COMMUNITY PARTNER OF EVERYDAY WELLNESS
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Running is too slow. Driving is too fast. For Geoff Ryan, cycling is just right.
Ryan, who travelled to Warner for the Kearsarge Klassic with his sister Christine, had never participated in an organized ride like it before.
He used to be a casual runner and picked up cycling a few years back because Christine was all-in on the sport. Ryan lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Christine in the Bay Area, but they grew up spending their summers in Warner and had always loved the area.
Now in middle age, they treated their ride as a trip down memory lane.
They rode the 35-mile route, finding it equally challenging and fun. They socialized with other riders on the downhill and were out of breath on some of the climbs.
The speed of the passing landscapes offered a relaxing escape from daily routine, Ryan explained.
“I’ve run a half marathon, so the great thing about cycling is you see a lot more, you’re moving a lot faster,” he said. “And in hot weather, it’s also a lot nicer because the air’s coming by, just the amount of distance you can cover and what you can see.”
The Kearsarge Klassic gravel ride is one of three large annual events organized by GRVL Cycling. The ride, which took place on Aug. 9, offered cyclists four course options.
Three routes loop around Mt. Kearsarge, including a 35-mile route, a 55-mile route and a 63-mile elevation challenge that adds 1,000 feet of climbing.
The fourth option, one of the most challenging, doesn’t loop: The Mt. Kearsarge Hillclimb charts 7.7 miles with over 2,100 feet of elevation gain the day after the Kearsarge Klassic.
Unlike half-marathons or many other cycling events, the Kearsarge Klassic is not timed. For GRVL founder Arlon Chaffee, the ride is all about community.
He started GRVL in 2011 with two events, Raid Rockingham in the Seacoast and Raid Lamoille in Craftsbury, Vermont. Kearsarge came about by pure coincidence and some luck, as it existed as an independent event organized by local cycling aficionados.
Chaffee took it over in 2019 after the local organizers were ready to hand over the reins. The ride is set up to provide participants with a premier experience and to have minimal impact on the town.
“It’s an interesting community because if you see anybody in spandex, you’re like, you know they’re a rider,” he said.
Portions of the registration fees for the Klassic benefit local organizations like the Concord-Lake Sunapee Rail Trail, the Warner food pantry and the Kearsarge Regional High School Nordic ski team.
Chaffee, nicknamed ARMAN by those in the cycling community, moved the start from New London to Warner’s One East Cafe and aimed to turn the event into a hub for cyclists across the region.
“Anytime I see cyclists here I just ask them what their route is and tell them Warner is exceptionally welcoming for cyclists. The restaurants know cyclists, the library, they know cyclists,” he said.
GRVL Cycling accepts all riders of all skill levels and even bicycle types, including e-bikes with pedal-assist. The event has multiple rest stops and offers food and beverages at the cafe for the community to gather after the challenging ride.
“The speed at which things are presented to you is — actually that’s the endorphin connection, pleasure derivation, for riding a bike,” Chaffee added.
The low-stakes competitiveness of the ride— the cyclist-friendly environment on gravel and away from cars, with food and with community — is a big draw.
Luis Mendez from Haverhill, Massachusetts, did the elevation challenge. He’s an experienced rider, having raced across the East Coast and even traveled internationally to the Dominican Republic for the GFNY Republica Dominicana, a Global Cycling Marathon Series event.
He sipped on sparkling water at Cafe One Easy after finishing, feeling beat but smiling big.
“Cycling is a great sport. It’s like stress relief. You can spend six, five hours on the bike and enjoy it more than driving six hours,” he said. “You go for a nice ride, and after that, you’re brand new. One of the reasons is health, I save a lot of money not going in, paying a copay of 20 or 40 dollars every time I go into the doctor. The bike is your doctor.”
