Barry-Roubaix: 100-Mile Psycho Killer – Course Pre-ride, Summer 2020

barry roubaix race video

“What is the Barry-Roubaix? The largest gravel road bicycle race in the world! A challenging race traversing the rolling and scenic gravel roads throughout Barry County, Michigan. Gravel, Cyclocross, Mountain, Road, Single-Speed, Fixed gear, Fatbikes & Tandem bicycles are welcome in any category.” – http://barry-roubaix.com

barry roubaix course pre-ride

“Like the Classic it’s named after, Barry-Roubaix will test riders against (80%) rolling gravel roads, pavement, one mile of rough two-track, rocks, sand, mud, and possibly snow and ice as you traverse the scenic roads of Barry County.”

barry roubaix race video

There are four race distances on offer. For this summer edition tour of the course, JOM of the Gravel Cyclist crew chose the “Psycho Killer” distance of 100 miles, with over 6,800 feet of ascent.

barry roubaix course pre-ride
Uphill hike-a-bike sandpit

Barry-Roubaix is held in Hastings, Michigan:

“In 1836 three entrepreneurs named Dibble, Kingsbury and Kendall bought 480 acres along the Thornapple River from Detroit banker Eurotas P. Hastings. The three platted the area into lots, and soon a small community arose. In 1843, the state legislature designated Hastings as the County Seat of Barry County.”

barry roubaix course pre-ride

“The first paper, the Barry County Pioneer, began publishing in 1851, and a second paper, the Republican Banner, began in 1856. The latter publication, a weekly paper published on Thursdays, continues to be published as the Hastings Banner.”

barry roubaix course pre-ride
Fellow Gravel Cyclists spotted along the course!

“Hastings was incorporated as a village in 1855, with a population of around 300, and on March 11, 1871, Hastings officially became a city. The Barry County Courthouse, which is still in use today, was built in 1893. The city grew slowly, reaching 6,500 people in 1960 and remaining nearly flat through 1990.”

Barry-Roubaix 100-Mile Psycho Experience Video

Barry Roubaix

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4 Comments

  1. Avatar GCWANNABEE

    Bloody hell, walking again!

  2. Avatar Michael Anderson

    Thanks for your suffering, I mean your video. Living in western Michigan, sand is part of the deal.

  3. Avatar Alan Xiao

    Thanks for the video. You’re right, during the race you miss seeing the scenery! I haven’t been up there for a few years but I hope to get back next year.

    If you were to go back would you change your tires or gearing?

    • JOM JOM

      Hello Alan. My gearing was 46/30 with an 11-32 cassette, that was really nice, I would keep that the same. For the tyres, I was very happy with the Panaracer Gravelking SK in 700c x 38mm, no changes there. The sandy spot isn’t long enough for me to warrant changing tyres, etc. If conditions were muddy, I’d run the Panaracer Gravelking Mud or WTB Resolute.

      I sincerely hope I can do the event one day in the future.

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