goodnessgravel Mogo | The creme de la creme of Eurobodalla gravel

Flow Mountain Bike acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Mogo and the surrounding area, the Yuin peoples. We recognise their connection to lands, waters and communities and pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.

A short drive from the crystalline waters and shock-white sands of Batemans Bay, the beautiful town of Mogo sits flanked by rolling hills straight out of an Australiana painting. The town has just hosted the third stop of the goodnessgravel Fondo – and while it may not be a race, it may just be one of the most fun days out on dirt. That fun-first approach has seen goodnessgravel solidified as a bit of a household name in the rapid rolling gravel sector, and their events continue to sell out for those in the know.

Participants had the choice between three routes winding through the beautiful NSW countryside, with the longest at 130km of premium gravel riders have come to love across all goodnessgravel events. Pair that distance with a not insignificant 2820m of climbing, and you get an idea of the stunning day out enjoyed by riders over the weekend.

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New event weekend, new riders and more e-Bikes

Organiser Will Levy was a little hesitant about hosting the event later than usual, but the numbers don’t lie.

“We had 230 registered riders, meaning we were up on last year, which is great, especially being in July,” he says.

This year’s Mogo outing saw ten riders hailing from the Eurobodalla Shire, while many had come from interstate.

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Finishing with a warm tailwind

“We had 61 riders from Canberra alone, and most of them were relieved to see how warm it was on the startline compared to a morning back home,” Levy said.

Warm indeed, considering we’re well into the winter months — but cool enough at 12° on the start line for riders to opt for winter clothing for the first leg, ditching jackets and gloves in Nelligan with the event’s bag-drop staff who were on hand to help ferry participant’s items. With 8% of entries accounted for by e-MTB and e-Gravel riders (up 2% from 2023), some even had spare batteries ferried to the next aid staion—pure gravel luxury.

Temperature aside, the weather Gods made sure there was something of a sting in the tail — with wind gusts up to 60kph keeping riders on their toes, pushing them mercifully back into Mogo for the final stretch after a long day in the saddle.

goodnessgravel put strong emphasis on inclusivity, and happily see a steady increase in women and younger riders taking part in their events each year.

“Twenty per cent of riders were women this year, which is great to see,” Levy said.

The youngest participant at just 11 years old went on to complete the 44km Piccolo loop, while two septuagenarian powerhouses completed the full route.

Those familiar with the lore of their events know well the numbering convention, where riders receive digits for life based across all rides, and hunting for those single-digit number plates becomes something of a sport to other riders in attendance. To everyone’s delight, race-plate number six lined up in Mogo, on pinned to a chap called Mal’s machine — his seventh event appearance at goodnessgravel. At the other end of the scale, numbers have reached the 1400’s since its inception in 2021.

Hot mix gravel

All riders, whether taking part in the 44km, 75km, or the full 130km loop, would find the (usually) quiet town of Nelligan as their first stop. They were greeted warmly with a live band and, potentially more importantly, doughnuts.

Despite the course placing riders well out in the bonafide boonies, they were never truly alone. Five patrolling motorbikes, two ambulance crews, a roaming mechanic, and the essential sag wagon were on hand to repair bikes or bodies. Fortunately, riders avoided any run-ins with the wild pigs spotted by Levy and the team performing their route reccy days prior. Nor were any swept away by the low tidal water crossing, which had calmed after significant rainfall leading into the event.

In keeping with their familial style, the team had the good graces to send out a pre-event email encouraging riders to “bring spare wool socks!” in case the waters were up on the day.

If you’re like us, and you wince a little at the sight of a pile of snipped, sad zip ties after an event, goodnessgravel may just have the antidote.

“All the rider cards are handmade and dipped in beeswax, so they’re sustainable, and people attach them to their handlebars with twine. We don’t give out zip-ties”, announced Levy, with the kind of excitement for sustainability that’s music to the ears.

The course is estimated to have subjected riders to just 2% of blacktop, with the remainder described playfully as ‘Hot Mix Gravel,’ and a distinct lack of motorists.

“I think people were just pumped on, how few cars there were out there — it’s just the beauty of being out in nature in such an incredible area,” Levy said.

Stunning views aside, and despite the event maintaining the not a race ethos, the full 130km loop is no joke.

Cloudy with a chance of pizza shapes

In exchange for donations to the Bateman’s Bay MTB club, the event engaged 24 keen volunteers, without whom Will assures their events could not take place. From manning the crucial race finish sausage sizzle or showering riders in Pizza Shapes and pikelets, to marshalling spots across the sprawling course. These fine folk are the backbone of any such event, and it’s great to see local clubs benefiting from their dedication.
So what’s next for goodnessgravel? Beyond a current roster of four wildly popular event venues in Gundy, Mogo, Glen Innes and Orange, there’s a mysterious new entrant on the horizon.

“I can’t reveal it just yet, but do enough digging in our socials, and you might just work out where we’re hoping to host the next event”, Levy mentions with a whisper.

And though we can’t tell you where it is, suffice to say there is so good(ness) gravel involved. Stay tuned for more exceptional eventing from the goodnessgravel team, and maybe consider signing up goodnessgravel Gundy in September or the gravel tour of Tasmania in November. You can’t tell us that doesn’t sound incredible! Head to the goodnessgravel website for more.

Photos: Outer Image Collective