The Traka World Series 'natural evolution' of Gravel Earth Series with collection of seven races, €84,000 prize purse and promise of live streaming

After nurturing the Gravel Earth Series for four years, organisers Klassmark have revamped the global collection of races under their direction as The Traka World Series in 2027, announcing a compact framework of seven events, all with consistent prize money and live streaming.

Six of the seven events have been revealed, with Klassmark owning and operating all but one of the events under their 'The Traka' brand. The majority of racing will take place across Spain, with the multi-day Santa Vall by The Traka stage race, February 6-7, taking place in Catalonia, followed by Gravel Desert by The Traka on March 13, which moved from a July slot, in the Monegros region.

The Traka 300 will take place on May 1 as the only distance of three race days with points for pro fields. Two other distances, 100 kilometres and 200 kilometres, remain centerpieces for amateur fields on either side of the series race, April 30 and May 2, and as a set the event will now be called The Traka Girona.

The back half of the series will return to the US at Iowa's CORE4 by The Traka on August 21, revisit Belgium with The River by The Traka on September 11 and then conclude in Spain with the Last Dance, formerly known as Ranxo Gravel. The grand finale will be in October, that date yet to be confirmed.

"The story of The Traka World Series does not begin from scratch. It is the result of years of growth, shared experiences and an approach to gravel that has evolved alongside the sport itself. Gravel Earth Series has played a fundamental role in that journey, connecting races, athletes and organisers from different countries and helping build an international gravel community," organisers said in a press release about setting a foundation for 2027.

"Throughout 2026, this evolution was already taking shape through the development of By The Traka, a concept that connects different events under The Traka philosophy while preserving the character, identity and distinctive qualities of each race.

"The Traka consolidates its position as an international brand, By The Traka brings together the events linked to the project, and The Traka World Series provides the framework for elite competition, with a calendar and overall standings connecting the season’s races."

Unlike the Life Time Grand Prix which has a series prize purse for invited riders only, the open format for The Traka World Series remains in place, with a total of €20,000 on offer to the top 10 overall, split evenly among pro women and pro men. Klassmark will also offer €8,000 in prize money at each event. At CORE4, sponsor River Products Company will double the race purse to €16,000, which will bring the overall cash payouts to €84,000 for races and the series.

CORE4 has been part of the global series for two previous editions, and this year has an appealing calendar slot between Leadville Trail 100 MTB and Lauf Gravel Worlds. The Iowa gravel race has a new venue north of Iowa City in a new urban downtown area of Solon, and will create new courses to mark an expanded collaboration with the By The Traka family, while retaining local ownership.

"Being part of that next tier in the series allows another level of marketing support and other components too, such as our pursuit of a live stream. We'll have 100% control over all the components, it's still a community-based and grassroots-supported event," Alex Buhmeyer, race director and founder of CORE4, told Cyclingnews.

"The last couple of years we've had some of the best athletes here. Since we joined [the series], we've seen a surge of top-level athletes. The move into downtown Solon and be able to grow and accommodate more athletes. We roll out the red carpet with our age groupers and youth riders and everybody, regardless if they're pro or not."

Live coverage was promised for all Traka World Series events, though details are yet to be confirmed. Last year organisers launched Gravel Earth Series TV, but streaming on the YouTube channel was limited to Santa Vall, The Traka 200 and The Traka 360.

A modified points-based scoring system was used the last two years, which was easier to follow, and was expected to be in place again to determine rankings. In 2026, Specialized Off-road teammates Mads Würtz Schmidt and Geerike Schreurs came away with the pro titles.

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