USA Biking will launch a five-race Junior Gravel Nationwide Collection in 2025 in partnership with Life Time, SBT GRVL introduced by Wahoo, and Valley of Tears, completely for riders ages 15 to 18.
Riders should begin in three of the 5 occasions for collection scoring in 4 classes – women and men competing individually in 15-16 and 17-18 age teams. 4 riders will then be topped as total winners, of their respective age class, and obtain invites to a USA Biking Junior Expertise Identification Camp in October 2025.
“We’re working carefully with occasion organizers and business companions to construct a basis for the longer term. This collection is just the start of a broader initiative to broaden alternatives for junior riders throughout a number of biking disciplines,” mentioned Kyle Knott, USA Biking’s director of nationwide occasions.
“The USA Biking Junior Gravel Nationwide Collection represents a daring step ahead in our efforts to broaden youth participation in gravel, a self-discipline that provides a singular bridge between highway and off-road biking.”
That bridge is taken into account to be a manner for the governing physique to find new expertise for not simply elite-level highway racing, but in addition different biking disciplines which are a part of the Olympic Video games, with the subsequent Olympiad going down in Los Angeles, California in 2028.
Valley of Tears Gravel in Turkey, Texas will lead off the collection on March 8 with the juniors collaborating in a 48-mile medium course. Sea Otter Basic Gravel Race’s 60-mile course and Unbound Gravel 50, each owned by Life Time, would be the subsequent two occasions set for April 11 in Monterey, California and Could 31 in Emporia, Kansas, respectively.
The fourth cease is GRVL Race Circuit, held on June 29 as a part of SBT GRVL weekend in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, with the junior races protecting 76 miles. The collection closes out at USA Biking Gravel Nationwide Championships on September 20 on the new venue from La Crescent, Minnesota. The nationwide championship races can even be used as tiebreakers if wanted.
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Nationwide Occasions Supervisor Justin Evans defined that scoring was created to be ‘easy’, with every athlete receiving a rating equal to the location from every collection occasion.
“The Junior Collection scoring system is designed to be easy: the bottom rating throughout a rider’s finest three out of 5 occasions determines the ultimate rating. Placement in every race is the rating, so a first-place end equals one level,” Evans instructed Cyclingnews.
“This strategy rewards consistency and encourages riders to take part in a number of occasions. To maintain everybody updated, the USA Biking web site will characteristic articles with occasion highlights and up to date standings after every race, serving to riders and followers observe progress all through the season.”
In accordance with a USA Biking press launch, all collection individuals can have unique entry to a particular discounted registration price for the 2025 USA Biking Gravel Nationwide Championships. Moreover, the highest three finishers in every collection occasion main as much as nationals will earn a $50 credit score towards their registration payment. Along with class winners, different prime finishers can be eligible for the expertise camp picks.
“Valley of Tears is thrilled to host the primary race of the 2025 Junior Gravel Nationwide Collection. On the coronary heart of our race is a dedication to fostering group, resilience, and a ardour for the game,” mentioned Christian Pretty of the Pretty Household, which launched Valley of Tears this 12 months.
“By partnering with USA Biking, we’ve the chance to assist assist aspiring younger American cyclists – one thing USA Biking did 20 years in the past for my brother Caleb – by offering younger athletes a platform to problem themselves and develop their expertise. We look ahead to seeing these gifted juniors discover their limits and carry the spirit of gravel biking ahead.”
Contributors have to register for every particular person occasion, utilizing hyperlinks offered on the USA Biking’s collection info web page. November 1 is the opening day to register for Valley of Tears and enter the lottery for Unbound Gravel.
A USA Biking racing license will not be required to take part within the collection as a complete, however a home or worldwide license is required to compete within the USA Biking Gravel Nationwide Championships.
Junior Gravel Nationwide Collection 2025 calendar
- March 8 – Valley of Tears Gravel in Turkey, Texas
- April 11 – Life Time Sea Otter Basic introduced by Continental in Monterey, California
- Could 31 – Life Time UNBOUND Gravel in Emporia, Kansas
- June 29 – SBT GRVL introduced by Wahoo in Steamboat Springs, Colorado
- September 20 – USA Biking Gravel Nationwide Championships in La Crescent, Minnesota
