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Tonya's story: Coast to Coast Gravel Grinder

Tonya was a member of the 2020-2021 session of BaseCamp, and she shared this story of the Coast to Coast Gravel Grinder the following summer.


So I can finally boast about my training! I headed to the Michigan Coast to Coast race this weekend and got second in the 50+ age group! I got emotional when I found out, because I’m usually a back of the packer! I initially planned to do the full 210 miles across the state because I couldn’t do Unbound this year due to a wedding, but early May I realized I wasn’t gonna be in 200-mile shape. But the 100 was definitely doable. Normally I hold back at the start of long gravel races because I’m there for the adventure and don’t want to burn out early, but I recalled Tim Cusick telling us that after the first 5-10 minutes of a race, things settle in, so I figured why not see what happens? And by now I knew I could recover a bit. I managed to stay with the lead group for the first few miles and at mile 18 looked back and no one was in sight! Of course many people caught up over the next 80 miles, but I got a good gap on many. So much thanks to Base Camp, especially at this point for the nutrition planning leading up to and during!




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