GRASSLAND GRAVEL
Saturday, July 18, 2026
Ride The Wide Open!
Join us for a unique adventure that showcases the 116,000 acres of rolling mixed-grass prairie of the Fort Pierre National Grassland. Starting from the state's oldest town, you'll enjoy wide sky spaces and sparse traffic of gravel roads and pasture doubletrack across 3 counties. The event is operated under special use permit with the Fort Pierre National Grassland.
Adventure You Say?
Boy howdy is it! Starting in a horse race chute, barbed wire fence gates, riding through cattle, wet creekbed crossings, sticky gumbo, and scaring up prairie chickens are all possible at no additional cost.
Choose Your Adventure
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3 route distances: 31, 53 or 71 miles. The surfaces on all routes include packed and loose gravel, rugged doubletrack across the prairie, and bare dirt. (More info on routes below.) See the route collection on Ride With GPS.
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Any bike is welcome: We're cool with whatever - drop bar, flat bar, e-bike, etc. - as long as it's set up appropriately for a gravel+ adventure. (E-bikes are welcome but are not eligible for race prizes.) Helmets are a must for safety on this ride.
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Race pace or party pace: Yes, it includes a race for all routes if that's your jam, but you can ride however it brings you joy.
Can You Give Me A Hint?
Visit this photo gallery from 2025 to see the kind of fun you'll have.
What's The Fine Print?
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Registration includes stocked aid stations, post-ride meal, event swag, and prizes for the top 3 in each category.​​
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There are no refunds and entries are non-transferable. You can choose to protect your registration by purchasing registration insurance through BikeReg when registering for the event.
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2026 Registration is now open on BikeReg. Note that price increases as the date gets closer. Shirts not guaranteed for registrations after July 1.​
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But Wait, There's More!
We're also the first ride of the new Grassland Triple Crown series. We've teamed up with our friends at the Thunderhawk Wide Open and Wheelin' to Wall gravel events for a new competition that features Strava segments, crowns for series winners, and special swag for anyone that rides all 3 events. Details at the Grassland Triple Crown website.
Projected routes for 2026
Note: these are projected routes, updated 2-1-26. Final routes will be determined by course conditions as the event approaches.
31-mile route
The 31-mile route is a good introduction to riding gravel on the National Grassland. The rolling county gravel roads are single lane, can be loose in spots, and cross cattle grates. The 4.3 miles on FSR 202 will give you a feel for how remote you can get in the ocean of prairie just a short distance from the state's oldest town.
53-mile route
The 53-mile route includes the 4.3 miles of double track of FSR 202 across the prairie and extends your gravel journey through 3 counties. There's more climbing to do on this route, with more than 2,100 feet of up.
71-mile route
Double the double track fun! FSRs 202 and 217 can be rugged adventures, each more than 4 miles long. Keep an eye out for the ride mascot - the greater prairie chicken - as you pedal across the prairie. This one's not for the feint of conditioning. There's 3,200 feet of climbing on the sometimes steep rollers.