The Umstead Gravel Grinder ran for a gloriously gravely 5 years but Umstead park has safety concerns with having a race in the park and we will not be able to have an event here in the future. Thanks for the past 5 UGGs, they were great!
Past UGG Race Results
2014: The first Umstead Gravel Grinder
Triangle Off-Road Cyclists held its first ever 50 and 100 mile Umstead Gravel Grinder Race at William B. Umstead State Park in Raleigh, NC in November 2014. The field was limited to 100 participants- 76 hardy souls showed up to race on a cold, rainy morning. The original route was modified at the last minute due to rising creek levels and extra lap was added to compensate for the route change. Racers were able to camp in the park the night before and were treated to a much appreciated hot meal from The Flying Biscuit Restaurant after the race. Included in the field were two unicyclists, multiple singlespeeders and at least one roadie.
The 2014 winners were:
- Teresa Brusadin Open Female 50-Miler
- Alex Harrill Open Male 50-Miler
- Tony Huggins Open Male 50+ 50-Miler
- Sara King Open Female 100-Miler
- Lee Duncan Open Male 100-Miler
- Roger Sutton Open Male 50+ 100-Miler
Much thanks to our 2014 sponsors: Cycling Spoken Here, Flythe Cyclery and Whole Family Chiropractic. And thanks to our host Umstead State Park and to Sarwat Khattak, TORC’s Race Director.
2018 Sponsors
Looking for another Race?
Check our Races page for upcoming races. Makes sense, right? Also, be sure to join our meetup group. And become a TORC Member if you aren’t already!
Photo credits: You?
Well heck. Did this (race closing down) stem from the poor behavior of a few cyclists that drew the complaints to the rangers in October 2017?
Their most important concern was safety: that people were riding very fast and very close to other park users without giving anyone any space and this could potentially cause an accident.
That is heartbreaking. I’m sorry Sarwat. Great job on 5 years of making UGG happen. It was very impressive for sure.
What about running it at night??
I asked last year to run it at night, he rejected that proposal.
Yes, I remember lots of folks out there, but I always made it a point to err on the side of their safety…always gave them a wide berth, announced myself, and said “excuse me”: and “thank you,” etc. Anyway, THANK YOU for putting on this wonderful event, and giving us a great event once a year! 🙂
Thanks for a great race. It’s understandable that the park has become just too busy on weekends to hold a bike race. People are going to ride fast, that’s the whole point of a race. But that’s incompatible crowded paths.
Pity the race is now defunct, but I can understand the reasoning. I thoroughly enjoyed doing it in 2017 after having to pull out in 2016 due to a broken ankle and missing out last year being wait listed. Very well organized race and an excellent venue. Any left over T-shirts from previous years? I’d be interested in a Male Large….
Hi Liam, yes, I have extra t-shirts, I need to set up an option to purchase via our online store, will get to it after Curse at the Crab!
Sad to see this race come to an end. The growth of the community has its benefits and challenges. I understand the rangers concerns as those accidents are becoming more common in this park. Accidents will happen without the race. Canceling the race to avoid accidents is easier for them. As riders we wish compromise could have been established.
I want to thank you/your team/ volunteers for all of the hard work. You have provided me with great gravel ride memories these past 4 years I have participated.
I was really looking forward to adding this race to my yearly calender. Sad news. Thanks for putting on a great event. Really well organized w/ some great food too.