Cycling, in general, has surged in popularity as more and more folks seek to get outside and away from others during the coronavirus pandemic.

And gravel riding has ridden that wave, as road cyclists look to avoid cars and mountain bikers look to avoid the trappings of trailheads and the sometimes close quarters of singletrack.

“Our web traffic has skyrocketed since this pandemic started,” says Bend’s Linda English, who founded the gravel riding website dirtyfreehub.com with her husband, Kevin. “It’s insane how many people are looking for routes. What we’re really excited about is helping push people a lot farther out and away from everybody else. Let’s not all just start at Phil’s Trailhead. It’s so great to just get away from it all.”

This article requires a subscription to the Bend Bulletin.

Read More