"Community" in Racing is About More Than the Racers. Wildfires cancel Mid South.

Words by Chris Mehlman - Photography by Dan Hutchinson

Chris Mehlman witnessed first-hand the impact and devastation the wildfires in Stillwater had on not only the bike race but the community itself. In his heartfelt and personal account find out what happened when the evacuation order came. If you would like to help out those affected by the fires then please visit https://www.unitedwaypaynecounty.org/form/donate-today to make a donation.

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As you may have heard, Mid South Gravel was cancelled at midnight on the morning of the race, after massive wildfires ripped across the prairie just west of Stillwater (and right by the race course). With evacuations getting to within 2 miles of town, including hotels with many racers, and likely thousands of locals left homeless today, I was shocked to see that the race was still on by the time I went to bed. Frankly, I was shocked it was not called by 3 PM, and even more bewildered that the organizers announced at 7 PM the plan was still to hold the event despite racers and locals being left homeless and smoke so bad you could not go outside without a mask on.

The initial announcement at 7 PM that the race was continuing:

I have some thoughts on this, and so do most other racers.

Mid South is known for being a community event. It’s welcoming, fun, and frankly, a bit wild. Being wild is great a times. Not this time.

Last night, six pros, including one who works for several cycling media publications and one who flew over from the UK, sat around in our Airbnb shocked that despite the wildfires the race was continuing, and unanimously decided none of us would race. It would not just be bad for our health, but also be incredibly sensitive to race through devastated neighbourhoods, taking up government resources just for our fun.

I understand race promotion is incredibly complicated. Everything had already been paid for, but the sunk cost fallacy should be an easy trap to avoid here. The decision should have been clear. Racers are humans, too. We understand the decision to cancel the race. As the reaction to the eventual cancellation shows, people can see the bigger picture. The reaction to the initial announcement that the event was continuing was far more mixed. It left people questioning what to do and struggling to see the disconnect between houses burning and the wish to run a fun cycling race.

No emails were sent out to racers at any point, meaning some people with no social media showed up this morning and learned the race was cancelled.

I’m very happy the right decision was made in the end, but honestly, I’m a bit disappointed in cycling’s inability to see the bigger picture. I don’t care if you’re a first-time racer or a pro. We all do this for fun. No one gets rich through gravel racing.

I’ve often struggled with the fact that gravel races descend on a town, take it over, tear it up, disrupt everyday life, and then leave. We turn places into our playgrounds. Some communities love this activity (like Sweetwater, TX for Rattlesnake Gravel Grind next weekend). In that case, the event is a fundraiser for the local fire department, and locals turn out to support it and partake in the activities. The same cannot be said for all races, and in this case, it felt like we were deciding to be as burdensome as possible on the local community at a time when they needed the opposite: help.

I get the disappointment from the hype and energy building up in the months before the first big race, but I know this sport is very selfish. Riders focus on themselves: nutrition, training, recovery, and everything else that goes into being fast. It’s easy coming from 10 hours away, dropping in, and then skipping town when it’s all over, leaving only tyre tracks and dirt-stained towels in hotel rooms.

I am guilty of this. Every racer is. At the end of the day, though, this situation took it beyond individual selfishness to that of a collective. The entire Mid South community was being selfish. Having the backup plan be “an epic party” in Stillwater while locals (and racers) were left homeless was incomprehensible.

I wish they had made the obvious call earlier, freeing officials from talking with the race promoter to focusing on evacuating people and saving homes.

As Logan Jones-Wilkins said, the race promoters wanted to “fight it with positivity.” They wanted the positivity and their yearly saying that “together, we are heavy” to outweigh the reality of the situation. That does not work.

I have loved this race, but I can’t help but think that the sweet taste of it will be bitter after this for locals, racers, and everyone else connected to the event.

The final announcement:

Some good thoughts: