

-why is my bartape digital snow camo?

-will you use code "HSOGSEAL" for 15% off Stans products?

This podcast is what happens when two friends are having a post-race weekend Facetime catch up and decide, in the middle of the call, decide to turn it into a content fodder for the gravel machine.

A post-modern gravel race recap for the ages. We get sincerity-coded for a bit and talk about love, life, winning, losing and the crashes that happen in between. We also dig into her most recent race, Homegrown Gravel, Atlanta's best strip clubs, what it's like crashing into barbed wire AND a finish line banner AND almost a car.

There are bigger things in gravel, like your health and safety and no one knows that better than my big dawg LDC. Only one of the most prolific elite racers in gravel and one of the OGs paving the way for the modern privateer era.

Welcome to a cracked out convo between two friends, one of which is quite fast.

follow LDC's adventures here

use code HSOGSEAL for 15% off Stans products

or if you're into Silca buy stuff from them and tell them in the order section that it's because LDC bullied you into it

I only intended to ask Chase about BWR Arizona and let him ramble about getting dropped in the single track but then we start talking a lot about bikes (remember I have his 2024 Lauf), and wintering in Arizona and legos and mario kart and fast food oh and Drew Dillman crashes the pod does his "Dizzle" thing.

If you listen to his and you aren't a gravel dad or like me a gravel dad interpreter it will make you horrifically mentally ill so don't do it, healthcare isn't great in my home country. I don't know about yours.

oh yeah code HSOGSEAL for a discount on the STANS Sealant website. Yes I use Stans and its the first sealant I ever used and after trying others I went back to it. I keep it g money.

In this week's episode we talked to Euro-coded American gravel privateer Andy Lydic. He's raced all over the USA and Europe and is pursing his dreams in a way different to most young bucks who are born and raised in the USA.

He's raced with the big boys at UCI Gravel World Championships but also the gravel dads at your goated mass start Colorado races and lived to tell the tale.

We talk about the chaotic nature of semi pro euro road life, Girona vibes, freak mechanicals, training for early season gravel, dirty bottom brackets, being a fan of rosa kloser and much more.

And I also talk a bit more about my past with bikes and what my current set up is (Andy asked, I'm not trying be a main character about it).

Give homeboy a follow @andy.lydic

Has the gravel season started? Or does Santa Vall not count if everyone was felt kinda meh fitness-wise? More ruinations on euro-gravel vibes.

What is a team and what do tactics mean in 2026 Gravel culture?

Who is the Lindsey Vonn of Gravel? Who is the Ilia Malinin of Gravel?

Why did I finish one step off the podium at my gravel race?

Why do people act insane around me when I ride my new (to me) Lauf Siegla on our greenway?

Should I livestream myself brutally mogging gravel dads on Kick at gravel race expos?

Let's all make fun of Jutta Leerdamn's fiancee trying to ride a bike.

All this and more! Thank you for listening, rate and review or whatever!

We are still in pre-gravel season, lots of incoherent rambling about nothing. No mention of gravel cycling, any privateer or any brand in Epstein's emails.

We're back for season two of this thing. Unlike a viral Netflix series the VFX budget has not doubled and the cast did not negotiate for better contacts.

But much like Alexey Vermeulen's 10 year ENVE contract we have signed on to do this til we reach true AI singularity.

This week’s topics include:

- decade long contracts/indentured servitude

- new Specialized team

- how to care about this sport in the off season

- Trek Driftless “leak”

- sending your delinquent children to Gravel Therapy Wilderness Camps and it makes them worse

- the Bodega Ride

- cycling journalism

- someone sent me a bike…

- brown PAS puffer winter

- Rapha things

- Skimo?

Please remember this is a satirical podcast and if you take a bad faith reading of anything we say, we will assume you are very slow on a bike with the most expensive componentry.

It's been a minute since the last episode, you could say we had an OFF SEASON to enjoy this American holiday but really we just had nothing to talk about til HSOG put silly tires on her gravel bike and the With Pace team uploaded their Big Sugar episode.

Yes, you read correctly, our very own Holy Spirit of Gravel meme page admin was featured on what Forbes, CNN, the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times call "cycling's most Payson McElveen-coded podcast". She reflects on the experience of hanging with Payson and his team and talks quite a bit about being a crappy ebike handler. It was an awesome experience.

watch the race vlog here

watch the full interview here

listen here

Oh yeah, tech talk, she also rambles on and on and on about putting cyclocross tires no one wanted on her road bike as if it's paying her bills. Her cohost remarks on how his sad, indoor peloton trainer won't die. Wahoos, power meters and pedals all make an appearance.

They end up pivoting to F1 because even though it's boring as hell, there's some light drama...much like a gravel race but even more boring (I will die on that hill).

Also they talk about disgraced celebrities because why not.

Welcome back to Holy Spirit of Gravel:The Podcast, the only gravel podcast willing to say out loud what everyone else is whispering into their Wahoo head units: Did Lifetime just deal Gravel Earth a quiet, corporate deathblow… or are we finally watching two gravel series split into their true identities?

LTGP came out with a star studded female line up and a unknown-ish euro coded male line up (simon pellaud coded if you will). Will the most talented roster ever live up to its name?

People are dogging on Gravel Earth series right now but is it a bit too early to pile on?

Does any of it even matter because we are just two normies (out of many) who will watch anything presented to us anyway and find ways to talk about it while also bringing up Chase Wark regularly?

Lifetime rolls out the prize purse, the infrastructure, the media machine… and suddenly half the hitters are signing NDAs and smiling for drone shots. Meanwhile, Gravel Earth is posting artsy European B-roll and hoping the Americans remember how passports work.

We’ll break down:

Europeans invading Leadville like it’s a cultural exchange program with altitude sickness

Americans descending on Traka trying to cosplay as Girona locals

Gravel Worlds deciding it might actually be Unbound’s real rival… and not just the quirky cousin

BWR quietly sharpening knives

And unaffiliated races like Mid South whispering, “You know we were cooler before everyone started chasing series points, right?”

Plus:

Our totally not-actionable new bike pitches for Scott

The Dylan Johnson backlash, which is the gravel version of a bar fight in a Whole Foods parking lot

Privateers telling their fanbases to stand down in the comments like they’re running a militia

The Rift being spiritually annexed by Cuckoo Gravel, whether it likes it or not

And Holy Spirit of Gravel reminding everyone that she “DMs everyone,” but still refusing to say what those spicy insider messages actually contain. Classified. Sealed. Buried under the dangerous feed zone that everyone hates but actively contributes to its potentiality for disaster.

The end-of-season list highlights notable achievements within the sport, including, but not limited to, exceptional performances and landmark moments. This is a not an exhaustive list, and the omission of certain events or individuals does not imply a lack of significance, but rather reflects the necessarily selective nature of such a compilation and the mental duress of what it takes to produce a satire podcast for a niche sport.

Gravel is over for 2025 (unless you live in a hot place, now is our time to shine) . And privateers and normies alike have never been happier! Gravel racing is more fun to talk about than to actually DO anyway. And do we ever talk...it's a long one.

If anything mentioned in this pod offends you or we forgot about something....blame Holy's cohost who is desperately trying to get her cancelled.

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Welcome, normies, podcasters, privateers, Ben Delaney’s frenemies, and everyone who thinks they’re too cool for their local non-gravel group ride — this is the Holy Spirit of Gravel Awards 2025.

Tonight we honor the brave souls who attacked in the feed zone, denied it later on Instagram, and still somehow posted their power files publicly. Remember: gravel doesn’t believe in team tactics… unless your ‘non-team’ has matching kits, a nutrition sponsor, and a Team House with a full-time videographer and espresso machine.

In a sport where cancel culture means reporting your opponent for renting an Airbnb too close to the start line, we’re here to celebrate imperfection, chaos, and the beautiful delusion that this is still about fun.

We’ve got heroes, we’ve got villains, and by the end of tonight at least one of you will be crying like Chase Wark watching his own documentary. If you came here for structure, fairness, or clarity — you’ve taken a wrong turn somewhere around mile 47.

So clip in, unclip immediately because we’re on loose dirt, and let’s begin the only awards show that still refuses to define what gravel actually is.

Hannah Shell and Holy Spirit of Gravel meet up in the digital space after meeting in the real one to discuss all things Gravel Racing, International Travel, Sponsors, Why Gravel Mexico is so cool, What Happened at Unbound, The "Real" Gravel Worlds, Elevating The Women's Field, Road Being Stressful, Does The Feed Have Beef With HSOG?, Schedule Planning and much more. Hannah Shell has been around to see the gravel field transform in recent years and has thoughtful insights on what that means for the future.

Just when you thought the season was over and we could all go back to our normal lives not having to care about the most niche sport thats ever existed...GRAVEL BURN in South Africa debuts. It's extremely dialed and activated, probably because its put on by the same people who do Cape Epic (an MTB race I'm forced to care about because it is gravel-adjacent). Call it the Matt Beers effect!!! South Africa! Springboks! Toyota!

Anyway, young cyclist girls are all wanting DJ decks to compliment their on-the-bike skills. Call that the Alexis Skarda effect!

Before we get to any of that though we go through the On The Attack Life Time videos and some last bit of Big Sugar housekeeping til I remember something funny LDC and Deb said/did. I made some reels. Did you see them? I'll get back to making memes.

There was some interesting Midsouth news (I'll still find a way to fuck up their race).

Chris Froome was/is on that team.

DFL Culture - here to stay or downright offensive???

When editing the sound for this episode, I accidentally activated the software's AI singularity and it went ahead and summarized this episode and this is what it said:

The episode touches on the dynamic and sometimes chaotic state of content around races like 'Big Sugar' and Grazel Burn, delving into the complexities of race organization, team compositions, and the broader cultural aspects of the competitive and social sides of gravel racing. Speculations and commentary span from race logistics, fan engagement, marketing strategies, and potential industry changes. The hosts also ponder on the future of podium celebrations, cultural shifts in the sport, and the possible integration of new race formats.

It called the race GraZel Burn.

Big Sugar Gravel in Bentonville. Last stop in the Life Time Grand Prix. Your dad's favorite meme account (where he only gets like half the jokes), Holy Spirit of Gravel, was there! And once again she didn't actually ride.

Instead of commentating on the race, this time she was embedded with a privateer - and a legacy privateer at that - LDC aka Lauren De Crescenzo and her partner-in-crime/mechanic/life coach/in house guru Deb to film and produce her version of *meaningful* and *powerful* Gravel Content. It was a blast (according to Holy herself).

Shout out to LDC and Deb because without them none of this would have been possible.

This episode covers Holy's adventures with the gals and also her own personal activations.

Topics include:

Two big Gravel races happened and neither were even Gravel races. (Does anyone still capitalize the world "Gravel" or is that just us?) Anywho, join the Holy Spirit of Gravel meme page admin ("Holy" for short) and her Gravel Dad best friend has they discuss Little Sugar MTB race and the UCI Gravel World Championships. Like I said neither was what we come to expect from your typical gravel race.

It all begs the question. Is the soul of elite Gravel MTB races? or is it euro-coded dusty road races? Does it matter at all? or is what really matters the pro athletes we ride along side and we connect with? We discuss it all in this episode of the pod.

Also! Big Sugar is coming up in a few days and the Holy Spirit of Gravel will be hosting a panel (i.e. activating at an activation) with the support of MAAP and some bike shop called The HUB Bike Lounge...sounds fancy! Come heckle her in person, film and tag the drama so she can show her mom. Thursday 10/16 at 5pm. We talk the the pro-normie relationship and where it fits into the future of Gravel Cycling. See you there! Also Holy skipped last weekends grassroots race so she should actually be fired and cancelled.

Topics include:

Lots going on in this episode but it's mostly Holy complaining about getting harassed (just kidding, she loves it) by Gravel Dads at a privateer curious local, grassroots gravel race.

First off, Tom Pidcock is doing UCI Gravel Worlds because he didn't get his Vuelta stage win.  If he wins the rainbow jersey, he WILL line up at Unbound so he can fight with Keegan (also in marathon mountain bike rainbow) about the definition of Xtreme Gravel. The Gravel Earth series is over but we will endure and solder on. Doss Gravel made Holy like riding Gravel again.

Topics include:

Ranxo Gravel:

The Women's Top Three

The European Champion crashed

Holy Spirit of Gravel ruins an organic gravel moment by taking a selfie with the winners

Gravel Earth Series 2025: Did it WIN gravel 2025?

After the success of Sea Otter Girona, Launching Traka USA in Stillwater Oklahoma

Bicycle Station Interview Recap:

Riding the Midsouth Hungover 2026?

Video content coming soon?

Small business is endlessly fascinating

Reading the worst Google Reviews for the Bicycle Station, a small bike shop in Indiana

Doss Gravel:

AirBNB accommodations are the new tire width

Lauren Stephens interview

Hayden Christian, Justin McQuerry and Chase Collins

Chase Collins comedy culture critic deserves his own documentary

How to win the 30 mile race of a grassroots race

How to win tandem e-bike fat tire category at a grassroots race.

Holy podiumed but missed the podium

Someone wise once said recording a podcast between unhinged meme admin Holy Spirit of Gravel and youtube starlets The Bicycle Station would be like trying to herd cats...and we can proudly say they were not entirely wrong.

HSOG needs a new bike and she thought who better to ask than the team that has tried just about every bike under the sun and lived to tell the tale.

Jesse, Chase and Trey are content creators, small business owners and race organizers favorites of Gravel enthusiasts from across the normie and hitter spectrum.

Topics include

Bicycle Station youtube

Jesse, Chase and Trey on instagram

We don't know much.. but we know slightly more than you (unless you were there, because we werent). Some big races happened this weekend, Sea Otter Girona, USA Gravel Nationals and the European Gravel Championships.

And sometimes its not what actually happens during race, (because how are supposed to know without some coverage and lengthy captions) but about how we, the normie, perceive the action and then catalogue them into our memory stores. We make connections and references and build on the narrative of our own design. On a physical AND metaphysical level Gravel Cycling and Gravel Racing is truly what you make of it.

Riffs include:

we had the2025 Life Time Chequamegon MTB Festivalfinish line livestream on while we were recording and it ruined this episode and we will probably never pod again because of it

topics include

Maybe you've heard of the one of the best and most elite privateers on the planet by the name of Rosa Kloser?

Well if you haven't then where the hell were you while the Rift/Corn Cup/German Nattys were going on?

Holy Spirit gets ACTIVATED with the other half of Team RK to talk all things GRAVEL vs Road, HipHop, Corn Sweat, Mud Sweat, Academia and who's the Juan Ayuso of the women's peloton.

Topics Include

Protests, Bike Thefts, Ultra-Distance, Movies ... its all here!

Holy Spirit of Gravel wonders: Are you my best friend?  Listen to one of the most unhinged gravel cycling riff pods ever recorded. Listen to us write the script for Gravel Privateer: The Movie in real time. Is this a prestige gravel hiatus? It must be, because listen to us go.

Riffs Include:

From the heavens to the corn fields…this episode is sometimes casual, sometimes erratic Lauf Gravel Worlds riffing. All yall were either there or watching the livestream anyway so we don’t need to get too serious. Or maybe you commenting "cross is coming" on a stray piece of mud-coded media. Or maybe you were doing something sane with your time.

topics include:

-presented by MGrills or MLGrills, we arent too sure

Holy Spirit has her first in-race media gig from core4 in Iowa.  She recaps the vibes of the race, the course conditions, and what it takes to elevate a race into the gravel discourse for a weekend.  Maybe every race doesn't need a 6 hour livestream to capture the hearts of gravel fans? All-in-all a great weekend for gravel and core4.

Topics include:

We weren't there and don't know a whole lot about Mountain Bikes but that doesn't stop us from talking about the most gravel-coded MTB race in the world. Or maybe its just X-Treme Gravel?

Holy Spirit and the Gravel Dad cohost ate at a really activated pizza spot featured on Barstool Sports and then just decided to pod before she went back home because even tho the vibes were off, the pizza was really good! Also Holy Spirit briefly mixed up Heathland Gravel and Latvia's Gravel Weekend, she should resign from the Core4 media team. Also Holy Spirit wants to commit fraud and use the funds to start a team of privateers. Also thanks for listening, please rate/review and tell your friends.

Topics include:

Alternate title for the podcast episode is: Did Axelle Dubau Prevot’s INSANE Leadville Block inspire her sister to win TdFF??

Your favorite unhinged Gravel podcast breaks down the paved race called Tour de France Femmes avec Whoop Cycling and DESTROYS the critiques of “women don’t know how to ride bikes”. Also Megre Gravel was happening during the queen’s stage and apparently pro cycling stats has a hidden tab for gravel races.

Topics include:

The Holy Spirit of Gravel digs in on two weeks of gravel and whatever the Leadville stage race is because we were getting sick of the Tour (hommes) (we love it but).

Gravel Earth Series seems to be winning the aesthetics war currently with their women’s Rift coverage… I think the men’s was in there somewhere. Foco Fondo had a dialed, grassroots-coded livestream where we could see some normie style aid station usage. Leadville stage race was stacked but does Holy Spirit even care about MTB?

Will Daxton Mock/Lance Haidet’s family break the Gravel Database Project servers because they checked their profiles too many times? (We are too cheap to have a good server).

Are vibes-based race calendars the new high carb movement? Why does Holy Spirit wear the same shirt in every video she’s soft doxxed herself in? What actually happened in the Lithuanian forests all those years ago? Do Lithuanian gravel races have 10k prize purses or is that just middle of nowhere North Dakota?

These questions and many more get answered on today’s pod.

Oh yeah, should we continue to do political pundit impressions?

Here’s that awesome Kate Courtney video I was talking about: https://youtu.be/xFJsR8bG6es?si=fg2nWUOq0BpkCm19

Holy Spirit of Gravel DESTROYS NBC Sports' coverage of the Tour De France. As much as we enjoy this time of year, why does the Peacock coverage in America feel disconnected from the things that we love about cycling in America? Are we too gravel-pilled, or is the broadcast disengaged from the best parts of cycling in America?

-guys in suits

-Bradley Wiggins and George Hincapie working out

-track cycling to UCI British Olympic pipeline

-ketones and veteran owned podcast products

-the fallacy of having an American be the best

-improperly using Sepp Kuss, Quinn Simmons, Matteo Jorgenson,

-Quinn Simmons to Miami Blazers pipeline

-Broke Knights

-Has Lance Armstrong been memory-holed with Zoomers and Gen Alpha?

-we do NOT talk about Tadej vs Jonas

Presented by The Feed presented by Nathan’s hot dogs presented by San Luis Potosí tourism board presented by Campaign for Nick Blouin for Utah Presented by Crusher in the Tusher presented by

Today marks our first ever interview on the Holy Sprit of Gravel podcast. We are calling this series the Beyond Privateer Chronicles (until I think of something better).

We're joined by German pro elite hitter Paul Sandmann. You might know him for his 38th place result in Unbound 2025. He pulls back the curtain on life as a lesser-known gravel hitter, if the privateer model is worth it, and the differences between Euro gravel and American prestige gravel. Oh and he's Rosa Kloser's boyfriend.

We here at HSOG productions make an effort to highlight the lesser known hitters whose stories deserve to be told.

We get to hear unfiltered views from inside the men’s elite field, such as:

-Tim DeClerq policing the Unbound breakaway

-The future of steel/metal/magnesium bikes

-The best tire to rollover a water bottle in a rut

-What can sponsors truly add to a privateer

-Who gets to debrief first: Paul or Rosa?

-politics of Unbound Drafting

-is Chase Wark shadow banned in Europe?

-are Hambini and Peak Torque accurate from an engineer-privateer point of view?

-what it’s like being a member of Team RK (team Rosa Kloser)

-how to travel with your bike like a pro

And much more…

We hope you enjoy the first in what will be a continuing series in highlighting the best of our deranged sport.

The Holy Spirit talks about SBT GRVL for way too long. It ends up being a podcast about lap races in gravel, neutral feed zones and MAURTEN's nutrition. (Not to be confused with Morton's Steak House or Morton's salt). The Cooldown with Alexey Vermuelen and Keegan Swenson provided insight into a race weekend of narrow tires and champagne gravel from the perspective of the gravel elite.

Eventually, there is a vibe check on Oregon Trail Gravel Grind. We talk about the camping vs Airbnb wars among privateers and the future of the spirit of gravel. Does the Lifetime Grand Prix need a stage race? BWR Montana also happened and Chase Wark won a grassroots race. An overbooked weekend in Gravel means the privateers don't all get to hang out and post videos on Instagram together!

Overall, there's a normie vibe shift towards adventure biking so gravel dads can ride overnight/camp in a Lachlan Morton style windbreaker tent for a night. There's also a vibe shift towards SCOTT bikes in 2025. Holy Spirit continues to push the narrative that the women are more interesting than the men. And that there should be more nutrition-specific gravel races when races design their course + race experience narratives.

We talk about the biggest cycling brands like Pas Normal, MAAP, Colnago, Scott, and the ongoing vibe wars in gravel.

Riffs of today:

-Endurance Bro says the podcast is terrible

-The move from aero to adventure coding

-Is the aero movement ending?

-Gravel is ruining every cycling discipline theory

-The spirit of Randonneuring

-SBT GRVL's cultural significance on the gravel calendar

-The new format of SBT GRV

-Loop formats and Dozinky Doozie's triple loop format

-Brennan Wurtz and his stars and stripes x SCOTT bike

-Is SCOTT bikes winning the vibes war in gravel this year?

-The Cam Jones UNBOUND video drop

-Are Cam Jones and Brennan Wurtz the REAL Keegan and Matt Beers?

-Matt Beers is tall

-BWR Montana and Finsty

-Privateers who don't live in the Four Corners states have to go home eventually -- you can't just live in a van for months?

-Chase Wark won a race --new documentary dropping soon?

-Should more privateers go dominate grass roots races?

-We need more Deep South Gravel representation

-The Cooldown with Alexey and Keegan breakdown--Do we love Keegan Swenson hot takes?

-Nathan Haas rode road tires at SBT and wrote narrow-tire-core instagram captions

-Pas Normal Studios x Colnago road bike collab talk

-Is Pas Normal a roadie brand?

-The Pas Normal to Team UAE sponsorship Theory

-Neutralized feed zones--great for normies, bad for sponsored athletes

-Sarah Lange is bursting on to the scene

-The Cooldown Femmes with Lauren Stephens and Paige Onweiller -- Cecily Decker or -Lauren DeCrezenco? Sofia Gomez-Villafane?

-Are looped races just adventure dirt crits?

-BWR Montana results review - Stella Hobbs to podcast guest? Daxton Mock, Lance Haidet, Joe Goettel.

-Oregon Trail Gravel Grinder - Are stage races the next big vibe in gravel?

-Glamp style stage races

-Sophia Gomez-Villafane stayed at an AirBNB

-Cecile Lejune, Sarah Sturm, Morgan Aguirre, Dani Shrosbree

-Can Sarah Sturm digest Maurten's products?

-Cam Jones and his parents are gravel's top story of 2025?

-Iz King and her fourth trimester adventure experience

-Bike shop customers in Pas Normal and MAAP are the worst patrons

-Inside the Maurten's marketing team's reaction to post SBT buzz

-Going Narrow with 45s

-Facebook marketplace gravel dads looking to exploit cycling quitters

-A theory on Nike joining the gravel boom

-H&M bibs - is fast fashion aero?

-Los Angeles cycling bros - Mitch Boyer, Shreddy Pendergrass, Safa Brian and NOT Phil Gaimon

-That feeling when a fat tire bike passes you

-How to get NIKE into gravel - a roadMAAP

-Holy Spirit prepares to go to Gravel Mexico and get into the Gravel Earth longtail scrub standings (and connect with her heritage)

-The Paul Sandmann Documentary?

-Maurten's is SOYLENT coded

-How to get a bike shop to hate you

We had to reupload this episode due to the audio being horribly corrupted on the previous one (it made it seem like we were high on uppers interrupting each other constantly but in reality the audio was desynced). We are sorry and we strive to DO BETTER. We are not perfect but we will learn from this experience. Sorry again to everyone, now on to the show. If you were late and this is your first time listening just disregard the last few sentences.

The A24 coded / Criterion Collection era of gravel videos is in full swing this gravel season with Lachlan Morton's Unbound XL video. Will the world's most artistic directors begin making spon con for gravel brands? Will EF put MUCK OFF in their TDF team's tires.

This is basically a pod about Cinéma vérité, not gravel. But only in that gravel is real life, and real life is every thing, and thereby gravel is everything. American directors mentioned include Gus Van Sandt, Ben Affleck, Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson, Greta Gerwig, the Coen brothers and Ben Affleck.

Don't you want to see spon con directed by Greta Gerwig about Paige Onweiller's former career as a physician's Assistant?

Elsewhere, the Holy Spirit does her worldwide grassroots recap on Migration Gravel and Big Horn Gravel. Let's just say PAS RACING (Cecily Decker, Karo Migon, and Emily Newsom] dominated the podium and picked up some physically HUGE checks.

-Introducing an a.i. generated farmer

-Local bike shops not knowing you are cool contemporary gravel coded

-Brady Corbet from child actor to director to gravel spon con collaborator

-The farmers are winning the War on Gravel

-Is Lachlan the most popular privateer amongst gravel dads?

-Pas Normal x JJJJound tastemaker collab

-Paul Sandmann to HSOG pod?

-GCN cringe core

-Rural Murals

-Will Keegan and Sofia launch a couples reality show?

-The Ben Delaney Ventum embargo

-Joe Goettl, a BWR Utah Specialist

-Dylan Johnson's heat training video

-Valterri Bottas's cringe gravel-coded IG privateer social media presence

-Matt Stephens is trying to Great British Bakeoff-code cycling

-Building out the Emporia State University Gravel Studies Program

-Natural Wine x gravel x Girona

-Can you do drugs and eat caffeine gels?

-SBT Gravel preview (not actually a preview)

-What happens if a bike shop hates you for thinking you are a cool gravel guy? (You probably deserve it)

The audio file episode that used to be here was horribly corrupted (that fact that no one seemed to notice is a testament to how insane we are maybe). Instead enjoy this Easter Egg from a Flint Hills local.

Father's day is done and dusted but The Pod Squad goes deeper on Gravel Dad theory and categorization.  Understanding that Gravel Dads can range from ages 22-100 with different skills and vibes.  Also--should sherpas stop escorting rich people up Mount Everest and help wealthy/pathetic gravel dads up climbs? Of course there is lingering Unbound banter.

Other topics include:

-The Cam Jones Media Tour

-The Karo Mignon Winning Everything Tour

-ICE going after Euro Privateers in America on Temporary Work Visas?

-Has there been Unbound Gravel 2025 content?

-UCI Gravel is not a real thing

-Paul Sandmann and Nathalie Eklund to Holy Spirit of Gravel POD?

-How many Vermuelens are there?

-Rosa Kloser in the Tour De Suisse

-Friends and Family throwing your Pas Normal / MAAP bibs in the dryer

-GCN: they are really agonizing over the whole gravel versus road bike thing, huh?

-Daxton Mock, Lance Haidet and Taylor Lideen updates

-Safari Gravel, Canadian National Gravel Championship, and Lost & Found also happened

-zone2speak

"Is American crit racing WASHED?" -some one way too into gravel

The Holy Spirit touches grass after getting TOO activated at UNBOUND. She documents going on a ride without her Wahoo. Then she starts reading about Gravel Earth's Festivus Gravel, attended by Lifetime Grand Prix hitter Simon Pellaud.

The PD SQD (pod squad privateer team) accidentally starts talking about crit racing in America because Tulsa Tough happened. They are incredibly uninformed, but talk about Le6ion, The Golden State Blazers fka the Miami Blazers. Does it need a dirt crit or a Midsouth gravel crossover event? Holy Spirit says that we can unite American cycling if Justin Williams and Corey Williams did the Unbound 50 distance.

Eventually, Holy goes over the MAAP privateer collection and proceeds to describe every single jersey in detail for our visually impaired listeners. Will Pas Racing x Pas Normal Studios ever sell Pas Racing clothing to the general public?

The team begins to research grassroots races in America and becomes fixated on the Dozinky Doozy in Nebraska.

As always, JUSTICE FOR THE RAD in Trinidad Colorado.

RIFFS INCLUDE:

-Simon Pellaud's post-unbound schedule
-Politics of t-shirt rides-Post-Unbound race calendar having to be FUN-CODED due to activation exhaustion
-Festivus Gravel in Canada -- why is there a Christmas event in June?
-Gravelooza in Quebec: Canada is poppin off with grassroots events and even BWR British Columbia
-How to RESET after an intensive Unbound Block and race
-Garmin and WAHOO need a mental health UNPLUGGED setting for gravel dads
-Crit racers are mentally ill hot take
-Life before the gravel boom-- crit bros were once on top.
-The Miami Blazers moved to GOLDEN STATE?
-The most uninformed discussion on the failed American crit league of all time
-Holy Spirit to become gravel national champion of Vatican City to wear papal-coded kit
-Tulsa Tough x Bobby Wintel dirt crit at Tulsa Tough
-Planning to chase an FKT as a normie
-Corey Williams and Justin Williams to the Unbound 50
-Mass start at the Unbound Dirt crit: gravel normies vs. crit bros
-Tulsa Tough and gravel both happen in Flyover Country: FLYOVER THIS!
-Establishing The Unaffiliated Calendar
-The guy in the Le6ion jersey in your city is a maniac
-Stop sign etiquette: You can never win
-MAAP privateer jersey lineup
-Chad Haga traded from Pas Racing to MAAP privateer
-Pas Normal Studios won't manufacture bib sets for Large and XL riders-Freddy Ovett: His name is around
-Peyson McElveen is injured in his MAAP privateer kit photo shoot
-Paige Onweiller and mid-level provider awareness
-Was Finsty wearing SHOCKS headphones during Unbound 200? (Russell Finsterwald)
-Should privateers wear headphones during races?
-HSOG shares her Unbound playlist
-Does the PAS team talk about team tactics in English?
-Do we need a Triple Crown or Quad of Gravel?
-Why do women privateers have real jobs but the men are "just" cyclists?
-Gravel Studies Major at Grand Canyon University Online
-Aero Studies, Course Construction, Activation Maximization modules on UDEMY/Coursera
-Sea Otter Europe Girona is a real thing
-Dozinky Doozy in Prague, Nebraska
-Gravel Worlds moved from Nebraska to Minnesota
-No coverage of the Chase Wark Documentary
-Doss Gravel will be hitter coded
-Grass routes descriptions sound better than Unbound
-Starting our own grass roots race and making it purposely shitty. Self-timing without infrastructure
-Our first guest will be some one who rode in the Dozinky Doozy
-Project Echelon apologists and fake gravel teams
-The Dylan Johnson youtube views vacuum at UNBOUND
-Discussing the Red Hook to gravel privateer pipeline
-Getting Dylan Johnson's doctor on the pod (and first responders and truck drivers)
-We need a BWR Specialist in the privateer field
-Lifetime dropped The RAD in Trinidad, Colorado
-Should more people want to be in the Cat 5 master's livestream?

Holy Spirit ventured to Emporia, Kansas to get ACTIVATED. The 200 mile pro field race was full of ruts, dangerous riding by non-elite riders, and clogged with normies on the course. Is it time to redefine the spirit of gravel? (aka the discussion that happens after every race)

More importantly, did the Holy Spirit almost end the race of an unnamed privateer (named John Borstelmann).

Lifetime Grand Prix is actually good this year because of Pas Racing, Cecily Decker, and Simon Pellaud. Also, Cam Jones might not be able to accept his prize money due to Visa issues. Was the real winner of Unbound Peyson McElveen's gravel commentating career? We define "the Double" which was achieved by Karo Mignon. And clear up the difference between Cecily Decker and Cecile LeJeune.

We talk about Rosa Kloser, PhD candidate, stopping by the E.F. tent, ketone cults, calling yourself a future Gravel Hall of Famer, equality for multiple distances, Holy Spirits parental support crew, denim jackets, and Holy Spirit's visit to the Pas House.

The Holy Spirit prepares to head to the most ACTIVATED city in the world--Emporia, Kansas. There's activations, there's GU wrappers, and there's apparently a gravel Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. The PD SQD (pod squad) previews the UNBOUND 200 with no information or data. More importantly, will normies be taking selfies with privateers at shakeout rides? The event will be livestreamed, but will we get more vibes than people shouting "let's go Keegan." The only true narrative about UNBOUND is the Mud vs. No Mud binary.

-Did Holy Spirit finish all her packing?

-Will privateers soon require bodyguards on eBikes?

-Should Russell Finsterwald make MAAP sponsored route planning screen share videos?

-Is there a rising class of celeb mechanics?

-Is The Bobby Wintle Project playing Unbound?

-Will Pas Racing truly take over America?

-Is Lauren Stephens as good as the Olympic champion and former venture capitalist Kristen Faulker?

-Is there a Barry Roubaix psy op?

-Can multicasts save the Lifetime Grand Prix Unbound Livestream (before we've even seen the first one)?

-Pas Team Tactics: Will They Happen?

-Will we one day be able to turn our remains into gravel?

-Is it going to rain in Emporia Kansas? (SEO bait)

EMERGENCY POD to discuss Dylan Johnson's accident--he was hit by a truck and details are scarce. All we know is that he won't be at UNBOUND--not even an activation. His absence will be felt, but will it lead to a revolution of DJ content? Is it time to break up the Bonk Bros? Alexey Vermuelen was on Payson's "With Pace" episode where they talk about gravel mortality. Unbound is going to have a livestream! Gravel is being 'perceived' by the masses? Well, at least we like livestreams. Also Holy Spirit does a FOMO Gravel Locos preview because Pas Racing is going and she won't be there.

The Holy Spirit's Unbound Block Party is going hard and she balances training load with activations. What is the future of Emporia, Kansas? Will it be filled with youtube CREATOR HOUSES in 2025?

Elsewhere, the gravel calendar never sleeps as Giro Stage 9 featured 29.9 km of CERTIFIED GRAVEL, The Gralloch was a CERTIFIED UCI gravel race (they're real?) where the livestream didn't work and Pete Stetina's Paydirt ACTIVATED the Nevada grassroots gravel scene.  Most importantly, our Vibes Based Coaching Protocol begins to define what makes a block and how to be as annoying as possible when you are deep in your block. 

Follow the @holyspiritofgravel on Instagram at http://www.instagram.com/holyspiritofgravel

email us whatever: holyspiritofgravel@gmail.com

riffs include:

Today, we talk about the GCN crew getting carjacked by Catalonian gangsters when they left Traka.  By the way, who watches GCN?  The Holy Spirit begins to document her Unbound Block, including a fall and an extreme stroad ride.  We breakdown some of Traka's best content from Maddy Nutt and vc letsgetit. Musings include neglected greenways, Girona work permits, Sepp Kuss privateer arc, and a future where all bikes have insta360 cameras on them for insurance and surveillance purposes.

Feel free to email us if you have any comments or questions: holyspiritofgravel@gmail.com

Follow on instagram https://www.instagram.com/holyspiritofgravel/ for the best niche gravel memes.

Riffs include:

Sorry Lifetime Grand Prix-- but is the Trakka was the greatest gravel race of all time? We digitally travel to the streets of Girona, attend some sick afterparties and activations, and embedded ourselves in the 10 hour Trakka livestream to bring you the best race and culture analysis available.  It was a huge day for Pas Racing aka Pas Normal Studios. Will this increase their market share in America, and are they on their way to Rapha normie status? 

riffs include:

Follow @holyspiritofgravel on instagram.

Riffs Include:

Holy Spirit and Gravel Dad recap The Growler, a pro race during Levi's Gran Fondo. Is this the salvation of American road racing in America? Or just a road race re-skinned as a gravel race?  Americans got to turn on Youtube and watch a pro race called by British prestige cycling voices Matt Stephens (NOT Lauren's husband) and the pride of greater manchester Hannah Walker.  We're a long way from a cafe ride and the spring classics.

Riffs include:

We hit many riffs, they include:

We were not anywhere near the Sea Otter Classic elite field Gravel race this Thursday but the Holy Spirit was locked into the instagram live feed and we had to talk about it to Gravel Dad.

Today's Riffs include...

-Simon Pelluad + Tudor Cycling team is taking over American Gravel Cycling?

-unhinged normies projecting Matt Beers vs Keegan Cape Epic drama

-Lifetime production team killed it with their DIY livestream and rapid uploads even though it wasn't always working and wasn't a real stream

-Deranged gravel fans in comment sections

-Keegan threw up! (more interesting than winning)

-Haley Batten has a training ride during Sea Otter

-Cecily Decker hero ride for Pas Normal Racing

-Payson McElveen crashed his new Allied Bike -- but will gravel dads still call into his podcast?

-Midpack blues for privateers (get the excuses ready!)

-Chase Wark's DNS - Fatherhood

- what are gravel roads really?

-Pitching Privateer HARD KNOCKS style reality docuseries

-Trakka Fever and BWR California

-Bonk Bros fans Versus Phil Gaimon fans

The Holy Spirit of Gravel travels to Castell, TX and ends up on the podium of the normie distance of a normie race.  She continues to add to her normie palmares in order to pitch sponsors in her inevitable meme admin to privateer arc. 

Gravel Dad and the Holy Spirit discuss the rise of hitter-coded normies, watt pushing gravel dads, and cycling body dysmorphia when you are an American non-hitter in Pas Normal.

It was a muddy weekend in Castell that resulted in slower times, but yielded higher results.  This pod has to be about as interesting as a Lifetime GP reject talking about their 19th place.

So how to get on a gravel podium according to HSG?

-push up to the front at the start-how to not be afraid of hitter coded riders

-don't train with power or heartrate, just ride on VIBES

-steal Pas Normal bottles that fell out of bottle cages at bumpy parts of the course

-when there's bad weather leading up to the race, just go to the race anyways

-aggressively flick your elbow and yell at people for not pulling (even though neither of you are actually good at cycling)

-the fall of Chase Collins and the local hitter to privateer pipeline.

The Holy Spirit stumbles into instagram coverage of The Hills race in Italy and discovers that Europeans have their own gravel multiverse.  They also get to see Lachlan Morton DJ Sets at their races. European gravel is festival coded Millennial programming--but do normies participates in mass starts in Euro Gravel?

Hot topics include:

-Privateers dominating local races

-The world tour dropout to gravel to DJ pipeline

-Pan Normal, the hottest new bakery in your dumb american city

-John Borstelman, Matt Beers, Daxton Mock and Alexis Skarda

-Pedal Mafia's core fan base, Pas Normal's Solitude incel campaign

-Gérard Freixes as the Kimo Seymour of Europe

-Trakka-pilled privateers

-CANYON getting lit up on Reddit by Canyon normies

-Lifetime Grand Prix website consulting

-DMing Keegan Swenson music recommendations to help him grow out of screamo pop punk

SOCIALS:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/holyspiritofgravel/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@HolySpiritofGravel

If you are a crazy person and need to email the show: holyspiritofgravel@gmail.com

The Holy Spirit traveled to the Rattlesnake Grind in Sweetwater, Texas. We do a vibe check on the weekend. Participants included Lauren Stephens, Joe Laverick and a bunch of normies. Some gravel dad brought rollers to warm up in the parking lot. Does the Spirit of Gravel live exclusively at Lifetime Grand Prix events or just your local regional grind?  No one has recognized my Pas Normal International Cycling Club cap and I'm having an existential meltdown.

Wow what a loaded title!

WILL MIDSOUTH 2025 END UP BEING THE CULTURALLY DEFINITIVE RACE OF 2025?

Wildfires in Stillwater, Oklahoma and surrounding communities led to the cancellation of Midsouth 2025. The situation escalated quickly, as did the online discourse around air quality index, rider safety, and community resources. Not to mention thousands of normies who were planning a fun weekend and had to ship their bike back home.

Once again, the relationship between gravel culturalistas who descend upon small towns once a year and the communities that host them was highlighted with the reaction to this natural disaster.

We are just happy Bobby Wintle doesn't have to film an apology video on the always well-produced Midsouth Youtube Channel. We've all witness thankless bike shop owners and race organizers simply burn out based on unrelenting feedback.

Despite the tragedy, it feels like Midsouth and Stillwater still won when it comes to remaining the center of gravel in America.

The Holy Spirit travels to Turkey, Texas to recap the Valley of Tears Gravel Race.

A recently launched grassroots race, funded by Fairos insurance has attracted the talent of many gravel privateers. Let's just say it was the type of race where Dylan Johnson and Ben Delaney could collab. The weather was terrible and park rangers had to rescue all of the gravel normies off the course.

Also zoomer legend Daxton Mock (who we assume is a zoomer) won the men's race. Sofia Gomez Villafane won the women's race. There was a crit (cyclocross style).

We forgot to talk about Chase Wark and how all of the privateers stayed in a make-shift shipping container Olympic Village.

The Holy Spirit ran into Kerry Werner and Finsty eating tortilla chips and ice water the day before the race.