On a bright and sunny day at 3PM on June 3rd, the gun went off unleashing 105 riders on a voyage around the middle of America. A hair over 22 hours later Cynthia Frazier crossed the line to take the victory and set the new standard for the women’s time at Unbound XL.
The 563-kilometer route of this year’s race headed south to the town of El Dorado, possibly a good omen for things to come as Cynthia also found gold in those flint hills. Temperatures and conditions varied throughout the 22hrs on course. But the worst of the day was reserved for the final 20 miles. Thunderstorms and torrential downpours caught up with the riders as they made their northward march to Emporia.
Her bike for the journey was the Exploro Ultra Copper frame, the perfect choice for an ultra-distance adventure like Unbound XL. Built up with SRAM’s Force/Eagle configuration, a Dynamo hub to keep the lumens pumping, and of course some deep carbon hoops to keep the speed up when you can. This bike was built to win from the start.
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The Unbound XL winning bike
The Exploro Ultra in our copper/terracotta color is available now to purchase at 3T.Bike. We have limited quantities in Force/Eagle builds like Cynthia used or in the Campagnolo Ekar build as well.
You can check those out HERE
And if you’re thinking about your own ultra adventures check out our gravel tech blog on tire choice for the Exploro Ultra. We’ve put together a list of recommendations that will get you sorted for your next ride.
