Shimano Gravel Alliance 2020 & Dutch Gravel Taster

Fresh back from a two day trip to Amersfoort, an ancient Dutch town just a short train ride from Amsterdam, I’ve announced that I’m going to be supported by Shimano for 2020, joining the Gravel Alliance. But what does that mean exactly, and what is the Alliance? I thought I’d answer a few of your questions here, and give you a taste of the gravel in that region with a route to try yourself if you ever find yourself lucky enough to visit!

What is the Shimano Gravel Alliance?

Before Shimano entered the gravel market good and proper in May 2019 with the first gravel/adventure specific groupset, GRX, they wanted to build a community in the off road discipline. Unlike road cycling, where most component or bike manufacturers go to the WorldTour riders to show off their latest wares, gravel is so new and has much less of an emphasis on racing – or at least focus on what the fastest riders are running.

The Shimano Gravel Alliance was born in 2017 well before the launch of GRX, with chapters both in the US and Europe. Essentially it’s a selection of riders that all dig drop bar dirt – gravel, bikepacking, racing and touring, from all sub-genres and spread from all over, whether that’s different European nationalities or different states in the US.

Now that the GRX system – groupset and wheelset offerings – is released, 2019 Gravel Alliance members have been kitted out to try the new gravel-specific equipment, in their choice of 1x or 2x, mechanical or Di2 gearing, 700c or 650b wheelsets. This is where the Alliance come in handy for giving real-life feedback from widespread territories and riding styles, to help Shimano further develop their off road offering to grow with the boom that is gravel right now.

If you thought that the Shimano Gravel Alliance was just some swanky new kit, you’d be wrong. One of the most exciting part of the offering is the support from Shimano which enables it’s Alliance members to travel to gravel events and races all over the world. Got a bucket list event on your mind? If it’s drop bar dirt, they’re behind you. Team that together with regular meet-ups within either the European or US Alliance chapters and it suddenly looks like a very good year on the bike. Check out the blog on Gravel Union to found out more about these events.

What does this mean for 2020?

I’m really stoked to have been selected to join the European chapter of the Alliance for the next year, alongside eight others representing the UK, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Italy .

Now we’ve all met each other and the kind folk behind Shimano Gravel, there’s been a chance to discuss our riding styles (which are very diverse!) and think about what kit will be most suitable for the coming year (more on this later).

We have a get-together planned for early spring and will need to get thinking about events for the coming year. For some there are long-term plans, and others a blank canvas with a whole spread of tempting rides to choose from.

Who are the Gravel Alliance?

Josh Ibbett – UK – Josh is a mountain biker turned ultra endurance racer, most impressively perhaps winning Mike Hall’s Transcontinental Race in 2015. Racing the Tour Divide has been a lifelong dream for him, which was dishearteningly interrupted by the snowfall at Brush Mountain Lodge in 2019. Once that cleared, Josh went on to finish the mighty 2745 mile trail, and will be back in 2020 to smash his own 16 day and 15 hour record.

Kelly Emmerson – UK – Peak District based Kelly (or ‘Kell’) has been a MTB enthusiast much before turning to gravel, and was one of the founding members of the European Gravel Alliance. Over the past year, Kell has been lucky to ride in the Dirty Reiver, Dukes Weekender in Scotland and the Lakelander in Ireland, as well as gravel races in Ontario and Germany – read more here.

Erwin Sikkens – NL – Formerly a photographer at Shimano events, it was possibly Erwin’s wicked laugh and cheeky nature that got him a spot on the 2020 Alliance, not to mention his obsession with hometurf gravel in the North of the Netherlands and bikepacking all over Europe. Next year he’ll be launching Gravelmania in Arnhem, his hometown.

Gijs Bruinsma – NL – Routemaster general Gijs (pronounced h-Ice with a healthy h) not only runs his own gravel events including Where The Streets Have No Name, but also consults for other events and races, pulling together the very best of off road riding for many to enjoy. Read more from Gijs from the 2019 Gravel Alliance on Gravel Union.

Stefan Haehnel – DE – A talented photographer and endurance rider, Stefan rode many events last year with the Alliance including the inaugural Grinduro Japan, the Bohemian Border Bash bikepacking event and the Fretori Gravel Event in Ontario. He’s a keen road cyclist too, notching off the famous 1200km Paris-Brest-Paris this year.

Flo Nowak – DE – most definitely the strongest rider at pace in the Alliance, Flo was a stagiaire with Bora-Hansgrohe after years as a Continental-level road racer in Europe before he left pro cycling behind him. With staggering fitness and experience under his belt, I’m really looking forward to seeing Flo tear up some brutal single stage races next year.

Sims Teuteul – FR – Hailing from Brittany and now based in Marseille in the South of France, Simon (or Sims) now spends his time appreciating some incredible off road riding and touring with his friends as part of PCR Gravier. Sims claims not to be a racer but prefers to stop to take it in and indulge his love for photography. Each summer, Sims also works at the Tour de France to get the rider’s GoPro footage that you see from the race. Pretty cool!

Omar Di Felice – IT – Omar is an ultra-cyclist with a penchant for cold, despite living in rather cosy Rome. His palmares is impressive, including 3rd at TransAm (7000km), 2nd at TransIberica (3500km), winning many Italian 24 hour endurance races, and setting himself some crazy challenges. Lapland Extreme unsupported, Alaska, Iceland and the Nordkapp are Omar’s favourite types of adventures, and he was the first cyclist on the New Arctic Highway in Canada in 2018.

What GRX configuration are you going for?

I’ll be kitting out my Mercredi gravel bike with GRX very soon, updating the Shimano Ultegra/XT hash that I specced just before the release of the new system.

I’ve opted to go for the 1X11 40T by 11-42 chainset option, with Di2 gearing and some 700C wheels. All of the groups come with hydro disc brakes (which are very good indeed, as I came to learn at the LtD Gravel Raid) and I’ll be retaining my Di2 junction box on the bars as it’s pretty funny the number of people that think I’m on an e-bike (amongst other advantages).

What events will you being doing next year?

Good question, and the honest answer is that I just don’t know yet. I’m searching for another Dirty Kanza style target as I loved training hard for that before, and would 100% love to return to the US this year as I’m in love with the off road culture there.

So far I have a rather unique bikepacking trip to Ireland in the diary with Cloud9 Cycles for May, Gritfest gravel enduro in June, some bikepacking trips/guiding with Zero Neuf Cycling in the Pyrenees, riding bikes with Bombtrack in Germany at Groundwork, riding the fourth and final chapter of my LeJOG off road with the Badger Divide and a holiday to Val di Sole World Cup MTB (will surely sniff out some gravel there too). Plus I’d love to do Grinduro and challenge myself with the Yorkshire Dales 300 ITT route, among others. Not much is gonna change in terms of what I do, but I’m just really glad to have the support to be able to do it.

Where were you riding?

Here’s our route for the 54km autumnal Amersfoort gravel intro courtesy of fellow Alliance member and pro routemaster Gijs. Go check it out if you ever find yourself in the area – it’s the perfect mix of sandy doubletrack, winding flowy singletrack, forest trails and even a disused airway strip that’s now a cycle route! Definitely an accessible one for beginners as there’s nothing technical but a fun one for us ridden fast…

Finally a huge thank you to Shimano, Ben and Paul for getting me involved – can’t wait to see what 2020 brings!

Photography: Irmo Keizer