One Year ago, Ranger Clay hosted his annual Easter Gravel Grinder. By pure happenstance, both Chris Courtney and myself shot the same type of film during the day. Over beers later, we put together this retelling of the event. Please enjoy!
On April 18th 2019, I embarked on the Tsawassen ferry to Victoria, BC, to go meet some like-minded off-road cycling aficionados for the Fourth Annual Stuckylife Gravel Grinder, hosted by Ranger Clay. It’s reputed to be a challenging early season effort, punctuated by punishing hike-a-bikes, steep hills, speedy singletrack and dozens of beers cached in a secret woodland location. Due to the reputation of both Ride and Ranger, our group numbered around 40, with many members having travelled from up-island, other gulf islands, and even the mainland, where I myself joined from.
Now, anyone who knows Clay is aware of his reputation for intentionally planning seriously difficult adventures, whether it be cycling, hiking, or ocean faring. I think everyone has a friend like this. Someone that seems to thrive on type 2 fun and difficulty as a guiding ethos, the type of friend who would paddle a boat into the arctic circle (Note: Clay did this).
Our host certainly didn’t disappoint, with over 65km of gravel and 1500m of climbing -- much of which required hiking. Even the strategically planned beer cache required a 300m+ hike-a-bike to reach the top. The road was so loose, steep and rutted that I had a hard time imagining anything wheeled climbing it successfully, much less a CX bike.
As to the nature of the rest of the terrain, much of the route made use of mountain bike trails which, considering we were almost all riding cross bikes or similar, proved to be a challenge in the keeping-air-in-your-tires area. I lost count of the number of flats after 12. We even had an adventurous soul puncture a tubular early into the ride, forcing him to leave and limp home, but not before spraying sealant all over himself and anyone unfortunate enough to be in the danger zone. Besides the many constructed North Shore style wooden ‘features’ at play, we also had the naturally occurring huge stone slabs to challenge us in between the long stretches of loam and gravel.
By the time our group arrived at km 55, attrition had reduced our group from 40 to 10, with many smaller groups setting out in search of nutrition and the comforts of home. The remaining faithful travelled home in a stupor, in search of burritos and sugared drinks to replenish our empty tanks. After a ride like this, there are many ways to return to the mainland, and myself and two other mainlanders chose to challenge our already depleted bodies with a time trial straight to the ferry dock. Unfortunately, in spite of our effort, the vessel had departed, so we rested our destroyed spirits with the salve of snacks until the following hour when we could return home. Even though we were worn to the limit, the satisfaction was palpable, and the ferry naps restored us en route.
Having a local guide like Clay allowed us to gain access into trails we’d otherwise have missed or never considered. Vancouver Island is a beautiful place, and a tour through some of the lesser-travelled paths proved to be a pleasure I can’t wait to repeat next Easter holiday.
Don’t hesitate to join us next time, and be sure to bring your hiking shoes.