Unbound Gravel 200 has the history but ‘The Traka pushed me into entirely new kinds of discomfort’ – Lauren De Crescenzo compares the two titans of gravel

Unbound Gravel shaped my career. It’s the race I measure everything against. It’s the race that broke me, changed me, and somehow convinces me to keep coming back for more.

In 2019 I started my first Unbound Gravel 200, but crashed in the first 30 miles, a broken collarbone ending my day. After a COVID shutdown, I returned in 2021 and won solo. This year in Emporia, I’ll attempt to join the 1,000 Mile Club, representing five completed editions of Unbound Gravel and 1,000 accumulated miles across the Flint Hills of Kansas.