3 Feet Cycling Group Rides

Thank You to Burlingame & Mock Vision Associates for Sponsoring our 3 Feet Please Yard Signs

As part of our advocacy work in 2020 we have yard signs to help bring awareness to the 3 Feet Law when passing cyclists in Kansas and Missouri. .If you are interested in getting a sign we will typically have them at our group rides on Monday and Tuesday's or you can request one online to place in your yard. 
 
We are asking for a small donation to help us offset the cost of the signs and be able to keep signs in stock. We would love to see signs all over Kansas City and continue the efforts done by previous and current advocates for safer streets for cyclists. The more we bring awareness the more likely we are to see changes

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Up Coming Events

July 6th - Mercedes Monday by Aristocrat Motors

July 18th - Sunflower 2 Roses Training ride from Aristocrat Motors

July 25th - Rage Against the Chainring (gravel race #2)

July 31st - 3 Feet KOM Challenge ends

Aug 1st - Rage Against the Chainring (gravel race #3)

Aug 2nd - Sunflower 2 Roses Ride

Aug 3rd - Mercedes Monday by Aristocrat Motors

Aug 9th - La Grind Gravel Race (Emporia, KS)

Aug 15th - Rage Against the Chainring (gravel race #4)

We have our T-Shirts on sale.

Visit our online store.

 

Open Range Recap

On June 13th, 2020, the 3^rd Annual Open Range Gravel Race was held in Pratt, Kansas.  The race is normally held the 4^th Saturday in April, however, due to COVID-19, it was rescheduled to mid-June. For those who haven’t experienced Open Range, it is held in South Central Kansas and consists of a 100k and 200k course through the Gypsum Hills (Gyp Hills).  The Gyp Hills have been named one of the top 10 places to cycle by Bicycling Magazine.  The area contains mesas and buttes with white rock outcroppings and iron-rich red dirt.  It is truly one of the most scenic areas in the region.
 

In preparation for holding one of the first races, post “lockdown”, we met with Emergency Management and Health Department officials from Pratt and Barber County to discuss our ideas to help mitigate some concerns about hosting a bike race 3 months after the country essentially shut down.  We conducted temperature checks of all participants entering the race.  We conducted check-in in a large area to allow for separation.  We did away with a formal rider’s pre-race meeting and post-race award ceremony.  We conducted a “Gun Start” for the podium-potential riders followed by a “Rolling Start” for those non-podium riders.  We also switched out the spigots of the water coolers to allow for a free flow of water without having to depress a button. Our volunteers refilled water bottles while wearing gloves and sanitized often.  While many of the steps we took were not required, we felt this would help alleviate concerns some riders may have.

Temperatures in mid-June in Kansas can lead to a guessing game.  About 8 days out, and the forecast was calling for lower 80s with light wind.  As we inched closer to race day, the forecasted temperatures kept rising to where it was expected to be 99 degrees on Saturday.  Due to lack of recent moisture, the roads were extra loose and sandy.   When registration closed, we had 319 riders signed up between the two races.  Due to the difficult conditions, we added three additional water stops along the 200k course. 

The lead riders took off at 7am and were led by a police escort over brick roads through the town of Pratt.  The front group consisted of about 50 riders from many different states.  Rodeo Labs out of Colorado had several strong riders near the front as did the Chamois Butt'r team. Shortly after the main group departed, we opened the start line for a rolling start where the timing chip would start your time when rolling over the mat.  A slow, steady progression of riders made their way under the arch and out of town. 

One of the unique aspects of Open Range is the ability to ride through private ranches while on the course.  The 100k riders experienced over 4 miles of ranch roads and the 200k riders traveled over 12 miles through private ranches.  We are extremely lucky to have the support of these land owners.  The Alexander Ranch at miles 43 through 49 of the 200k proved to be one of the most scenic but challenging sections of the course.  It consisted of double track, single track, creek crossings, and #grassvel (a mowed section of pasture). This area was truly #untamedgravel. 

Despite the difficult conditions, the lead riders maintained a breakneck pace and cruised through the checkpoints and water stations and cruised their way to finish with an 18 MPH average.  The first two riders to cross for the 200k managed a 7:05 time and the third overall was at 7:25. In all, 60 of 91 riders finished the 200k, the heat cutting short many while on the course.  On the 100k, 107 of 127 riders completed the journey.  At the end of the day, anyone who shows up to a race when the temperatures are going to be nearing 100 degrees is a beast!  All finishers received a custom Open Range Pint Glass, Finisher Patch, and post-race meal to celebrate their achievement. 

New to this year was the Open Range Tour option. A group of 16 riders left on Friday morning on the 200k course. They stopped overnight at the Gyp Hills Guest Ranch and were treated to a catered dinner and breakfast. It was an untimed event and they had a great time stopping along the way to snap photos and take in the amazing scenery.

If you have not participated in Open Range, we encourage you to check us out next year when we will hopefully be back to our April 24^th date.  The race this year would not have been possible without great sponsors like 3 Feet Cycling who allowed for the use of a trailer, coolers, and signs.  Find out why many call this one of their favorite rides of the season and a "Must Do" race!

You can find us on social media at @openrange200k and our website, www.openrangegravel.com. 

Eric Sutter

Race Director

Open Range Gravel Race

3 Feet Cycling is offering DK SAG in Sept. Click for more information

Recap of the Sunflower 2 Roses (S2R) Training Ride on June 20th

Sunflowers to Roses Training Ride – June 20, 2020 – Mercedes Benz of Kansas City

On Saturday, June 20, 2020 approximately 125 cyclists gathered at the Mercedes Benz of Kansas City dealership near Martin City, MO to participate in the first Sunflowers to Roses Training Ride of 2020.  Sunflowers to Roses (S2R) is fortunate to be able to conduct its annual charity ride again this year, benefiting Cancer Action, despite the huge number of ride/race cancellations that have taken place thru the spring and early summer due to the COVID crisis.

The training ride(s) happen each year in the 30 to 45 days leading up to the annual ride at the dealerships of the Soave Automotive Group.  A second training ride is scheduled to take place at Aristocrat Motors on July 18, 2020.  Other than a great opportunity for cyclists to take part in a nice (free) group ride, these training rides offer cyclists the opportunity to ride with a group and to experience similar terrain as to what is in store during the Sunflowers to Roses Bike Tour (this year is the 18^th annual version) on Sunday, August 2, 2020.  Plus, it gives S2R an opportunity to do early registrations for the annual ride, usually with a discount for riders that sign-up that day.  S2R had 17 people register on Saturday.  You can find more information regarding S2R and register at www.sunflowerstoroses.org

Another feature of these rides is a great opportunity for cyclists to view the variety of vehicles the Soave Automotive Group has to offer at its dealerships. Soave Automotive group generously provides great free food and refreshments after the ride for all who participated.  This most recent ride featured food from the Moose Truck (the Blue Moose Restaurants’ food truck), that everyone seemed to enjoy.  The Moose Truck and another truck will be the featured post ride food offerings at S2R this year for riders to purchase their meal after the ride.  (Registration fee has been lowered since S2R will NOT provide food this year due to COVID restrictions)

S2R and the Soave Automotive Group thanks all who attended this most recent ride and also a big thank you goes out to the 3 Feet Cycling team for its support and guide efforts with the training ride.  We all look forward to seeing you at the next S2R Training ride on July 18^th from Aristocrat Motors in Merriam, KS.

Our Awesome Sponsors

Bike Law Corner - Vance Preman

VEHICLE/BIKE COLLISION

What just happened?  You are on the ground, you are hurting, not sure if you are okay or not, and wonder what just happened.  Well, you have been hit by a car.  You may have a concussion, you are scared, and you may have very serious injuries.

I have put together a list of to-do’s should you find yourself in this position:

                         816-678-9599  (24/7)

I would be happy to send you a top tube sticker with this information.

3 Feet Cycling Gravel Challenge - Supporting Kansas NICA

Challenge yourself on our . There is not a lot of elevation change so should be a nice fast course for everyone to enjoy. Park at either Price Chopper or at the empty lots by Minsky’s off 159th & Mur-Len in South Olathe. 

Your entry into the prizes is a $20 donation to the Kansas NICA league. Here is the link to donation page. In the referral please note 3 feet challenge. Once you have donated please take a screen shot of the confirmation page and email to McCool@3feetcycling.com. 

The challenge will run thru the end of July 2020 to allow everyone the opportunity to get out and enjoy challenging themselves, multiple times if you wish. We will use Strava ranking for tracking. 

We will recognize the top 3 men in 3 different categories - A, B & C.  We will divide the total contestants into 3rds based on times and take the top 3 times in each group to recognize their efforts. (For example if there is 30 contestants the top 10 would be considered “A’s”, 11-20 would be considered “B’s” and 21-30 would be considered “C’s”.)

For the Women we will recognize the top 3 in 2 different categories - A & B. We will divide the contestants into 2 groups same as we do the men. 

We have some nice prizes from our sponsors coming. Keep an eye out for the announcement of the prizes. We will also update this page with the information. 

This is about challenging yourself while helping to get more kids on bikes as the Kansas NICA program gets started. We want to be good stewards of cycling and helping the next generation learn to enjoy cycling the way you do is important. Remember who got you into cycling......be the one who gives that same love of the bike to someone else.

The Kansas Interscholastic Cycling League was founded in 2019 as a non-profit (501(c)3) Emergent League of the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA). We facilitate the development of high school and middle school teams/clubs for grades 6-12 and provide the education, training, licensing, and insurance for coaches and volunteers. We also produce high-quality mountain bike events and races that emphasize the value of participation, camaraderie, positive sporting behavior, and well-being over competition.

The focus for 2019 is on spreading the word, dialing in venues, and making sure this thing is supported.  Come 2020, we look to expand our programming to include a ‘try it out’ tour, and get our Spring race series underway!