Last weekend, the Marly Grav gravel extravaganza took place in Valkenburg in the south of The Netherlands. Saturday featured a gravel sportive and Sunday was reserved for the UCI Gravel Race. With a combination of social rides, planned activities and the largest qualifier for the UCI gravel world championships to be held so far in 2025, it was a weekend to remember. Frank van Herten from Cycloworld.cc was there to take in the action and sent in this ride report. 

Participants at Marly Grav 2025 didn’t just get a race, but a full-blown gravel festival which included a 135 km tour ride on Saturday. Music, local culinary treats and a bike expo with top gear on display completed the weekend. Start and finish were located at the Shimano Experience Center in Valkenburg — a perfect venue for the weekend.

Lots of visitors made the most of the summer-like weather and arrived on the Friday. There was a packed schedule for anyone wanting to make a weekend of it - a Ridley bikepacking workshop, custom bike build sessions, a tech workshop, a recon ride with the Liv Cycling team, a nutrition session, the Marly Grav Café Live chat-show and the evening was rounded off with the Canyon Pub Quiz. 

Saturday dawned with perfect weather again and offered participants the chance to enter the Marly Grav Fest. Riders had a choice of two route lengths – either 85 km or 135 km, both options taking riders out into the countryside around Valkenburg and showcasing the amazing riding that this area has to offer.  With well-stocked feed stations, mechanical and medical assistance, an included lunch of frietje zuurvlees (French fries served with local beef stew) and a free Kwaremont beer for each rider when they finished, the Marly Grav Fest was a big success.

Image courtesy of Koen Hermsen

Saturday wasn’t just about the adults though. Some of the loudest cheers came from the free children’s races. Watching some of the stars of the future take on the lakeside course put huge smiles on the faces of spectators and competitors alike. Outside of the riding, the Bike Expo was in full swing all day and there were workshops from Shimano, Vittoria and Mindful Fietsen. The day’s activities were rounded off with a tombola and a Saturday night Marly Grav Café Live.

With all the warm-up days successfully completed, Sunday saw 2500 of the world’s best gravel racers line up on the start line for the UCI Marly Grav Race. With places available at the 2025 UCI Gravel World Championships for the fastest 25% in each age group, the races were always going to be hotly contested and it proved to be the case.

Image courtesy of Leon Van Bon

The UCI Gravel Race offered two distances - 100 km and 160 km. Both routes had been completely revamped and expanded compared to last year, when the event was called Gravel Fondo Limburg. The course took riders through the hilly South Limburg region, featuring marl roads, sunken lanes, punchy climbs and fast descents. A standout moment was the passage through the Valkenburg Municipal Cave – certainly a unique feature among UCI gravel races!

The dry and warm weather made for lots of dust and added difficulty. Especially in the open sections with full sun, the going got tough. Everyone crossed the finish line looking like coal miners, which suited the gravel theme perfectly.

Images courtesy of Leon Van Bon

A new feature this year was the bottle service during the race – Elite bottles pre-filled with water or sports drinks were handed out by volunteers along the route.

The field of participants was impressive. Professionals, ex-professionals and ambitious amateurs started together. Well-known names from the cycling world gave the race extra shine. The elite men started first, followed by the age categories with only 2 minutes interval. That turned out to be a bit too little for this technical course. After 15 kilometres, a huge traffic jam arose on a single track climb of 16%. In some cases, participants had to wait up to 20 minutes. Some riders decided - understandably - to cut off a piece to get around the traffic jam. According to the organisation, it is certain that all riders who have reached the podium have ridden the entire route.

The World Gravel Championships will also take place in South Limburg this year, but on a different course. Not Valkenburg, but a more northerly route will be created. There are absolute concerns among participants about possible traffic jams and the suitability of the new course, despite the fact that it is not yet known. Previous editions of the World Gravel Championship were criticised both for the high asphalt content and their overly-technical character. However, we hear from different sides that no one has to worry about the route for 2025. We rely on that.

Images courtesy of Koen Hermsen

The Marly Grav weekend 2025 was a massive success. The combination of festival and UCI gravel race seemed to be super popular with both participants and spectators. The UCI gravel race offered a tough course, a strong field and a fantastic vibe. South Limburg looks ready to take centre-stage in the world of gravel cycling!