Rays of Light!

Note the Heck of the North backing on one of the light boxes. Who would have dreamed?

Amazing the times we live in. What light and energy can do for someone. How a relatively small group of people, their energy and passion and compassion, can help improve lives thousands of miles away.

Our friend Dave Nonnemacher of Duluth has been one of the key drivers of this simple yet unbelievably complex project, Ray of Life. In August, we helped build four light boxes. Running low on the plastic backing needed for the light board, I repurposed an old Heck sign. It worked perfectly. That box, pictured above by pure luck, is now in the hands of someone in Ukraine.

Dave writes, “A long trip: from the warehouse of Hand to Hand Logistics, located in Isanti MN, to the port of Gdynia Poland, delayed at the Poland-Ukraine border due to a trucker's strike during the overland journey to Kotsyubinsky Ukraine; gathered in and then delivered to the Mariupol Chaplain's Battalion in Zaporizhzhia Ukraine by a faithful friend. Many Ray of Life kits have been distributed in the city of Zaporizhzhia and many more will be delivered to cities and villages by the faithful men and women of the Mariupol Chaplain's Battalion, who go where others don't. 118 Ray of Life kits and 100 VF100 water filters, assembled by church members and individuals in Minnesota, Iowa, West Virginia and Michigan were included in shipment #1. Shipment #2 is on its way to Ukraine, currently on a boat in the Atlantic. 

I was deeply moved by Dave’s work and the courage and compassion of those making the deliveries a reality. All I can say is thank you for your efforts.

Some Lessons from Out West

Fishing the Elk River, west of Steamboat. Photo Jeremy Kershaw

Maybe some of you have started following this story from Routt county and the SBT GRVL event, Steamboat, Colorado.

I have started seeing more commentary about it from some prominent voices in the world of gravel cycling. I was specially interested in the conflict for a few reasons.

My family and I were visiting friends in Steamboat this Summer, in fact, just days before the SBT GRVL event. A friend who lives in Steamboat and we rode a gravel route that is used in the race. We also hired a fly fishing guide that ranches on the same route along the Elk River. We found the course beautiful and the fishing outstanding. Our guide was a retired school teacher and do-it-all rancher who had long historical ties to the county and the land that surrounds the course. He was a joy to spend the day with. We felt lucky to share this part of the country with someone who knew so much about it.

I have obvious other reasons to be interested in this story. Our Heck of the North Productions events take place on rural, often remote and historically diverse parts of Minnesota. We differ from Routt county in some ways, for sure, namely in the ways in which resources are used by people who live here. I also think our routes have fewer residents on course compared to most gravel cyclings events.

I see one of the primary themes of this story centered around the idea of local vs visitor. But I think there are many others issues, too. Ownership vs Occasional Use. Rural vs Urban. Entitlement vs Hospitality. Profit vs Sustainability. Culture vs Culture. Gravel cycling is not immune to societal issues that we sometimes assume are only part of non-sporting life.

I think a lot about our Heck events and how to keep them relevant, unique, sustainable, and respected. I think this story unfolding in Colorado is a good reminder for us to assess how we manage our events here in Northern Minnesota. I also think it’s a very good time for all cyclists to consider and discuss what they want in gravel cycling experiences.

We (Heck of the North Productions) have grown slowly as gravel events go these days. I have faltered numerous times during my years of creating and hosting gravel cycling events. But I am certainly proud of the relationships that have grown in the process of building these events. I am keenly aware of the room for growth we have, too, both from a business perspective as well as a public user of resources on the North Shore of Minnesota.

We welcome feedback about our events and this place we call home. Please send us your thoughts at jeremybkershaw@gmail.com. We look forward to bringing the best gravel events possible this coming season.

Be Graveleer!

Jeremy Kershaw

Registration Begins January 1, 2024

Early morning depart, Day 2, The Wolf Bikepacking Race, Ely MN. Photo Josh Kowaleski

We are excited to remind you about the beginning of registration for all Heck of the North Productions events in 2024. Tomorrow, Monday, January 1 at 0600 is the start! Please access BikeReg registration sites via our Register Buttons at each event’s Registration Page.

We welcome volunteers to register after April 1, 2024. Thank you for considering to be part of the action on our support teams.

Please email Jeremy with any questions. jeremybkershaw@gmail.com.

2024 is the year to be Graveleer!

Our Sponsors

We want to give a final 2023 acknowledgment to our dedicated and awesome Sponsors. As you know, we carefully select businesses to partner with for our events. We love local: Duluth, North Shore, Minnesota and USA based companies. We love the creative and thoughtful products they bring to our races. We love their volunteer spirit and energy. And we appreciate their dedication to cycling and silent sport in general. Please consider them as a go-to business when shopping for your next gear or goodie purchase. Thank you and please consider being part of our 2024 event season!

2023 Gravel for Good

This mural was completed in August 2017 by NSRGNTS (lead artist Votan Ik), with help from over 50 community members who came to assist the artists in finishing the designs on the jingle dress. The mural is located at Gimaajii-Mino-Bimaadizimin (202 W. 2nd Street, Duluth, MN) overlooking our solar rooftop gardens.

Gravel For Good is our way of giving back to local communities. Each organization will receive $500 from Heck of the North Productions.

We are proud to donate to the American Indian Community Housing Organization (AICHO.) In their words: “We started with nothing. Today, we offer an American Indian Community Center, 44 units of permanent supportive housing, a domestic violence emergency shelter, legal advocacy, a climate and cultural resiliency initiative, social enterprise activities, youth programming and an arts and culture initiative. All of our work is anchored in our mission to honor the resiliency of Indigenous people by strengthening communities and centering Indigenous values in all aspects of our work. Our philosophy is that every American Indian person deserves to live in non-violent and non-threatening environment and has the right to be treated with dignity and respect.”

We feel honored to be partnering with New Horizons Foundation and the transformative work being carried out by Dana and Brandi Bates and our local friend, Dave Nonnemacher of Duluth! This year, we are donating toward The Ray of Life solar light project.

We are proud to sponsor the Northwoods Cycling Team in Two Harbors and Lake County. This team will promote local racing, training and cycling education options for all levels of cyclists.

Northwoods Cycling Team at Le Grand du Nord 2023

We will also be donating to the Superior Cycling Association in Grand Marais and Cook county. This organization works to build trail and promote cycling in this beautiful part of the world.

Duluth, Grand Marais, Ely and Two Harbors are fortunate to have strong and growing cycling communities. But more could always be done. We hope to contribute toward making cycling more accessible to all ages and incomes in our region. Thanks for helping out.

-Jeremy Kershaw (founder)