It’s been a minute since I’ve entered a competition as an individual. To scratch that itch I decided to jump in the 50ish-mile distance of the 2025 Texas Chainring Massacre, a gravel bike race near Gainesville, Texas.

Going into the race I was excited. Not only was it going to be reasonably good prep for the Unbound Gravel 100, it was also going to be my first-ever bike race. I’ve done plenty of mass start running events before, but a gravel bike race was going to be a whole new experience. Additionally, it was a good way to spice up training during winter. While we were able to travel and get some good rides in late last year (see New Mexico routes), things had become a bit stagnant in the colder months. Nobody likes using only a bike trainer.

It turned out to be a fun, but humbling experience.

The Good

A major positive – a well-organized gravel bike race and chill vibes. It’s what I expected for a gravel event. Granted, I stayed toward the back during the neutral start to see how it would all unfold.

The race course was enjoyable. It was about 95% gravel on mostly traffic-free gravel roads. Riding in the suburbs of Dallas comes with its fair share of starting and stopping, so it was a pleasure not to deal with that. The hills were rolling with nothing super steep and the gravel was fairly smooth with the occasional rut.

I stayed plenty warm during the race as well, another plus in my book. Before the race I was slightly concerned about getting chilly during the ride. The temperature was 40 degrees at the start with a decent wind out of the south. Heavy wool socks, a neck gaiter, and leg tights did the job well. It was a good reminder that colder weather doesn’t have to be an uncomfortable suffer-fest.

Last of the positives, I finished right around the time I was hoping for. It was a big effort and my legs were feeling that effort for days afterward. I was satisfied with the results. It was the pacing that left something to be desired.

Where to Improve

The first major takeaway from my bike race was pacing. While I smartly hung in the back for the start, I was too aggressive with my pace in the early miles of the race. It was like I forgot that I was riding 50 miles, not 15. I was able to join small groups of racers, but never the right pace group for me. I was yo-yoing a bit between groups and wasting energy.

The too-quick early pacing left me paying the price when we hit the halfway point and turned south into a headwind. I tried hanging on to a couple groups in those initial miles in the headwind but did not have the energy. And for the rest of the race, I was stuck in no man’s land riding solo. That was no fun.

My pacing issues were likely compounded by mistakes I made with my nutrition. Again, I treated this more like a short race than an endurance event. I had plenty of Uncrustables and other snacks to eat every 30-45 minutes after the race started. It was pre-race where I made a huge mistake. I had a normal breakfast about 3 hours before the race start. For a 5k or 10k running event, that would be perfectly fine. Before a 3.5-hour ride it was far from fine. I needed more.

Low on energy, I was finally able to regroup at the water stop around mile 37. I took a bit of a breather to grab something to eat, fill up a water bottle, and get some electrolytes. The electrolytes were a game changer. I felt much better the last quarter of the race. The course swung west and out of the headwind, so I’ll also give the weather some credit for the finish.