Iowa Gravel Series

Chris McQueen: Hey everyone. Welcome back to the Iowa Gravel Series Podium podcast. I’m your host, Chris McQueen. We have an amazing guest today: Ian Frink. Ian placed third in the 50k at the Waukon 100 in 2024. I believe it was his first race with us this season. We haven’t chatted much at all, so this will be a wonderful conversation to get to know each other and learn a little bit about Ian and how he got into gravel racing. Ian, thanks for being here.

Ian Frink: Chris, thanks for having me and thanks for all you do to promote gravel racing and cycling throughout Iowa. What you’ve been building is really special; it’s a big part of the community.

Chris McQueen: Thank you. It doesn’t happen without folks like you signing up for these things and saying, “This is how I want to spend my Saturday morning.” Did I get your name right? I stumbled over it earlier; I was like, “Oh, shoot.”

Ian Frink: Yes, you nailed it.

Chris McQueen: I usually try to ask and make sure I get everybody’s name beforehand. Oops, I messed this thing up; this very well might be the theme of this episode, given some of the things that happened at Waukon, but I’m sure we’ll get into that. Ian, I’d love to start with who you are, where you’re living, and how you got into cycling. Tell me about your cycling experience.

Ian Frink: I live in Bettendorf, Iowa, and work in Rock Island, Illinois, so I’m here in the Quad Cities. I grew up here and was active early on; I ran a lot of cross country and track in high school and college. Eventually, my body wore out a little bit from running. I think this happens to a lot of people who transition to cycling. I bought my first road bike when I turned 40. I’m 52 now, so that was 12 years ago. Over time, I gravitated more to the gravel side of things and have really enjoyed that. I’ve been riding a gravel bike for six or seven years and entering races for the past three or four years. This is where I’m at right now, and I really enjoy it.

Chris McQueen: Wow, that’s awesome. Coming into it at 40…we have to go a little bit back in time because I have to assume that getting on a bike at 40 was not the first time you got on a bike. Do you have memories of your first time riding bikes? Did you ride bikes at all? Maybe I’m wrong; maybe 40 was the first time you ever got on a bike?

Ian Frink: No. Riding a bike was just a mode of transportation for me before. Everybody bikes everywhere when they’re kids–biking to school, all around town. When I was in college, parking was at a premium on campus, so I would bike everywhere. That was fun. I got away from it after a while and probably wasn’t on a bike from my late 20s until I turned 40, honestly. My main activity was running; I was busy with life and hadn’t gotten back to it until then.

Chris McQueen: What was it like getting into the bike scene for you? Did you have a buddy who helped you out with the equipment thing, or did you jump in? What was your process like?

Ian Frink: I talked to a few people. I was always pretty fit, then in my late 30s, a little out of shape. Forty is a big mark that a lot of people notice. I started talking to some folks who were into cycling, just some guys in my neighborhood, and ended up buying that first bike. I don’t do a ton of group rides; I got into it on my own. It’s a release for me, a stress reliever. Sometimes biking on my own is therapeutic. After a long week at work or a long day, you can unwind and still get some exercise. That’s the value it had initially. I got into a routine, set some mileage goals, and over the years, became pretty avid. I have a lot of support from my wife and son; they understand it’s a good outlet for me.

Chris McQueen: A lot of cyclists will say cycling is expensive–there’s equipment, apparel, gear, and GPS–it can add up. But a lot of folks will say it’s cheaper than a therapist, and you can do both. That’s totally fine, as well. Cycling for me has always been the place where I can have good conversations, often just with myself, and clear my head. Are you one of those folks who has a set route, or do you explore? What’s your style?

Ian Frink: I’ll explore on the gravel roads quite a bit. I live in Bettendorf, and a mile or two north of me, there are probably 100 miles of gravel roads. I’m pretty familiar with all those paths and feel fortunate to have that, where I can get out for 90 minutes and maybe just see a few cars. When it comes to riding on the roads, I’m more selective with the routes I choose for safety. I have a Wahoo and a smart trainer, so I ride that quite a bit, especially this time of year when it’s dark at 4:30, and you still want to get a workout in.

Chris McQueen: How long have you been doing Wahoo? I did Wahoo for a little while. I stopped doing Wahoo because I would end up racing too much. Every one of my workouts ended up being tempo, higher, whatever. I would get caught up in it too much, so I switched to TrainerRoad for most of my stuff. I do love Wahoo and Alp to Swift. When they changed the point system and redid the levels, what was that experience for you?

Ian Frink: The levels were funny. It seemed like it was a slow progression for a while, and then the ratings changed, so you leveled up faster. That was interesting. I don’t pay too much attention to that, but you notice it. Especially this time of year, I start jumping in some of the races. They give you an assignment, and it’s fun. It breaks things up. It’s amazing to me; sometimes, you do get caught up in it and do a 20 or 30-minute race and just be smoked at the end of it. You do get caught up in it, but it beats the alternative of just staring at a wall or watching a game on TV.

Chris McQueen: What’s the most fun you have with it? Wahoo probably isn’t as fun as getting out and exploring the area. What keeps you coming back to Wahoo? Is it the racing?

Ian Frink: I think it’s easy. It’s an easy thing to do; I go to my basement. I try not to pick up my phone when I’m biking, but if something is going on, I can check it. I know it sounds lame, but it’s a good quick workout. The weather’s the same in my basement every single time. I don’t have to layer up and don’t have to worry about cars, wind, or rain. It’s a good, easy alternative. That said, I prefer to be outside, obviously–on gravel whenever I can.

Chris McQueen: You said you were doing a little more racing. Are you structuring your plans and workouts around fitness goals? Were you aiming for the podium in your training? What tends to be the focus of your training–more structured or purely fitness?

Ian Frink: I’d say it’s primarily fitness. I’ve done some structured training and workouts. I’m a competitive person, but getting on the podium is rare. I was on a master’s podium for the win early this year and then third in your race. Other than that, I’m usually in that 10th to 15th spot. I like racing and being competitive. I like trying to hang on to the group; if you fall off the back, you try to reconnect and watch how things develop as the race goes on. The primary thing is probably fitness, wellness, my sanity–this release I talked about. I’ve always been competitive, back to junior high school. Once you have that in you, it’s hard to let go.

Chris McQueen: It’s hard to…I grew up with an anti-competitiveness outlook. I got this from my grandfather through my dad. For me now, being a race director, I see how much value there is in having a good, healthy, competitive sportsmanship outlook on life. Competition is good. We live in a competitive society, and that’s not a bad thing. I have a deep regard for those who come with strong competitive zeal. I could tell you a story about my wife and how much I’ve come to appreciate her competitive zeal, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Can you tell me a little bit about your early success with that spark that maybe happened with you realizing you’re competitive, but you can compete and enjoy it?

Ian Frink: I got in better shape and upped my mileage four or five years ago. My goal has always been 10,000 miles a year. I haven’t hit that every year, but that’s always the goal. After I did that, I was doing some of the races close by–some in Iowa City. They have a time trial series. I do the breakaway race, the non-arrow. I’ve done 15 gravel races now, primarily with Big River on this side of the state, and now your event up in Waukon. I enjoy both series because they cater to the competitive folks, the folks in the middle who are trying to get a good hard workout and ride in groups, and then those just having fun. I think that’s the gravel community, where you have that bond from the first folks across the line to the last. Everyone’s hanging out, watching everyone come in and finish. I really did enjoy that Waukon race with the sweeping bends through the river valley. The gravel and the scenery are beautiful. It’s different from anything else in eastern Iowa. I took a bad line early on, dropped my chain, and went down. I got a little scratched up, but it was my fault. I hadn’t paid attention to the course and came into a B-road pretty early.

Chris McQueen: Was it that first B-road with the big dip and the rock, or was it later on?

Ian Frink: It was four or five miles into the race, pretty early. It was all on me, and I didn’t affect anyone else, so I felt good about that. But then I spent from that point all the way up to the last mile riding by myself, trying to reel in the guys ahead of me. It was fun. I was pushing myself but also trying to take in the river valley and the people fishing. You threw in a few challenging hills.

Chris McQueen: I try not to put all the challenging hills in, but hopefully, there’s enough to keep it interesting. Did you go into that race trying to keep…it sounds like you always try to stay on to a group because that’s a lot more fun. Did you go into it looking around at the field? Did you know who might be there, or were you going with the flow?

Ian Frink: There was one guy, Joe Taber, who I know from the Quad Cities. We’re somewhat close to each other. He’s probably beaten me more than I’d beaten him, but I knew Joe, and I didn’t know anyone else in the race. I tried to gauge off of him, but he ended up breaking away. He had to be at least two minutes ahead of me at the end. Everyone else was new to me. I enjoyed it. I hung out afterward, talked to a few folks, met some new people, and it’s always fun to share stories and talk about the course and the day. Everyone had positive things to say about the course. It was scenic and challenging.

Chris McQueen: Had you ever ridden up there before? Is that your first time in the Driftless Hills?

Ian Frink: I’ve been to Decorah before, but I’ve never ridden up there. The event worked well for our schedule, so I decided to give it a shot. It was cool. It was laid out well and well thought through.

Chris McQueen: You mentioned you were part of a bike club. What bike club are you part of?

Ian Frink: I ride with the Quad City Bike Club, the overall group here in our area. I ride with the Fitwave team, with a lot of guys doing the Big River Series. That’s a cool team because we have everything from a guy who’s 16 now to some guys in their mid-50s. They’re all competitive and good guys. There are a few informal group rides that we have here on weeknights. I try to get out and do those. I usually ride from a local brewery or bike shops. The community is growing. I’d say at least 50 people in the Quad Cities are riding gravel on a serious and regular basis. It wasn’t like that five or six years ago.

Chris McQueen: I’ve been a big fan of what Luke is doing with Big River. I’m on the far west end of Iowa, so getting to the other side of Iowa is rare. I’ve been thinking about trying to get on more races that are not my own this year. It gets difficult when you have seven races of your own that you have to be at. What are your goals for next year’s race schedule?

Ian Frink: Nothing too specific. I’m probably staying within an hour or two of here, which would be the Big River Series or anything in eastern Iowa. We’ll have to see how the schedule lines up. Our son’s a senior in high school and he’s into sports, so we’ll work around his schedule because that’s the priority. I want to be able to attend those things. I’ll definitely try to sign up for half a dozen events if possible and get out there and get after it.

Chris McQueen: No stated race you’re looking at? CORE four is out there in that area. Is that something you’ve done or would be interested in?

Ian Frink: I’ve talked to some folks who have done that, and they speak highly of it. It sounds super challenging, especially if you’re trying to race it all the way through. I would like to get to the point where I’m doing longer events. I’ve only done a couple of 100ks; I primarily do the 50k. I’ve got a busy work schedule, too, so there are a lot of moving parts, but I’m going to make it work and try to get out to as much as I can.

Chris McQueen: There’s always a lot to juggle. The Iowa Gravel Series…we try to make it the busy person’s easy-to-get-on-the-race-on-the-Saturday-morning event. You have to get up earlier to get to these things because we start them early so everyone can be back by lunch. I love that we have an opportunity to gather and get to know people and extend our network of people in gravel. If there were one thing you could change inside the gravel world, is there anything where you’re like, “If I could magic wand this away, it would be fantastic?”

Ian Frink: Put less rock down on county roads sometimes. Scott County puts a lot of rock down, so sometimes you can turn on a road and go from 17 or 18 miles an hour down to 13. I think your series and Big River are on to something with the events. Luke has put on a couple of events in Illinois, which opens up opportunities for people from the Chicago suburbs. I prefer the gravel over the other forms of cycling at this point. Anything I would change is beyond my control–dogs chasing me or the thick rock. Those are my two pet peeves.

Chris McQueen: The eastern side of Iowa tends to be flatter, so to get your cardio in, you should get more dogs chasing you. That really helps give you that need to step it up. Do you have a go-to method? Are you a squirt bottle squirter, or do you yell at them? What’s your method for dogs? Growing up, I mostly mountain biked in the West, and dogs weren’t a problem until I came to the Midwest. I’m curious about the tactics people are using.

Ian Frink: I try to go as fast as I can. Fortunately, I haven’t been chased up a hill yet. I think that might spell the end of me. I usually try to say something to them. In all seriousness, it’s dangerous for the dog and the rider. You don’t want to hit the dog and cause harm, and it’s dangerous for us as we’re riding because we don’t want a dog bite, and we don’t want to go down. I’ve seen it in a gravel race, too, where it’s more serious because you have a big group of people. I don’t know what the answer is to that.

Chris McQueen: My technique does not work for a lot of people, unfortunately, but I was blessed with a pretty serious dad voice. I can put out a strong “No!” really loud, and that usually stops dogs in their tracks. But not all of them. There have been times where I use my strong voice, and I’m like, “Oh, crud, I’m out of breath. I didn’t have enough to run.” I don’t know what the solution is.