The organizer confirms Low Gap Grasshopper for Sunday, January 31, 2027. Its current long course covers 59 miles and 6,585 feet over five percent pavement and 95 percent dirt, including private Mendocino Redwood Company roads and a long opening climb.
This twelve-week Compete plan adds repeatable race power and the durability to stay with a useful group through 59 miles, 6,585 feet, and a long winter opening climb. Race simulations pair decisive efforts with sustained-climb restraint and technical dirt-road control, fueling under pressure, and composed equipment and pacing choices late in the day.
59 MI · 6,585 FT CLIMBING · 95% DIRT + 6,585 FT CLIMBING · 12 WEEKS · 9–13 HR/WK · COMPETE
WHAT'S INSIDE
- Structured workouts on your calendar, with real power and heart-rate graphs
- Strength work built in, with video walkthroughs
- Weekly notes from me, plus the Gravel Grit mental program
- A testing week and a mid-plan retest, so the plan runs on your real numbers
- The full Low Gap Grasshopper guide — terrain, gearing, fueling
Hey, I'm Matti. I spent 11 years at TrainingPeaks, where they trusted me to teach coaches how to coach at TrainingPeaks University. I raced Amateur Elite with Rio Grande Cycling Team and podiumed my age group at Unbound 200 in 2026. I have a degree in biology and exercise physiology from St. Olaf. I'm also a middle-aged dad of three, so I know training doesn't happen in a vacuum. I help gravel riders get stupidly fast without becoming the person who brings a food scale to a party