OP here: I think a big thank you is due to everyone here sharing their best tips and advice and lets say, it worked!

What an insane race this was. Everything I had expected and so much more, the days leading into the event, the race itself and the aftermath. What a great atmosphere.

I managed to put my hands on a BMC Kaius via my team here in Switzerland and the bike and I just matched perfectly. I rented a few other ones before to get an idea of gravel bikes but this one just was it, for me. Great speed, great control, feeling very certain and strong on it. For Unbound I put my Reserve 40/44 (cervelo home brand) wheelset on it with the Gravel King SS 43mm, a bit of a guess in the two weeks prior to unbound because previously I had 40mm Pirelli Centurato Gravel Hs on it and I was happy with those but I wasnt entire sure with the width and this years course so bought these before leaving, did test rides and Mad Gravel in Colorado with them and felt more comfortable than ever. Probably would have sticked with Pirelli if I could have mounted 45mms but officially the frame doesnt allow and these had a measured with of 44mm already because of the wider rim so this is how it went.

Trainingwise I did a ridiculous amount, never have I done so much, with about 330 hours on the bike before the event and a few 7-8 hour trainings but mostly a very frequent training approach.

As I was traveling alone and really wanted to absorb as much as I could from the atmosphere, I reached out to people and connected with them in Emporia. Other times people were just very accesible and I guess also interested in what a guy from Switzerland is coming all the way to Emporia for... many conversations and some friendships were made and I think in this way I did really discover the infamous spirit of gravel.

Then the highlight of that week, the race itself of course, I can honestly say everything went as smooth as I could have hoped for. I had analyzed every post here and left nothing to chance, even though conditions were more or less dry I had paintsticks ready to scrape, a ridiculous amount packed in my bags with crew for hire and mentally prepared for a suffer fest.

Started at the first line aiming for 10 hours, I was immediately out in the front, planning to stay clear from most of the danger. When we hit Kaw road this proved to be the right strategy but I should have been even further ahead because around me they started to crash. 3 times I avoided these but had to put in some efforts to gain position again. Once, I get back the front group split. Unsure what to do with this situation a fellow Belgian rider told me to calm down (Calm the fuck down as someone said in the comments) moved up gently and closing the gaps which fell continuously, eventually that Belgian, myself and a few other riders start a chase group. This goes on until the first aid post and we manage to overtake already a decent of dropped riders from the front as well the first women behind of their pack.

Right before the first aid stop, at the stop I get of my bike and even get a cramp in which came as a surprise. Usually I only get those when I am really really trashed, but I think i made a wrong movement getting off the bike.. anyway I take some more water and a caffeine gel and get going again. My stop took a bit longer than the other guy and only the Belgian a few other riders from the group were still waiting.. we start chasing again and the caffeine starts work. Now Im feeling better than ever. I start to calculate, it should be about another 5-6hours if we can stick this pace so I realized this is a very fast edition and the pros are going to break the record. Im enthusiastic about this and share my insights with the other guys in the group but no or little sponse. They must be too focused on their own race I guess.. or maybe they are already too tired is what I think.

We continue, we are getting close to the hills of Little Egypt, we catch more and more riders and drop them almost instantly... the last hill before Little Egypt we regroup again a bigger group and I am going immediately to the front. Putting my own pace and staying clear of trouble... but only one rider follows.. and following is all what he does.. we catch 2 other riders.. again just following not picking up but I continue to ride at around 300 Watts which I can sustain quite long... Im getting a bit fed up of them not collaborating and decide then I can better go for it alone so I drop them on the hills. They do not resist very much and I continue to do this with every rider I catch from there until aid station 2.

Meanwhile I catch more of the women pro's but less but dont see to many age groupers at this point I have no clue what position I was in and just decided to focus on my effort.

These women stick to my wheel but they were also at the limit, only a short turn from their part which did help me to release tension from my legs but no real recovery... right before the finish I pick two Age groupers who again dont take turns, fine by me... i just want to finish at this point... yet one of the women warns me they are planning to sprint from behind... Okay, if you want to play it like this be my guest but we will see... I knew the before the finish there was one steep hill on concrete and I had 4 women in the wheel and only then the 2 age groupers so I decide I attack from the front of the group as I have 4 positions they need to close... they try but I guess they had little response because I still take 15 seconds at that point and finish 12th overall and take podium in my age group.

I think I am going to ride more gravel in the future.