2019 Pisgah Monster Cross Challenge - Western North Carolina

Pisgah Monster Cross has been around for many years, long before "gravel" was a mainstream entity. Eric Wever, the man behind Pisgah Monster Cross and host company, Pisgah Productions, has been a fixture in the North Carolina scene for many years.
My last appearance at the race was in 2016, and since then, the race has undergone some changes. Gone is the Blue Ridge Parkway section of the course (a good thing… nice to ride, but better riding away from vehicles), leaving us with an extremely challenging course that is about 80% dirt, gravel, rocky bits interspersed with several tricky descents.
Appearing with me in this video from the Gravel Cyclist Crew is K-Dogg and Jimbo, along with everyone else who lined up to race. Some 70 miles / 111kms with over 8,500 feet of climbing are traversed in this video.
Links of Interest:
Garmin 830 Review Part One - wp.me/p4V4se-8mE
2019 Pisgah Monster Cross Challenge Report - wp.me/p4V4se-8zs
Pisgah Productions - pisgahproductio...
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[@michaelviglianco6121]

I did this in 2012 on my Surly Troll with a Rohloff. It was preparation for my first bike tour. Second to last finisher.....good times!

[@timlong2291]

Those roads looked so fun

[@mikec1571]

That looks killer! Great job. Love the videos

[@GravelCyclist]

Thanks!

[@dirtbike9003]

Man, tough one! Nice job, Jom

[@GravelCyclist]

Thanks, appreciate it!

[@joshschrader4732]

That course is brutal- did it in 2019 and won't do it again- and yes, that gravel section after the second to last aid station is the steepest and loosest section in western NC- I would recommend the Dirt Diggler course as a more reasonable yet still challenging Brevard-area gravel race option

[@GravelCyclist]

Thanks Josh, I've ridden several variants of Pisgah Monster Cross, appreciate you chiming in about Dirt Diggler, and event I've yet to ride.

[@beesting987]

@joshschrader4732 What kind of tires would you recommend for the Dirt Diggler? Is it doable on 34/35mm?

[@joshschrader4732]

@@beesting987 Yes unless the weather is crap and then you'll want some width and knob- Pirelli H 40 would be a good choice- Pinnacle Rd is no joke:)

[@SangTTran10111213]

Love your videos. Just curious on how do you make the video so smooth on gravel dirt.

[@GravelCyclist]

Thanks! The GoPro Hero 7 has excellent stabilization and the K-Edge mounts I use also help.

[@essentiallaughing3069]

Soft mount and real steady go if your using a GoPro

[@neilashton9459]

J.O.M have you ever done Dirt Diggler in Brevard, NC? 2019 version was today and seriously hard climbs and gnarly descents.

[@GravelCyclist]

Negative, but I've heard all about its overall gnarly nature... hopefully you had no issues.

[@neilashton9459]

All good - aside from not being that fast 🤭

[@GravelCyclist]

@@neilashton9459 Just like me haha!

[@TayySanderson]

How do you know about gravel races? I want to start racing them soon!

[@GravelCyclist]

Check out my website calendar - gravelcyclist.com/calendar

[@ahmadzuhairi]

At 4:34 a bike with mega wide tyres. what was that?

[@GravelCyclist]

I have very little footage of the bike, but it was a dude riding a fat bike.

[@nbprotocol5406]

Stupid lights during daytime

[@GravelCyclist]

It's about safety on the paved roads... be seen by motorists or die.