Yesterday at the Granada Theatre in Emporia, Kans. there was a stark contrast between the men’s and women’s podiums for the Dirty Kanza 200 ultra-endurance bike race. The five top women took their places and waved at the audience of locals, other racers, and support crew. The men no-showed.
To give men’s winner Colin Strickland some credit, he was late, and he took his place on the stage towards the end of the awards ceremony. But the damage may have been already done as images of both podiums spread on social media.
Pro men’s podium
pic.twitter.com/Cn2kQkuPPK
— Geoff Kabush (@GeoffKabush) June 2, 2019
All 10 riders are pro racers, which understandably creates complicated travel schedules. Even at the most elite levels of cycling, there often isn’t much time to celebrate a good result before hitting the road in search of the next race. And among the age-group podiums also celebrated on Sunday, there were occasional absences. Dirty Kanza can be a brutal race, and the 2019 edition was no exception. The course ran along gravel roads through the rolling terrain of the Flint Hills north of Emporia. In soaring heat and humidity, 870 out of 1,196 starters finished, the last reaching the line in 20 hours, 43 minutes, and 55 seconds—Strickland’s record-setting time, for contrast, was 9:58:49. Some people were understandably too beaten up to stand on stage.
The race organizers had also taken podium photos the day before, to accommodate for the fact some riders had to leave. But Sunday’s public podium celebration was almost certainly a missed opportunity for the men’s pros, and for the teams and sponsors they represent. Women’s winner Amity Rockwell (who rides for the Easton Overland team) and her peers—Alison Tetrick (Specialized), Sarah Max (Argonaut), Kae Takeshita (Panaracer/Factor p/b Bicycle X-Change), and Olivia Dillon (Velocio)—all made a statement just by being there.
Ultimately, money is at play in all of this. Pro cycling teams don’t necessarily have a lot of it, in comparison to teams in wealthier sports like football, but bicycles are expensive. You can buy a replica of the balls used in the NFL for about $100. A comparative bike, similar to the ones used by riders in the Tour de France, will set you back more than $10,000. Sponsors support pro riders because they can engage with their fans and sell products and services.
Dirty Kanza itself is a growing property. In September, Life Time Fitness acquired the event. (Life Time also owns the Leadville 100 mountain bike race.) The number of participants, spread across a variety of race distances ranging from 25 miles through the iconic 200-miler to a 350-mile epic, jumped from 2,000 to 3,000. Title sponsor Garmin was ever present, with its name incorporated within a redesigned logo. Downtown Emporia was overtaken by a bicycle expo in the days leading up to the event.
And Dirty Kanza is pushing to grow female participation. In November 2016, the race organizers launched an effort to have at least 200 women ride the 200-mile distance. In the 2016 race, 54 women had finished. In 2017 race, that number jumped to 124. Then it reached 133 in 2018, and 141 this year. The #200Women200Miles campaign has now evolved into a new initiative, Women Ride The World, that aims to be a supporting social space for female cyclists.
On Friday, Dirty Kanza hosted a two-hour Women Ride The World panel. A couple of hours later, keynote speaker Lael Wilcox jumped on her bike to start, and win, the 350-mile DKXL race in 23:51:47.
For many years, women’s cycling equipment has suffered from the “shrink and pink” philosophy: gear designed for men was simply made smaller and colored pink. Unsurprisingly, that wasn’t an incredibly successful business approach. I’m 6’2”, but a friend of mine—one of the 141 women who finished this year—is taller and rides a larger bike than me. Another friend, a pro racer, absolutely hates the color pink.
One of the problems often faced by sports technology startups is finding a real market. Entrepreneurs are often hyped by dreams of supplying the top players in the major sports, but there are less than 4,000 athletes across MLB, the NBA, the NFL, and the NHL. The real markets are full of consumers, ideally adults with disposable incomes.
The biggest growth potential in cycling is women’s cycling. Encouraging more women to ride bicycles—and buy bikes, components, equipment, and services—isn’t just about an idealistic push for equality. Having all five women’s podium finishers take the stage in Emporia, and highlight the accessibility of their sport, could well be financially beneficial to the cycling market.