Late Season Check-in with Andrew Vontz

Thomas is joined by Andrew Vontz from Choose the Hard Way and Beyond the Peloton. The two share their observations from the 2025 gravel season and tell us what excites them for the remainder of the season.

Topics in this Episode:

• The Rise of "Grass Racing": Is "grass" is becoming the next defining surface in gravel. Will we have surface specialists like in Tennis, even?
• Is Mud a Problem? The role of mud pits and Minimum Maintenance Roads (MMRs) in races like Unbound and Gravel Worlds can be outsized. Should organizers reroute to prevent mechanicals and damage to expensive equipment?
• Safety and Logistics: Do shared feed zones for pros and amateurs need to be separated?
• Self-Supported vs. Pro Support: A discussion on the ethos of "self-supported" racing and how it clashes with the professionalization of the sport, and whether a diversity of race styles is beneficial for gravel.
• Breaks Win Races: An observation on the trend of early breaks winning many of the season's marquee races and the lack of a "domestique" culture in gravel racing.

Featured in this Episode:

• Andrew Vontz: Andrew is the author and host of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast and Substack. He’s also co-host of Beyond the Peloton.
• Thomas Euler: Your host and author of The Gravel Stack, Connect with Thomas on Instagram and Bluesky.

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