Gravel · Emporia, Kansas · since 2006
Unbound Gravel
Unbound Gravel 2027 is June 3-6, 2027, in Emporia, billed by the organizer as its 20-year celebration. The main races run Saturday, June 5; the XL starts Friday afternoon. The 2026 edition was held May 30.
What is the Unbound Gravel?
Unbound Gravel is a gravel race held out of Emporia, Kansas, each spring, with distances of 25, 50, 100, 200 and 350 miles through the Flint Hills. It started in 2006 as Dirty Kanza with 34 riders, was bought by Life Time in 2018, renamed in 2020, and now takes about 4,000-5,000 riders chosen by lottery. The 200-mile race is 207 miles with roughly 8,700 feet of climbing on rough gravel. The next edition is June 3-6, 2027, the event's 20th year.
Entry is by lottery. The lottery opens November 1 at 10 am CT and closes November 15 at 11:59 pm CT; results go out November 21. Entering is free, a credit card is held and only charged if you get in, one entry per person. Life Time Club-Access members of six months or more get early access from October 25 and guaranteed spots in the XL, 200 and 100. Charity entries through Life Time Foundation, Chris Klug Foundation and the American Cancer Society are guaranteed, limited and first-come. Deferrals get 100 percent credit toward the next year.
- Next edition
- Usually
- Late May or early June, over a Thursday-to-Sunday weekend; the main races are on Saturday
- Start
- Downtown Emporia, Kansas; the 200 starts at 5:30 am Saturday and finishes on Commercial Street
Emporia, Kansas - Distances
- XL (350 miles) — Starts Friday 3 pm; self-supported through the night
- 200 miles — Flagship race; starts 5:30 am Saturday in waves
- 100 miles — Saturday, after the 200
- 50 miles — Saturday
- 25 miles — Saturday; includes a Juniors category
- Kids Crit — Short kids' race in town
- Terrain
- Rolling, chunky Flint Hills gravel and minimum-maintenance roads across open tallgrass prairie, with creek crossings and mud when it rains
- Climbing
- 8,720 ft on the longest route
- Riders
- about 4,000-5,000 riders across all distances, per the organizer; the first edition in 2006 had 34
- Cost
- 2027 entry fees not yet published (listed as 'coming soon' on the registration page as of September 2026); charity entries require a fundraising minimum set by each partner
- Founded
- 2006 by Jim Cummins and Joel Dyke, as Dirty Kanza
- Organizer
- Life Time
How the Unbound Gravel started
Jim Cummins and Joel Dyke started the race in 2006 as Dirty Kanza. Thirty-four riders lined up for the single 200-mile distance and 15 finished. The idea was that the Flint Hills, one of the last big stretches of tallgrass prairie in the country, were best seen from a bike on gravel.
The race grew with the sport. Life Time bought the event in 2018, when about 2,500 riders were registered, and added the 350-mile XL the same year. In October 2020, after complaints that the name was offensive to the Kaw (Kanza) people and after Cummins was let go by Life Time, the event was renamed Unbound Gravel.
Today the organizer describes it as the world's premier gravel event, with riders from all 50 states and dozens of countries and around 5,000 across five distances. In 2025 Cameron Jones set the fastest 200-mile time at 8 hours 37 minutes. The 2027 edition marks 20 years.
What to expect on the day
Everything runs out of downtown Emporia. The XL leaves Friday at 3 pm and rides through the night. The 200 starts at 5:30 am Saturday in category waves, with the 100, 50 and 25 following. The finish is a block party on Commercial Street. The organizer posts detailed athlete guides with checkpoint locations and cutoffs; routes go out on Ride with GPS and Garmin Connect a few weeks before.
The 200 is 207 miles with about 2,657 meters (8,700 feet) of climbing on a rolling course; the high point is Texaco Hill at 507 meters. The gravel is sharp and flint-heavy, and the roads are remote. Bring spare tubes and plugs, plan your own support crew for checkpoints, and expect to be on your own between them.
Weather decides the day. In 2026 mud at mile 11 split the pro fields and forced riders off their bikes. When it rains the clay turns to what riders call peanut butter and clogs everything. When it is dry the wind and sun do the work instead.
Weather in Emporia for the Unbound Gravel
Early June in Emporia averages a daily high near 82 F and a low near 63 F, with about a 40 percent chance of rain on any given day and a steady south wind averaging around 10 mph. Storms and mud are a real possibility.
Loading the forecast for Emporia…
Live forecast from Open-Meteo. Times are local to Emporia.
The town
Sleep, eat, fix the bike.
Emporia is a college town of about 24,000 in east-central Kansas, on I-35 between Topeka and Wichita at the edge of the Flint Hills. It is the home of Unbound Gravel, which has started and finished on its downtown Commercial Street every spring since 2006, and it has built an identity around gravel riding, with two bike shops on the main street. The nearest big airports are Wichita (94 miles) and Kansas City (125 miles).
Fly into Wichita (ICT, about 94 miles and an hour and a half) or Kansas City (MCI, about 125 miles and two hours), then drive; both routes are interstate. Topeka is about 59 miles. There is no commercial air service in Emporia. A car is necessary, but once in town the hotels on the west side are a five-minute drive from Commercial Street and everything downtown is walkable.
Group rides around Emporia
Free, recurring, open to anyone. Ride with locals the day before, or the week after.
Unbound Gravel FAQ
When is Unbound Gravel 2027?
June 3-6, 2027, in Emporia, Kansas. The main races are Saturday, June 5. It is the event's 20th year.
How do I get in?
Through the lottery, which opens November 1 and closes November 15, with results on November 21. It is free to enter; you are charged only if selected. Charity entries and Life Time member spots are the other routes in.
How long and how hilly is the 200?
About 207 miles with roughly 2,657 meters (8,700 feet) of climbing on rolling Flint Hills gravel.
Can I defer?
Yes. Deferrals get 100 percent credit toward the following year's race, requested through your Let's Do This registration before the deadline (June 3, 2027, 1 pm CT for the 2027 race). You then re-register during the November 1-15 window.
Where does it start?
Downtown Emporia. The finish line is on Commercial Street.
What does it cost?
2027 fees were not posted as of September 2026. Check the registration page in the fall.
Sources · 11 pages we read
- unboundgravel.com https://www.unboundgravel.com/
- unboundgravel.com https://www.unboundgravel.com/about/
- unboundgravel.com https://www.unboundgravel.com/registration/
- unboundgravel.com https://www.unboundgravel.com/routes/
- unboundgravel.com https://www.unboundgravel.com/charity-entry/
- unboundgravel.com https://www.unboundgravel.com/deferral/
- bikesignup.com https://www.bikesignup.com/Race/KS/Emporia/CKFUnboundGravel
- en.wikipedia.org https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unbound_Gravel
- road.cc https://road.cc/offroad/feature/unbound-gravel-demystified-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-2026-edition-of-gravel-cyclings-biggest-race
- lifetimegrandprix.com https://www.lifetimegrandprix.com/events/unbound-gravel/
- weatherspark.com https://weatherspark.com/m/8976/6/Average-Weather-in-June-in-Emporia-Kansas-United-States
Facts checked September 15, 2026. Dates and prices come from the organizer and change. Confirm on the official site before you book anything.
