National elite team Twenty24, with Jen Luebke, Natalia Franco, and Shayna Powless, will compete in the Unbound Gravel in Emporia, Kansas.The three riders making their debut in the 200-mile race, after a course preview on Friday Cycling News interviewed the three riders.

The trio rode part of the route on a 25-mile training ride to get an idea of what to expect in Saturday's key event. 35-year-old Luebke, who finished third overall in this year's Gorges Gravel Grinder, had an idea of what it would be like to ride gravel in a large group. He said he had an image of what it would be like to run gravel in a large group.

"When you run in a big group, you can't see the road and you don't know which side you should be on. 'So that was one of the things I was thinking about when I was running today. Then I was also surprised at how good the road conditions were. We'll be riding on some of the more stout and hard parts of the course, like the far north side of the course. We didn't see places like that near the town of Emporia, which is far from the course.

Franco, 25, said he paid attention to the big turns and zigzags along the route in order to maintain a good position early in the race.

"You probably have to be in a good position because the bigger the group, the faster you go. Just by being in a good position you might avoid crashing or losing a wheel in a crosswind. But I think we handled today's turn of events pretty well," Franco said.

The 27-year-old Powles has won the Southeast Gravel and True Grit Gravel this year. She agreed that the conditions were optimal, hard-pack gravel, and that she was looking forward to the technical sections later in the 200-mile race, but for the most part the route was what she expected.

"I watched YouTube videos and looked at pictures of people who had raced here in the past, and it looked just like what I saw in the videos and pictures. It was exactly what I expected."

While Twenty24 supports an elite women's team, it also focuses on developing the top junior riders in North America. the 10-rider team will be competing this season in esport, gravel races, USA Cycling Pro Road Tour events as its focus.

Lübke said he has been working on keeping power on washboard surfaces in preparation for gravel events. 'Just keep pedaling,' he said. So I'm hoping that will help on the chunky, hard parts later in the course." The hard, hard gravel conditions we've been riding in Oregon will work to our advantage in the second half of Saturday."

Luebke said he plans to ride conservatively in the 200-mile race, as his strength is in the last 100 miles. Franco, on the other hand, said he would keep a steady pace throughout the competition

and that he would be able to run at a more conservative pace during the race. I think that will help me over this long distance," Franco said.

Powles said that with its diesel-like power, it would be able to perform well in long gravel races such as the Unbound. Said Powles, "It can keep a steady pace, especially in long gravel races." [On] short climbs and punchy climbs, it has punchy power. I think punchy power also helps early on, especially when you're trying to stick around and make good choices near the front."