Payson and Sarah had two very different experiences on day four of the Oregon Trail Gravel Grinder. They recap their respective miseries and triumphs on this second-to-last day, discuss how things are shaping up in the overall standings, and talk about the literal run-in with wildlife that left the racers shaken. They also talk about Dylan’s victory at the hot dog eating contest, the greatest gift Sarah ever received (an ice skating costume), liquified shower curtains, and, just in case you thought this wasn’t an educational program, they offer their top tips on recovering during stage races. 

Stage 3 saw the riders heading out for an enduro day that turned out to be very heavy on the climbing. Skyler Taylor, who won the men’s stage, joins Payson and Sarah to talk about how he managed to reel in Cam Jones who has so far dominated the race with his power and descending skills. He also talks about deciding to leave his full-time job to focus on gravel this year, which he quickly followed through on by winning a wild card spot in the Grand Prix. Plus, Sarah talks about why time has never been her strong suit.

After the punishing 94.7 miles of stage two, Payson and Sarah sit down with Cécile Lejeune, who is currently duking it out for first place in the overall despite having raced fewer than 10 gravel races in her entire career. They recap the day, which included multiple crashes, plenty of interpersonal drama, and a few good samaritans.

As the dust settles on stage one of the Oregon Trail Gravel Grinder, Payson and Sarah sit down to talk about the punishing 80 miles from Bend to Gilchrist. They discuss how things played out in the men’s and women’s fields, how Sarah’s new haircut might have taken her out of contention, Evel Knievel’s leap across the Snake River, and her husband Dylan’s run-in with a skunk that has followed them to the race. 

In this final episode on this year’s Unbound, we’re bringing you two interviews that Payson recorded while on the ground in Emporia. The first took place with Sarah Sturm the night before the race in which she discusses the limitations of team tactics in the women’s field. The second is with Taylor Lideen, who Payson caught up with the day after the race.

Going into Unbound this year as the defending champion, Rosa Klöser knew she was a marked woman. What she didn’t expect was that the usual crashes and chaos of gravel’s biggest event would start as soon as the first handful of miles. After a fall, a flat, and a wrong turn in the finish shoot, Rosa managed to walk away with fourth place. 

In the second part of our Unbound recap, Payson chats with Karo Migón about her dominant win. After initiating an early breakaway with two other riders, she went solo with nearly 50 miles to go, finishing all on her own despite having a slow rear puncture.

In the first half of our Unbound recap, Payson sits down with men's 200 winner Cam Jones to talk about his stunning breakaway with TudorPro rider Simon Pellaud that stuck from mile 50 all the way through to a massive course record. Cam went into the race hoping to earn a wild card slot in the Grand Prix and left the race as a favorite for the series overall. 

It’s Unbound week and Payson sat down with fellow sidelined-by-injury Grand Prix rider Dylan Johnson to set the scene and make some predictions. They talk about how last year’s race played out, what the weather is shaping up to be like and how it could impact the race, and why they think the team tactics will be completely different this year. They also have the obligatory conversation about tire choice, explain why the aid stations might be the most important selection points, and pick the riders they think have a shot at the win. 

For years, Payson has maintained that Nichole is the most talented athlete in their household, but it wasn’t until this winter that she finally decided to add some structure to her riding and shoot for some concrete goals. It all came about during an unusual lull in her schedule shortly after she and Payson finished his crossing project in New Zealand and got married in Tasmania, and just after she completed her capstone project for her Master’s Degree in Public Health from Johns Hopkins.

Alexey Vermeulen has a lot of thoughts on how US gravel can improve. A 100-mile Unbound. A U23 field. Fewer elite riders in the Grand Prix—the list goes on. Since leaving the WorldTour to join the American off-road scene, Alexey has become one of the most prominent racers in the sport, finishing second overall in the first two years of the Grand Prix and being a leading voice among his peers through a host of media projects.

When Iz King got pregnant six months ago, she wasn’t sure how it would affect her career as a gravel racer. She knew right away that she wanted to continue racing, but she also knew that her career was going to change significantly. In fact, she found out pretty quickly that a new instinct had taken control of her brain that put her baby’s safety above her competitiveness. 

Chef Biju Thomas made a major impact on cycling when he co-founded Skratch Labs with his friend Allen Lim, but these days, you're most likely to find him cooking for cyclists at large events. For example, he was part of the squad that fueled the US cycling team at the Paris Olympics last summer. More recently, he was busy making several thousand meals at Sea Otter. 

Anneke Beerten was one of the top mountain bikers in the world for a decade, dominating the four-cross circuit with three world titles. She’s gone through many career transitions over the years, embracing Enduro and Crankworx to earn even more accolades. In early 2020, she was in a car accident that forced her to retire from racing. She spent yearrs in rehab, moved states, and started over in Bentonville. Now, she’s one of the most sought-after skills coaches in the business. 

The Life Time Grand Prix is back, which means we've got a whole new season of recap episodes on the way. To kick things off, we’ve got South African rider Hayley Preen and Swiss rider Simon Pellaud here to take us inside their races.

Today, Allied Cycle Works released its long-awaited ABLE gravel bike. Payson has been test riding it for a year now and is pretty sure it's going to redefine gravel racing. He sits down with Allied CEO Drew Medlock and Director of Product and Engineering Sam Pickman to break down exactly what makes the bike so different, including that 57mm tire clearance, and how they developed it from idea to factory floor.

Brayden Johnson landed his dream situation in 2024  when he signed a contract with a factory team. As a third-year U23 rider, it was a crucial opportunity on his way to the elite field. He had already shown his potential, winning National Champs and podiuming at World Cups. Soon after moving to Italy for the new team, however, Brayden started to notice some red flags. Before the end of the season, he was blacklisted from the team shortly before organization collapsed altogether. 

Gwen Gibson is one of the best World Cup XCO racers in the world, but she almost didn’t make it into the professional ranks. In college, she juggled racing with a full class schedule and held down three jobs to make ends meet. But then she started showing up to races and beating some of her idols, and in 2022, she had a breakout season. Now, she races for Trek Factory Racing and has scored eight top 10 World Cup finishes since joining the team. 

Reigning Queen of Gravel Rosa Klöser returns to the show to talk about some of the major developments in her career since we spoke with her after her surprise win at Unbound last year. That victory launched her into the spotlight as a major new player in the gravel scene, but her spur-of-the-moment decision to race German Road Nationals really brought her to the attention of the broader cycling world. After coming in 9th place in a stacked field, Rosa scored a contract with the WorldTour team and Tour de France Femmes champions Canyon-SRAM.