Originally Posted by
Marcus_Ti
To stay relevant....I think it is inevitable that USACycling sill sticks its nose into gravel racing.
Of course the small/club and grassroots level is why it has taken off like it has...especially in places like the Great Plains where paved roads are few, and in god awful shape.
They're trying but I don't see it taking over the way they have with road/MTB/CX.
First, they're incredibly late to the game and playing catchup.
Second, there's so much gravel and gravel events out there that it would be pretty easy to avoid USAC races because there are so many options out there.
Third, the non-standard anything-goes nature of gravel roads themselves and gravel races (there's a popular local race that doesn't even have podiums because I'm not sure the organizer is aware of them) doesn't really fit with the USAC mindset.
Finally, I think the biggest obstacle is that there is no official international gravel racing scene, like there is with road/MTB/CX/BMX, so there is no incentive for organizers to play ball with USAC in order to get officially sanctioned.
About the only thing they have going for them is group liability insurance, but plenty of races operate with other insurance options.