"There are guys like Matej Mohoric competing, who is obviously a lot better. If I do the same as him, I'll never beat him" - Thijs Zonneveld ready to experiment at Unbound Gravel
Gravel
Unbound Gravel 200 is to challenge more than just riders' legs this weekend. The well-known US gravel race is popular among Dutch riders, Thijs Zonneveld included. The Dutch journalist/cyclist extensively previewed the 320-kilometer race in his podcast In het Wiel.
Zonneveld is at the start of Unbound for the second consecutive year, so he already has some idea of what to expect. "This year we are heading north, last year it was south. It's really in the middle of nowhere, you ride for hours through a landscape without any villages or supermarkets. There's just nothing there," explains the columnist.
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Choosing the right equipment is crucial. "I want to take a risk. There are guys like Matej Mohoric competing, who is obviously a lot better. Stronger, more skillful, faster. If I do the same as him, I'll never beat him. But this is Unbound and it's such a crazy race, so you start thinking about ways it could work," says Zonneveld, who is considering swapping tires between certain sections. "The risk you take with that is that it costs more time and effort."
"Everything has to be perfect at Unbound," Zonneveld continues. "I notice that I approach it differently than last year when I was also very concerned about not having bad luck. It's so long and race situations can constantly change. Laurens ten Dam, for example, is very good at this. He's the only one who has been in all the finals. That's very impressive, especially considering the luck factor. How you handle it is very important."
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- He lives in Monaco
Rafionain-Glas03-11-2026 - It's also highly significant for Lorenzo Finn as he won there last year. Also Mateo Ramírez and Henrique Bravo if they go
Rafionain-Glas03-11-2026 - This is a phenomenal course design. I do wish that they'd stretch these tours for the women to at least 2 weeks.RidesHills03-11-2026
- This is an amazing route, honestly. Let's hope that it attracts riders to make it a compelling and competitive race. Side bar amusement: going to Slovenia and passing pretty close to Pogačar's house. I wonder if they were tempting him to get all 3 jerseys at once after winning the Tour and Vuelta. After all, only a very few have ever had all three at the same time (Froome being the last).RidesHills03-11-2026
- He was a child two years ago
Rafionain-Glas03-11-2026 - A great route aswell. Col d'Arpy is a toughie
Rafionain-Glas03-11-2026 - Let Torito have a shot at it
Rafionain-Glas03-11-2026 - A great route, much more exciting than the Tour de France. Monte Livata is an interesting one, because they experimented with it at the 2026 Baby Giro, and it was fantastic. 4 km at 10%, then 10 km at 6.5% made for a great spectacle. The stage 16 is horrible. Montaner is also used in the U23s, in Giro del Belvedere
Rafionain-Glas03-11-2026 - I remember when Mark went through that. He was really experiencing lows and thought about quiting many times. It took him a long time to recover. I, like many others were overjoyed when he came back. I hope Lafay has been tested. I wish him the best.Paggss03-11-2026
- That sucks for him. I've always wondered what guys like him do after retiring from cycling - go back to uni? He's still a very young manCrashjames03-11-2026
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