Sky-High Stoke: The Frontier 300
Salsa’s UK distributor, Lyon Cycle, helped put on the Frontier 300 gravel race from the shores of Scotland to the English coast. Steve Bate rides for Lyon and took part in this magnificent ride. Here’s his story of the 300-kilometer adventure.
It’s not often these days I sign up for cycling events, for one main reason: I’m selfish. I want the trails to myself or the selected few with whom I chose to ride. The thought of riding with 200 other people just isn’t that inviting — until Salsa Cycles are involved. Then I’m interested…
Other the past few years, I’ve watched (like I guess most bikepacking, gravel-riding UK folk have) the range of interesting events that happen across the pond with some envy. Most of them have a theme of distance or terrain, but the events that have grabbed my attention are the ones with random twists. Especially when Salsa get involved, such as the Chase the Chaise events. This random sofa planted in the middle of events has quite the reputation, so you can imagine that as I was flying down a long, sweeping gravel descent 100 km deep into the Frontier 300, I was delighted to see the UK twist on Chase the Chaise: giant deck chairs, sandcastles, buckets, and spades, all topped off with summer tunes and the welcoming smiles of Nils and Matt in pink flamingo outfits. I’m fortunate enough to be supported by Lyon, so there was no way I was passing up the opportunity to jump into a large chair, snap some pics, and take the load off my legs for a few minutes.
The theme of Frontier 300 is, we live on an island, so why not ride across it at least once? We set off from Rockcliffe Bay, a sleepy little town hidden away on the Scottish coast. A relaxed start window of 0415–0445 gave people plenty of time to get up bright and early and get sorted before rolling to the start. Hopefully it didn’t put out the locals too much at this ungodly hour.
We couldn’t have asked for better conditions on the day. I rolled over the start line in my 7mesh bib shorts and a short-sleeve merino jersey. I know it’s summer up this end of the world, but it’s still the west coast of Scotland. Thankfully, the wind was our friend throughout the day, blowing all the riders west to east. Only a couple of times over the length of the route did we turn our handlebars back into the gusts, which felt like hard work for those short moments.
The route was labelled a 50-50 split of gravel and tarmac, and that description felt fair. The thing I love most about riding routes like this is that you can’t wait to get off the roads at the beginning of the day, but as the gravel takes its toll on your body, the smooth and fast road sections are a welcome relief to battered muscles, lifting your spirits and average speed later in the day. I was really impressed with the selection of roads that Focal Events used. They were never too busy, and the surfaces were pretty good, so I think a shoutout needs to go to the route finders of this event. I feel that the gravel in this part of the country is some of the best in the UK. Flowing tracks, forestry roads, and singletrack allowed us to cover the miles efficiently, enjoying some great views of the area. In some places, I felt I was in genuine wilderness — a rare feeling in this small country.
There was talk of a hike-a-bike section, and this didn’t disappoint. As I pushed my bike up the narrow, heather-sided, and loose rocky track, it started to rain near the top. I was glad not to be at the tail end of the field, as it would have been much harder work. Rolling past people after this, I heard a few grumbles about it, but I think it was worth having on the course. Yes, it was hard and did go on for longer than most would have wanted, but is this not the essence of Salsa’s tagline, “Adventure by Bike”? I bet people will never forget it, and we want these events to carry memories, right? We all know Type-2 memories are the ones we laugh about the most afterwards, sitting around the fire pit and recounting stories of the day.
Just before the 200k mark, climbing up a long, quiet tarmac road, a large cargo bike came tearing down toward me. Getting closer at a rate of knots, there were two gentlemen dressed up like Frenchmen screaming, “Allez! Allez! Allez!” at the top of their lungs. It was the mad bunch from Lyon Cycle, the headline sponsors. With Ed pedalling and Jordan in the cargo box, they flew past, then realised it was me, one of their riders. After some heavy braking and an awkward three-point turn, the large “box-on-the-front”-style e-cargo bike caught me at the top of the hill. I stopped for a quick chat, admiring their blue-and-white striped outfits topped off by cheap stick-on moustaches (at least I think they were stick-on). Riding the descent afterwards, I felt proud to ride for a brand who took their roles out here stupidly serious in supporting this event that had been years in the making due to that pesky pandemic. My stoke level at this point was still sky-high.
With four well-stocked feed stations and the route passing through small villages, you’re likely never caught short of fuel. And with a very small list of essentials to carry, you could move pretty light and fast. However, it must be said that this was a self-supported event, so you had to put some thought into food, route planning, and a backup plan in case a mechanical ended your day short. There was a time cut-off at the last feed station, which had a late enforced overnight stoppage, however blankets and a village hall were provided for folks to crash down in, so there was no need to lug a tent if you weren’t sure you could make the cut-off. I believe a handful of riders used this and arrived safely during the Salsa Beach Brunch the following morning to a grand round of applause from this new community of riders, showing their support for the last riders in.
A motorcoach made transport easy, with pick-up/drop-off service from the finish to the start. Every rider started with a tracker, and there was mobile medical coverage throughout the route, giving riders a feeling of safety and support. Great food and drink available at either end meant we weren’t worried about where dinner was coming from. Tepees, giant deck chairs, and fire pits at the finishing village and a range of products from Salsa, Teravail, Ortlieb, and 7mesh created a nice family friendly environment to hang out in and share stories of that damn hike-a-bike section, all while watching the World Championship Teravail Tyre Toss taking place.
I think the events team have done a fantastic job creating a unique event here in the UK that gives that “big American gravel ride” feel to these small and humble shores. I can see the Salsa Frontier growing into one of the biggest events on the calendar in the UK, which would be fantastic.
Rolling over the finish line in the sunshine was a great feeling. I knew I had been on an epic journey, and with a pat on the back I was given a bottle of Salsa Frontier ale and a patch for completing the event. I guess the final question is, “Would I ride it again and has it changed my opinion of these style of events?” Bottom line, without doubt, I’ll be back to ride this event again*. And I think with more and more events like this happening in the UK, I would be tempted to sign up to be a little more sociable from time to time. Thanks to all the riders who took part, shared some fun, looked after each other, and let me ride on your wheels. I hope you enjoyed the adventure.
-Steve
*Only if they promise a tailwind again!
Finally, a quick couple of thank-yous: the team at Focal Events, Bryan and Neil, thanks for the wonderful invite and an incredible experience; my guys at Lyon Cycle, Nils, Jordan, Ed, and Matt for the support both on this ride and others; Your enthusiasm and your stoke to ride bikes are infectious, and I’m grateful to fly your flag for the good of bikes; Teravail tyres for making and allowing me to ride their amazing products; 7mesh for providing my clothing for the event; Salsa Cycles for doing all you do, I love riding the bikes you make, it’s a dream come true; Dave MacFarline from DMTWO Media, sorry for making your job a bit harder, mate; thanks also to Hunt, Peatys, Smith Optics UK, and Alpkit for your support in this event. Thank you, folks. It’s a real pleasure to know and work with you all.
The 2023 Salsa Frontier 300 takes place on June 17th, 2023. Registration opens on the November 1st, 2022. Learn more at: https://frontier300.cc/
