Roam & Reach

Every year, the gravel cycling world turns its attention toward Emporia, Kansas.

Thousands of riders from around the world travel to Unbound Gravel. The event attracts roughly 5,000 participants and generates millions of dollars in economic activity for the community. For a few days each year, Emporia becomes the center of the gravel universe.

It’s an impressive success story.

But I think many rural communities are asking the wrong question.

The question isn’t, “How do we become the next Emporia?”
The better question might be, “What is our version of Dufur?”

Rural Communities Don’t Need the Next Unbound. They Need Their Own Version of Dufur. - Sean Benesh What can rural communities learn from Dufur, Oregon and the Gorge Gravel race? Explore how cycling events, tourism, and community partnerships can create new economic opportunities.

Small towns don’t need to become the next Aspen or Moab to create momentum.

Sometimes it starts with a gravel race, a trail system, or a weekend event that gives people a reason to show up, explore, and come back.

The bigger opportunity? Learning how to turn those experiences into long-term visibility through storytelling, content, and community.

Small towns understand the immediate economic impact of events like bike races. Hotels fill up. Restaurants get busy. Coffee shops see a rush of customers.

But there’s another layer of value many communities still overlook: visibility.

Every cycling event generates thousands of photos, videos, stories, recap posts, and conversations online. Riders become storytellers, and social media becomes tourism marketing.

In this new article, I explore how cycling events create both economic impact and Earned Media Value (EMV), why influencer-style storytelling matters, and why content is now part of a town’s tourism infrastructure.

How Cycling Events Create Economic Impact and Tourism Visibility for Small Towns - Sean Benesh Discover how cycling events create economic impact, tourism visibility, and Earned Media Value (EMV) for small towns through storytelling, social media, and organic content.

Every race has a personality.

That's because behind every race is a race director and promoter, each with their own personality ... serious, goofy, fun-loving, quirky, snarky, etc.

You can feel it on race day. Now let that show up on social media.