Capitol Peak Challenge

There’s a mountain in Washington that doesn’t care who you are.

It doesn’t care how many watts you can hold, what bike you ride, where you finish, or what you post. It doesn’t care if you’ve won before—or if you’re showing up afraid. Capitol Peak doesn’t choose favorites. It reveals character.

This is the Capitol Peak Challenge.

A mountain-sized gravel test in Washington’s Capitol State Forest—built on grit, story, and progression. It’s not just a race. It’s a return to why we ride: pushing limits together, finding joy in hard things, and earning something real from the mountains.

One event. Three peaks. Your choice is when the day ends.

This isn’t a gravel event you check off once and move on from. This is a challenge you return to—again and again—because it changes with you. Some years you show up hungry. Some years humbled. Some years healing. But you always show up—because this mountain keeps calling, and you’ve got more to

How It Works

Everyone rolls out together for Peak 1 (~38 miles), a shared climb to the summit of Capitol Peak and back to Base Camp. This first lap is not a race. It’s social, steady, and meant to bring riders together for a shared mountain experience. At the summit, every rider earns their first Passport Stamp—the start of their Capitol Peak Challenge journey.

Back at Base Camp, the trail forks:

You choose your day:

✅ Peak 1 Finisher – Call it a day after a huge 38-mile effort and celebrate at Base Camp with a stamp you’ve truly earned.

🔥 Peak 2 Competitor – Check in, roll back out, and now the clock is running. The mountain stops being friendly and starts demanding effort. From here, race timing begins.

⚡ Peak 3 Legend – The full test. Complete Peak 2, then push deeper for a brutal but beautiful third peak loop and earn all three stamps in your passport.

Race Timing Format

Once you begin Peak 2, race timing officially starts. Riders launch from Base Camp on a new loop back up to the peak and face the signature climb of the Capitol Peak Challenge:
The Cap-7K Climb (aka Puke Hill) — 4 miles and 1,600 feet of steep gravel honesty to the summit of Capitol Peak.

This climb features an enduro-style time segment—the only difference is it’s an UPHILL segment. You’ll hit timing mats at the bottom and again at the summit. Fastest segment times of the day earn KOM/QOM/NBOM honors and go down in event history.

The Passport Tradition

Every time you summit Capitol Peak, your Passport is stamped. Peak by peak, year by year, your passport becomes a record of effort, growth, resilience—and the story you’re building with this mountain. No two years will ever feel the same—but the challenge stays true.

Each rider receives a Capitol Peak Challenge Passport — a pocket-sized Write-In-The-Rain field booklet designed to survive real mountain weather. Inside, each page documents a single year of your journey. You’ll log:

• Peak stamps (1, 2, or 3 per year)

• Cap-7K segment time(s)

• Peak 1, Peak 2, or Peak 3 finishing times

• Weather and trail conditions

• Gear setups

• Personal notes

• Riders you shared the day with

• Lessons learned + goals for next year

Your passport becomes more than memorabilia — it's progress in your hands. It’s proof of commitment. It’s a tradition. And over time, it will tell the story of who you became on the mountain.

You don’t collect these stamps. You earn them.

Choose Your Challenge

Every rider receives a Capitol Peak Passport to collect stamps year after year. Same mountain. Same challenge. Your story evolves—return stronger, finish higher, or add a new peak to your journey.

Peak One – The Gathering Ride

38 mi - 4,088 ft of climbing
Everyone begins together. We climb. We talk. We suffer. We laugh. We find rhythm. We reach the summit of Peak One — not to win, but to belong. That first stamp in the Peak Passport doesn't measure time. It marks commitment.

Peak Two – The Turning Point - Race

An additional 30.8 mi - 4,263 ft of climbing — Total for the day: 68.8 mi - 6,510 ft of climbing
At basecamp, lines get drawn—not between riders, but within them. Some will choose to be done. Others will choose more. When you roll back out, it’s quiet. It gets real here. This is where the race within yourself begins.

Peak Two + Three – The Reckoning - Race

An additional 48.6 mi - 6,510 ft of climbing — Total for the day: 87.5 mi - 10,592 ft of climbing
No playlists. No crowds. No easy way out. Just you and the climb—again. Same mountain. Different soul. If Peak One shows you who you are, Peak Three shows you who you can become.

What this is

✅ A test you cannot fake
✅ A return to something real
✅ A place to ride beside legends and feel like you belong
✅ A tradition that remembers effort—not ego
✅ A story you’ll tell when someone asks, “Why do you ride?”

This is for the riders who believe toughness isn’t a personality—it’s a practice. For people who know you don’t build resilience scrolling—you build it sweating. Grinding. Choosing forward. For riders who think “impossible” is just a time checkpoint.

What this is NOT

✖️ Not a corporate circus
✖️ Not a trend-chasing hype fest
✖️ Not a “maybe someday” ride
✖️ Not about flexing — it’s about finishing what you came for

The Promise

We’ll give you a community that rides hard and respects harder. Dirt worth bleeding for. Aid stations that feel like campfires. A finish line that feels like home. And a reason to return next year.

Because around here—grit is a tradition.

Capitol Peak Challenge
The Spirit of the Gravel. The Spirit of the Forest.
Earn your peaks. Earn your stamp. Return to the mountain.

This inaugural gravel event should raise the Spirit of Gravel from the dead and into each riders soul! Come spend some time with friends, make some new ones along the way, and challenge yourself. Being out on bikes with friends is what it’s all about. And when you leave and we say “See you next year!” Know that we honestly mean it and look forward to seeing you all again as you keep evolving in your quest to embody the Spirit of the Gravel and their partner the Spirit of the Forest!