Hello gravel riders, CXers, singlespeeders, vintage bike enthusiasts and confused roadies, 

WES is proud to present Strade Bianchingham, a new endurance event on March 7th at 8:00am, which pays homage to the classic italian monument Strade Bianche raced by the pros (and the vintage bike race L’Eroica). Strade Bianchingham will take place on the same day as the pro race, featuring a course of the same overall length (125 miles) and 45 miles worth of 18 gravel segments (even more than the pro race, eat your heart out Tadej Pogacar). Our gravel segments have been carefully selected to provide a course that will be most comfortable on a bike with 35mm+ tires but can still be tackled by confident CX or even road riders. After all, the pros race on 28-30mm, so perhaps you can too. You’ll find no crazy gravel descents, extended chunky sections or long steep climbs on this course, but the sheer distance and gravel segments will be sure to wear you down enough to fully earn your time on the couch watching the pro race that evening. 

The course starts and ends at Taylor Dock. We start with an interwoven tour through B’hams most prominent town paths that is sure to take longer than you think it will. Once you break out onto Marine Dr. there is a short paved period to the Nooksack and gravel up to Ferndale. From there we take a long and circuitous route through the flat farmlands to a gravel segment on Blysma rd, an area sure to have either wonderful views of the mountains or ripping winds, where finding a group to ride with will be essential to munching miles towards lake Whatcom. The out-n-back on Hertz trail along the lakeshore is the longest unpaved segment, before a dash back down whatcom creek and a lap and a half around lake padden. Anyone can break off for a 90-100mi day at this stage of the route, but those with unwrecked legs will ride a loop south around the chuckanuts, concluding with the classic inter-urban trail and some paths around fairhaven to cap off a big day. 

Garmin is here: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/course/430404759