Kinesis Gravelcross Series announced

It’s great to see an upsurge in the number of CX Sportives and Gravel rides in the UK. We seemed to get off to a slow start compared to our continental cousins, but there is barely a few days going by without hearing of a new event at the moment. Here’s news of a whole series! We’ll be trying to get down to at least a few of the events, but in the meantime, here are the details from Kinesis UK and CX Sportive Events.

Kinesis UK have been announced as the new title sponsor of CX Sportive’s Gravelcross event series. CX Sportive and Kinesis UK have both been pioneers in the UK gravel riding / open hill CX scene; the first CX Sportive event in 2010 was inspired by the emerging trend for go-anywhere bikes not defined by a specific use, and the original Kinesis Tripster ATR was probably the first bike to become a figurehead for this do-anything generation of machines. The Kinesis Gravelcross Series is designed to offer an exciting range of events for this style of riding, with a very UK-centric approach, embracing the variety of riding we have in abundance, and using it to create fast paced and varied courses on the best mix of surfaces that each area has to offer.

That approach has been the ethos behind CX Sportive since the start, and in Kinesis UK, they are confident they have found partner that understands and is catering for just that style of riding. Phil Harrison from CX Sportive says, “We started CX Sportive events in response to a movement towards people just riding, without restricting themselves to a type of bike, or defining themselves as one kind of rider. In the very early days of the event, we first became aware of the Tripster ATR, and it’s a bike that certainly shaped our thinking and our ambition for what these events should be. This year, we’ve been excited to see Kinesis release the new Tripster AT, which puts top quality gravel riding in the reach a lot more people. Which is exactly what we want to do with the events. The Kinesis Gravelcross Series is open to anyone on any kind of bike that’s up to the job, but the modern gravel bike is very much the all rounder at the centre of this world, and Kinesis are at the leading edge of the development of those bikes.”

Rory Hitchens is the marketing manager at Upgrade Bikes, the home of Kinesis UK. He says: “I have personally ridden and really enjoyed a number of CX Sportive’s events and the timing is perfect for us to support the growing excitement about riding dropped bars over mixed terrain. We think UK tracks, byways and bridleways are best ridden with wider 40mm tyres and the new Tripster AT is the ideal machine to offer all-round speed and comfort on these events so it’s a great natural fit for us to get involved and we are excited to be working on the new Gravelcross series to bring a new style of cycling to more people this coming year.”

The seven event Kinesis UK Gravelcross Series continues on October 15th from Salisbury Racecourse with the Kinesis UK Gold Rush, which features a rich mix of tarmac and dirt/gravel roads, plus some serious hills, a little bit of singletrack and the iconic cobbled climb of Shaftesbury’s Gold Hill. The series continues through to the spring with rides in accessible locations across the south, each offering three distance choices, fully marked routes, rider support and timing, event catering and a great atmosphere! And you can enter on any bike you like, you don’t need a CX or gravel bike. But there’s a good chance you’ll be thinking of getting one once you get a taste for this way of riding!

Find out more about the events and sign up online at www.cxsportive.com, and discover the Kinesis UK range of bikes for road, off road and everything in between at www.kinesisbikes.co.uk.

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