Valley of Tears Gravel Rules and Policies

Friday Dirt Criterium—Pros only!

We will have two starts—Pro/Open Women at 5:30pm and Pro/Open Women at 6:05pm.  Races will be 25 minutes plus one lap (clock will start at the beginning of the race, as soon as we hit the 25-minute mark the next time the leaders pass through we will ring the bell with one lap to go.  All riders finish on the same lap no matter if they have been lapped by the leader.

Cash prizes are paid 3 deep for each race ($750, $500, $250) and we will have awards immediately following the men’s race.   

No outside support during the criterium—no wheel changes, handups, mechanical support, etc.

No aero bars or mountain bike straight bars will be allowed in the criterium.

All riders MUST start the criterium to be eligible for the prize purse on Saturday—no exceptions!  You don’t have to finish, but you must start.

Riders that finished in the top 10 at Valley of Tears in 2024 will be called to the start line along with any other current elite national champions (road, gravel, cyclocross, MTB). The promoters reserve the right to call up any other riders of note as they see fit.

The course is “mostly closed” meaning that we will have some level of traffic control.  However, sometimes cars get on the course so it is up to riders to keep their heads up, and watch for vehicles/pedestrians/objects in their way.

Saturday VOT Gravel Race

Most important: Follow the rules of the road. The roads are OPEN to vehicle traffic! Please ride on the right side of the road and follow all traffic signs. 

This year the long and medium courses go through Caprock State Park.  This area has open grazing for wild bison. These are NOT pets—they are wild animals--do not approach.  Always maintain a distance of at least 50 yards (half a football field) away.  If bison are on the course, give them a wide berth of 50 yards and find another way around.  If it affects your race placing, we will sort that out later—don’t risk making national news.

New for 2025, we have separate starts on the long course for pro men, pro women, and age groupers.  Please note—you can only work with riders who are in your own start wave!  This means that you cannot draft or give a draft to a rider who did not start in the same group as you.  Working with riders who started in a different group with you is grounds for disqualification or relegation.

For those in the pro races: Cash prizes are paid 10 deep for both men and women ($2500, $2000, $1500, $1000 for 4th-10th).  For age group riders, long and medium courses will have age group podiums three deep for U19, 19-39, 40-49, 50-59, and 60+.  Short course prizes will be top 3 men and women only.

Our neutral aid stations will be fully stocked with Never Second bars, gels and drink mix along with some extra snacks.  We allow outside feeding in two spots on the course—the Caprock Trail parking lot in Quitaque (mile 24.7) or downtown Turkey when the long course passes through to the eastern loop.  Please do not take food and water from any place outside of these feed zones.

Please don’t use headphones, earbuds or text while riding.

You can use any upright-style two-wheeled bicycle you want, but aero bars are NOT allowed.

We have a dedicated E-bike fun ride category on our short course.  We do NOT allow E-bikes on the long course.  If you would like to ride an ebike on the medium course, please contact us ahead of time and know that you will not be eligible for prizes.

There is a time cutoff for the long course!  You will need to get back to Turkey and cross through the start/finish by 2:45pm if you are going to make it back to Turkey before dark.   If you are signed up for the long course and you don’t make it back to Turkey by 2:45pm, you will just have to drink beer (or whatever beverage you prefer) earlier.  If you signed up for the long course, but decide to cut your ride short, please let the timers know!

We have Port-a-Potties at the Aid Stations. Please use them—we spent money on them!  There are additional restrooms along the Caprock Canyons Trail.

Riders are expected to be prepared to deal with mechanical issues. Please bring extra tubes, a hand pump and/or CO2, tire plugs, etc. There will be some Neutral Support on the course and at the start line but aim to be self-sufficient.

This race is held in the panhandle of Texas in March. There is a 67% chance that it will be windy and a 42% chance that it will be downright cold.  Bring clothing and be prepared—those back pockets on your jersey are great for stuffing lightweight jackets.  Sunscreen is recommended regardless of the weather.

Please make sure to keep our beautiful scenery litter-free. We would be happy to take your trash at the Aid Stations and the Finish Line. Please don’t leave trash on the road for us to pick up.

Stay on the course. Download the routes on the website to your Garmin/Wahoo/GPS unit.  While we will have a bunch of arrows and flags out there on the roads, you never know if they will get moved or blown away.

There will be sheriff deputies at some intersections.  Their job is NOT to stop vehicular traffic, it is to provide some visibility to the race so that vehicles slow down at the intersections.  If they waive you through, then feel free to keep moving.  If they don’t waive you through, stop—look both ways—and proceed when clear.

If you find yourself out on course and needing to get a ride back to the finish line, do your best to get to an aid station to get help.  While we will have a sag vehicle at the back, it might be hours before that van catches up to you so do your best to get yourself out of there.  We will help you as best we can, but you should be self-sufficient.   

Failure to follow these rules may result in disqualification.

Have Fun! Be Safe! Ride Smart!

The Valley of Tears Team