Bicycling USA – July 2019

ISSUE 5 • BICYCLING.COM 87

Co

urt

esy

After getting a few raw

spots during my first

DK200, I switched to a

Fabric ALM Shallow

Profile saddle, which

not only fits me perfectly,

but also employs carbon

leaf spring rails to take

the edge off harsh terrain.

Oh, and I swear by Okole

Stuff Chamois Oint-

ment, which never lets

me down.

Kansas weather is like a

moody teenager. It could

be 58 degrees or 88. It may

rain or hail. There could

be 30 mph winds. Or you

could have all of the above

between checkpoints 1 and

3. And if the skies crack
   open and dump, there’s no
   place to duck and cover.
   With storms in the fore-
   cast, I stashed my whisper-
   light, foul-weather defying
   Gore-Tex SHAKEDRY
   Bike Jacket.

At DK200, even if you’re

not going hard, you’re

constantly turning the

cranks and burning energy.

It can be ungodly hot and

dusty. Even some of the top

riders use hydration packs.

I opted for two bottles on

my bike and a BackBottle

in my jersey—but I was

lucky there were a few

kind-hearted locals were

handing out water between

checkpoints. Know the dis-

tance to the next fill-up and

carry more than enough to

get you to each one.

The DK200 course is only

loosely marked. Follow the

cue sheet and upload the

file to a bike computer.

Another pro tip: Pack

a portable charger (and

cable). If you’re out there

longer than expected, and

your computer dies, you

not only have a Strava fail,

but you’re also potentially

lost, and getting lost

during DK200 is a quick

way to DNF.

DK200 is held in the Flint

Hills of Kansas. Flint was

used to make arrowheads,

so you can guess what it

does to tires, I rode Don-

nelly’s first tubeless-ready

tire—the fast-rolling X’Plor

MSO 36mm tire. The soft

rubber tread felt supple

on the hard pack while the

knobs delivered traction

when the terrain turned

loose. I clocked a few

square edges without inci-

dent and suffered not so

much as a pinhole. But pack

plenty of tubes just in case.

BY SELENE YEAGER

BE PREPARED

FOR ALL THE

WEATHER

COVER

YOUR

BEHIND

FOOLPROOF

YOUR NAV

CHOOSE

YOUR TIRES

CAREFULLY

CARRY

ENOUGH

FOOD AND

FLUID