Laurens ten Dam, winner of Gravel Locos in 2021, returned to the US this week taking aim on La Loca in Hico, Texas. It is the first of two American adventures for the Dutchman who has a bullseye on Unbound Gravel. The 150-mile Texas gravel grinder is serving as “the perfect preparation” for what could be a third consecutive sprint finish at Unbound.
The 200-plus mile off-road romp through the Flint Hills has come down to a full gallop on the tarmac for the past two years, with Ten Dam finishing second to Ian Boswell in 2021 and fourth to fellow Dutch rider Ivar Slik in 2022.
“Last year I was part of the Life Time Grand Prix, but this year I bailed because of the traveling. You know, it was really nice to do for one year but to be in and out of the US for races it turned out to be too much of a toll on my family time,” Ten Dam told Cyclingnews, who had two of his sons with him in Texas, taking in a major league baseball game for a more-relaxed visit.
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“This year I opted for two or three [North] American trips. I did one in April, I do this one, and maybe one in the autumn. Basically, Unbound is my big goal. I can train like a pro for the next few weeks leading up to Unbound. Then I’ll be more mellow at home, you know, and do stuff with my kids.”
Ten Dam raced five of the six events in 2022 with the Life Time Grand Prix, finishing 12th overall. His best result was at Unbound Gravel 200, where he was second best among the Grand Prix field. Keegan Swenson won the overall title.
Fewer races for the Dutchman in the US this year means he can mix in UCI Gravel World Series events to an off-road programme that also includes bikepacking adventures. He finished 11th overall, second in his age category, at Gravel Fondo Limburg in the Netherlands in April. In August, he plans to race Gravel Grit ‘n Grind in Sweden.
It has been two years since Ten Dam charged onto the endurance scene of pro gravel racing, winning the inaugural Gravel Locos and then finishing second at Unbound Gravel 200. But that year was not his introduction into the world of “alternative” racing, as he gave a few events a try in 2016 while he was still on the WorldTour circuit and living on the west coast of the US that year. The demands of stage racing were beginning to take a toll, but he did not retire for three more years.
“Back in 2016 I did an alternative programme. My first real gravel race was a Grasshopper, which was really nice. So in 2021, I rode Gravel Locos and it was really my first long one [race], 150k. I stumbled on this race, like [Peter] Stetina was doing this, Ted King was doing this. It’s pretty close to Unbound and a similar course. And the other big gravel guys were there. I didn’t consider myself a ‘big gravel guy’ yet, but it was the perfect preparation for Unbound."
WorldTour to gravel
For 16 years Ten Dam performed in the pro peloton. The off-road events were to his liking and he has “Dutch gypsies” to tag along, including long-time friend and 12-year road pro Thomas Dekker, and eight-year former road pro Jasper Ockeloen, who won Gravel Locos last year.
With all the crashes and weather tribulations at the Giro d’Italia this week, Ten Dam said he does not miss that environment. On Friday morning before stage 13 of the Giro d’Italia, which was shortened due to bad weather, 41 riders had exited the race due to illnesses or injuries, including Remco Evenepoel who had worn the maglia rosa for Soudal-QuickStep.
“When I see all those crashes and also the rain, I don’t regret being retired from that part of riding. Crashing is the worst part of cycling. It seems to be worse in the WorldTour, but maybe because I’m retired. Gravel is a pretty safe sport for me now,” Ten Dam observed.
“Normally you just show up at a start line for a race and there’s not a lot of interaction because everybody’s racing. Fabian [Serralta, Gravel Locos race director] does a great job. There’s interaction for two days in a row with your competitors or your friends or ‘frenemies’, there’s a big lunch and rides on Friday, a dinner, so that’s nice. It’s more of the ‘spirit of gravel’ than some of the other big races, where people just show up to race and you don’t see anyone. That’s more like the military and what I felt for 16 years.”
Ten Dam plans to enjoy a third stop at Gravel Locos. It was described by organisers as, “You’ve got to be a little crazy to ride La Loca,” which has a long course at 157 miles with 6,705 feet of climbing. Ten Dam will ride his new Specialized bike, a Crux LTD, outfitted with Shimano GRX D12 and Roval Terra CLX, shake off the jetlag and get ready for Unbound.
“There’s no regrets. It’s not that I’m still chasing a dream to become a pro or whatever. I’m still enjoying and having fun. For example, I’m here with Thomas [Dekker] in the car and we go back a bit, since he was 14 and I was 16 years old. Here we are 25 years later and still road tripping and having fun on the bikes. That’s what it’s all about.”
