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Keegan Swenson (Santa Cruz Bicycles) pushed previous recently-retired WorldTour professional Lawrence Naesen in a dash end to win the lads’s division of The Growler at Levi’s Gran Fondo, whereas Lauren De Crescenzo (LDC) soloed to victory within the ladies’s division.
The 140-mile, one-day street race was modified this yr as a professional occasion with hefty elevation achieve, greater than 13,500 toes, and a hefty prize purse, $55,000. The Growler was a part of 14th version of Levi’s GranFondo primarily based in Windsor, California, with the professional race on tough, twisting roads of Sonoma County in northern California –thought of to be ‘single monitor for street bikes’.
The highest 5 males and 5 ladies within the Growler shared the massive payout equally. There have been a flurry of entries from younger riders not competing at Redlands Bicycle Basic, proper by means of to skilled execs now in search of fame and fortune in a number of off-road collection.
Becoming a member of Swenson and Naesen on the five-rider males’s podium have been Petr Vakoc in third, Ian Boswell in fourth whereas fifth went to Griffin Easter, who edged Peter Stetina in a dash for the ultimate spot.
De Crescenzo was joined on the ladies’s podium by runner-up Lauren Stephens, Sarah Sturm in third forward of Flavia Oliveira Parks and Emily Newsom in fifth.
It wasn’t solely the riders that completed in these prime slots that had the possibility to stroll away from the race with one thing beneficial.
There was way over prize cash at stake defined occasion founder Levi Leipheimer, a former WorldTour rider and Sonoma County native who received the Amgen Tour of California 3 times earlier than he retired in 2012. He included the King Ridge climb in The Growler, because it was additionally featured within the 2016 Tour of California, and he wished to create a possibility for brand new riders, not simply veterans.
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“We had the vast majority of the strongest riders within the nation,” Leipheimer advised Cyclingnews as he mentioned the sphere of 104 women and men in The Growler.
“I hoped to create alternatives for up-and-coming younger riders to go toe-to-toe with these guys, on a stage enjoying subject, as a result of there was no group assist allowed on the right track. We had impartial help stations, impartial mechanical assist, so everybody got here into it with equal alternative.”
One of many youngest riders within the subject was 17-year-old Elouan Gardon, who had top-five finishes for Fount Biking on levels as a class 3 rider at Valley of the Solar and Tucson Bicycle Basic. He completed The Growler in 7:08:40 which was good for ninth general, Leipheimer calling him a “diamond within the tough”.
“And, you realize, I am very happy with myself and Bike Monkey for creating and form of forging a brand new approach to have a street race that borrows from the gravel format and the self-supported atmosphere that these athletes have discovered to curate for themselves, and apply that to the street.”
A majority of climbing on the course got here throughout three sections, King Ridge within the opening 45 miles, back-to-back climbs on Stewarts Level Street on the mid-points, after which the Geysers, a 15-mile stretch with pitches of 12-13%, with a steep descent to a rolling 21 miles to the end.
“Superior time out at Levi’s GranFondo! it was a lot enjoyable ripping the thin tires on some wonderful roads. Very stoked to have the ability to pull off the win after Tobin Ortenblad suffered off the entrance all day lengthy with the intention to make my day a bit simpler again within the chase group,” Swenson mentioned in an Instagram submit concerning the race and his Santa Cruz teammate.
In a single day rain soaked the course and introduced snowfall to the best peaks within the coastal hills of the area, with wintry chilly climate on race day, which Swenson politely known as “lower than ultimate situations for a motorbike race”.
Ortenblad was the primary rider to assault on the entrance and stayed away for the primary half. Naesen and Vakoč joined forces to reel again the breakaway, and the duo spent 60 miles alone collectively. Swenson was in a position to get to the entrance group using with Boswell and Easter, with Ortenblad off the again.
On the ultimate downhill to the Alexander Valley, Boswell and Swenson accelerated away, however Naesen rejoined and he broke away with Swenson for the two-rider battle to the end line, the US gravel nationwide champion profitable in 6:43:40.
The winner of her third MidSouth gravel race in March, De Crescenzo was a part of the early number of professional ladies with Stephens, Parks and Strum on the primary of three climbing sections. On the double climbing part known as the “dragon’s spine” with 70 miles to go, De Crescenzo ignited a second solo effort and this one caught to the end in a time of seven:18:50.
“The all day rain made an already epic day much more epic. I attacked on a steep pitch on the second of three climbs from a gaggle with Lauren Stephens and Flavia. For the following 80 miles, it was simply me and the open street,” De Crescenzo mentioned on Instagram.
Parks gave chase together with Stephens, whereas Sturm rode additional again with Emily Newsom. The US gravel nationwide champion was in a position to drop Parks on the ultimate climb. Sturm then discovered the again wheel of the Parks with eight miles to experience, and the 2 rode collectively till Sturm surged throughout the road for third forward of the Brazilian.
Leipheimer has already begun planning the second version of The Growler, scheduled for April 19, 2025.
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