Boulder Roubaix
A biannual road classic near Boulder that borrows its Belgian namesake's grit, adding a punishing gravel sector to a fast 30-mile circuit.
The vibe
Cobbled classic, Colorado style
Boulder Roubaix borrows its name and its personality from the real Paris-Roubaix — a road race that turns mean the moment the pavement runs out. The 30-mile circuit spends most of its time on smooth Boulder County tarmac before dropping riders onto a gravel sector that separates the prepared from the hopeful.
It’s short enough to go hard the whole way and technical enough that bike handling matters as much as watts. Road bikes with a slightly wider tire clearance have the edge here — this isn’t a gravel race so much as a road race that occasionally forgets it’s paved.
Boulder’s cycling infrastructure makes race day logistics easy, and the town’s coffee shops and breweries are a five-minute pedal from most finish areas if you want to debrief with your legs still buzzing.