Human Frogger, Pace Pace and Cinnamon Donuts

Now in its fourth running, the Beechworth Granite Classic is a party for gravel bikes. With courses from 15 to 115km available, it's run by the legends at Bridge Road Brewing. At registration, they host a small Spoken Handmade Bikeshow, feature fully stocked aid stations full of entertainment, and have a lively event area with food, drinks, and games.

This is the second year I've packed up and headed to Beechworth, and before I even took out my bibs for the day, it was going better than last year.

I put my name down again with the full 115km course and came in first place with over 500 riders who had signed up for the same challenge as me.

Related:

The Granite Classic is not a race by any means. It attracts everyone from elite roadies and hikers to people who just ride their bikes every day and want to try something different. I don't really know where I fit into that position, but I set myself the goal of finishing under five hours for 115km, and that was it.

I saw a few faces from last year, and almost everyone I spoke to said it was their second or third year riding – maybe there's something to all the rock climbing experience, hey?

Gram strikes back

Coming off Main Street, it was a chilly 5ºC, boosted by the speed of the tarmac at the start outside the city.

That famous Beechworth gravel came quickly, and I clipped my phone to the QuadLock on my bars to capture some clips for the 'Gram. When I tried to reattach it, I messed it up.

In slow motion, my phone hit the ground and began to roll across the road, missing many fatal cuts from the tires of an unwary rider.

Even worse, trying to retrieve it was like a real life game of Frogger. Trying to find a gap with passing riders

I finally got to it, and thankfully it was undamaged but dusty, so I was able to continue—and save my Strava file. Phew!

A crack and a bright light at the end of the tunnel

The rock was much drier than last year, with many loose spots creating some shaky moments. Thank you that the event team did this and they all signed well to speak with caution.

For the most part, the course is smooth and fast-rolling dirt, but the rough section that appeared on last year's course is back. It has gained a bit of a reputation for demanding the best ridership. I missed this section, and I was on the brakes hard.

I saw the rain running straight down the road and heard a big crack after hitting the first one.

Is that the bright light they keep talking about? It's funny, only half of my life flashed before my eyes. I didn't feel the impact, it must have happened quickly. Wait a minute, that bright light is the sun, I'M ALIVE!

That loud crack wasn't my head hitting the inside of my helmet but my bars sliding into the clamp. With my hoods now facing straight down, I spent some time on the business end of most of the tools putting them back in place. The recommended torque is disconnected. Of course there was another opportunity to open all the bolts for fear of a repeat.

Finding Friends in the Stone Pit

The group I started with continued up the road, and I went out on my own for the next 30km, but the thing about events like the Granite Classic is that everyone comes out of work to ride them, and I was down and I saw a collision with a fellow Flow, Paul van der Ploeg. We chatted at a comfortable pace and headed to the Gravel Pit lounge which had a DJ, peanut butter quesadillas, drink refills and fresh fruit.

Here, we also found another friend of Flow, Lewis Ciddor.

We formed a quartet with Paul and another rider. Lewis, who finished third in the 1,300km Tour Te Waipounamu bike race back in February, looked over his shoulder and asked if I was ready for the “Party Pace” before he started turning the screws. It wasn't long before our group of four fell apart as Lewis and I continued up one of the biggest climbs of the day.

90 kilometers in, we were greeted by another stop, this time featuring DJ Andras and holy cinnamon donuts from Beechworth Bakery.

As delicious as the Cinnamon donuts were, they didn't give me what I needed to keep up with Lewis' breakneck pace. No fried treats were going to save me so I said goodbye to Lewis as he rode off into the sunset up one of the last hills back to Beechworth.

The final resting place on the hill is beautiful. Big rocks sit on top of the hill, where you can fill up your bottle and start the last few kilometers to town.

The rough descent played on our teeth, especially the last part of the farmhouse. This well-trodden cowshed would have earned at least a three-star rating if it came from one of the Cobbled Spring Classics. Thankfully, this bronco ride was only 300 feet, but it was a rush for 38mm tires.

When you ride into town, you're greeted with a cold beer as you cross the line, and the event town is bustling. After lying down and stretching on the grass, our crew watched the track stand comp and skid comp hosted by Vandy for those riders who still have the energy to burn.

The dates for 2025 haven't been announced yet, but you can bet I'll be back!

Photos: Andy Rogers / @fameandspear