Sven Fürst: from fast gravel to big gravel

When I started this season, I already knew exactly what I loved about OPEN bikes. They're fast, uncomplicated and playful, and somehow manage to make a gravel bike feel like so much more than just a gravel bike. But this season took my story with OPEN to another level. From riding the OPEN UPPER Concept at The Traka 360, to chasing qualification at the UCI Gravel World Series, to getting my new WIDE 2.0, these past few months have probably shown me better than anything else what gravel really means to me. For me, gravel isn't a particular type of road, it isn't a particular tyre width, and it definitely isn't just one particular type of racing. Sometimes it's more than 330 kilometres through Girona, sometimes it's a fast UCI race, sometimes it gets steep, technical and properly rough, and sometimes it's simply about rediscovering the feeling that made you start racing in the first place. This is my season with OPEN so far. 

The Traka 360 in Girona

If there's one race that shows you whether you truly trust your bike, it's probably The Traka 360. Hour after hour on gravel, with fast sections, rough stretches, climbs, descents and, above all, enough time in the saddle for every tiny detail of your bike to eventually make itself known. I raced on my OPEN UPPER Concept, and the plan was pretty simple, ride hard but keep enough in reserve to still be racing properly after ten hours. In the end, it was more than 330 kilometres in just under twelve hours, finishing 9th in the Open category and 8th in my age group. Somewhere along those 330 kilometres, something became very clear to me. The best bike for a race like The Traka might not be the one you notice the most, it might be the one you eventually stop thinking about altogether. Brake, accelerate, choose a line, eat, suffer, keep going, and that's exactly what my OPEN did for almost twelve hours. It just worked. My lasting memory of the race is crossing the finish line after more than 330 kilometres, knowing that my bike, my body and my fuelling had made it through that ridiculously long day together. 

UCI Gravel World Series in Singen 

Not every race gives you the feeling you were hoping for, and Singen was one of those days. The day before, I'd been watching the Winti Crit from the sidelines, and for Singen I really only had one clear goal, secure qualification. But it quickly became clear that this wasn't going to be one of those magical days when the legs just feel good, so my approach to the race changed. It was no longer about riding as aggressively as possible, it was about adjusting the pace, staying calm, keeping going and making the most of what I had that day. Because sometimes racing isn't about producing your best power numbers, sometimes it's simply about making a good race out of a bad day. In the end, it was enough, and qualification was secured. My lasting memory of the race is realising after the finish that a bad day doesn't automatically have to mean a bad result. 

Villard, One Week Later

Just one week later, the next race was already waiting, and this time gravel was suddenly something completely different. More technical, more climbing, and more sections where bike handling mattered just as much as power, which is exactly the kind of racing I love. When gravel stops feeling like a road race on dirt and lands somewhere between road cycling, cyclocross and mountain biking, I'm pretty happy. It was another hard race, and once again, qualification secured. At the same time, it was another reminder of why I love riding OPEN bikes. They don't feel like bikes that only want to go as fast as possible in a straight line, they want to play. My lasting memory of the race is the technical sections, because whenever the terrain got more challenging, the race became even more fun for me.

At some point, a pretty special box arrived, my new OPEN WIDE 2.0. Custom paint by Tony, SRAM RED XPLR, FFWD PACE RAW wheels, wide Pirelli tyres, CeramicSpeed wherever we could possibly fit it and, of course, a few Haribos in the downtube snack box, all of that at around 8.2 kilograms. On paper, the bike sounds a little crazy, with huge tyres, very low weight and playful geometry, somewhere between a gravel race bike and a mountain bike. Basically, exactly my kind of crazy. But the first thing I noticed when riding it wasn't actually the enormous tyre clearance, it was how playful the bike felt. The short, compact feel, the low top tube and the low weight make the WIDE 2.0 incredibly easy to move around underneath you. You look at those huge tyres and expect a monster truck, then you start riding and realise someone accidentally gave the monster truck the handling of a go-kart.  

Gravel Vibes in Laufenburg

This race meant something completely different to me. Originally, the Gravel European Championships had been on my calendar, but after a difficult period with a lot of fatigue and plenty going on outside cycling, I decided to skip them. Instead, I raced Gravel Vibes in Laufenburg, shorter, in Switzerland and on the new WIDE 2.0, with really only one goal that mattered, enjoy racing again. At around 60 kilometres, the race almost sounds like an easy Sunday ride compared with The Traka. It wasn't... Around 1,400 metres of climbing and a strong field made sure it was properly tough, and I spent roughly 50 kilometres riding solo. In the end, I finished 5th overall, 2nd in my age group and first non-professional across the line. But the result wasn't really the most important thing that day. For the first time in a while, everything clicked again, I trusted my bike, I trusted my legs and, above all, I really wanted to race again. My lasting memory of the race isn't the finish line or the result, but that one moment somewhere during the race when I realised, yes, this is exactly why I do this.

For me, the UPPER Concept and the WIDE 2.0 are two very different interpretations of what a gravel bike can be, and that's exactly what I like about them. The UPPER feels incredibly fast and responsive, and for fast gravel, long distances and races where efficiency matters, this bike just works. The WIDE 2.0 opens another door, with bigger tyres, rougher terrain and more freedom to choose your lines, all while keeping that playful character I associate with OPEN. And that's what gravel has become for me. I don't want to have to choose whether I'm a road cyclist, a mountain biker, a cyclocross racer or a gravel rider, I want a bike that lets me take a little bit of everything.

What Gravel Means to Me

A bigger playground, that's probably the simplest answer. Gravel has expanded my cycling playground almost beyond measure, with fast roads, forest tracks, singletrack, long climbs and technical descents, more than 330 kilometres of racing in Spain and 60 kilometres flat out in Switzerland, on narrow tyres and wide tyres. Sometimes it's about chasing a result, and sometimes it's simply about finding that feeling that made you fall in love with bikes in the first place. After this season, there's one thing I'm pretty sure about, we're only just getting started. 

 What's Next

The Swiss Gravel Championships, and after that, the tyres get narrower again...

Sven Fürst