Cyclists Enjoyed the Cool Mountain Air at the Boone Gran Fondo

Top spots for Hardin and Thornton-Brooks at last weekend’s coolest ride, the SUAREZ Boone Gran Fondo in North Carolina

All photo credits: Juan Tirado @juanunodostres

Hundreds of riders converged on the laid back town of Boone, NC for the 2022 SUAREZ Boone Gran Fondo last weekend.

The rural roller-coaster roads around Boone were a ton of fun of fun for riders but quite challenging crossing the Appalachian Mountains.

A cool early start saw cyclists tackle one of three routes from the start outside series sponsor Capua Law Firm, with the 94 mile Gran Fondo packing in 8,437 feet of climbing.

Also on offer was the 57 mile Medio Fondo with 5,432 feet of climbing and the 24 mile Piccolo Fondo with 2366 feet of climbing for all abilities of cyclists.

Watauga Pioneers Mountain Bike Team helped man the 4 aid stations out on course. The routes were marked and marshalled, supported by law enforcement, safety motos, mechanic and sag vehicles.

Aid stations included a wide variety of hydration and nutrition products including Water, Heed sports drink, Soda, Hammer Gel and Bars, Bananas, Clementines, Cookies, Chips, and Fig Bars.

In the Gran Fondo, Will Hardin (Project Echelon Racing) was fastest over four timed sections with a combined time of 1h 41s, with Keith Gerarden a close second place and Owen Cole third place.

In the women’s race, Jennifer Thornton-Brooks was fastest in a combined time of 1h 8m 2s ahead of Kelly Fillnow in second place and Regan Fink in third place.

In the Medio Fondo, Jeff Brandenburg was fastest over the three timed sections with a combined time of 44m 39s, ahead of Kalib Atkins in second place and Luis Diaz in third place.

In the women’s race, Laura Calvin was fastest over the three timed sections with a combined time of 48m 57s, ahead of Nicole Blessing in second place and Shannon Moore in third place.

In the Piccolo Fondo, Jonathan Whitson was fastest over the timed section in a time of 8m 40s, ahead of Andrew Hill in second place and Kyle Atkins in third place.

In the women’s race, Jennie Rhyne Whitson was fastest over the timed section in a time of 13m 23s, ahead of Katie Howe in second place and Heather Atkins in third place.

Six team battled it out for the team prize, with First Flight Devo taking victory ahead of Boone Area Cyclists and EFRT. Owen Cole, Matthew Edwards and Will Myers all from Chapel Hill for team First Flight Devo beat Gran Fondo winner Will Hardin’s team with faster combined times.

Riders returned to a Finish Line party where they enjoyed great local food, cold beer, the chance to win fantastic raffle prizes and the podium awards.

Team Results

1^st First Flight Devo
Owen Cole, Matthew Edwards and Will Myers

2^nd Boone Area Cyclists
Will Hardin, Noah Niwinski and Justin Keiper

3^rd EFRT
Fred Stutzman, Joseph Stone and William Langston

4^th Flatlanders
5^th Clarkesville Cycling Club
6^th Jackson Spokes

94 mile Gran Fondo Winners

Custom “Race Winner” cycling kits by SUAREZ cycling were awarded to all Gran Route age group category winners

57 mile Medio Fondo Winners

24 mile Piccolo Fondo Winners

Link to 2022 Boone Gran Fondo results: https://bit.ly/3SOTGv0

Prize Raffle

The popular SUAREZ Gran Fondo National Series Raffle was after the podium awards. The Boone Gran Fondo raffle featured more than $5,000 of prizes from Series sponsors, including:

4-night Stay at Garda Bike Hotel in Italy
Wahoo ELEMNT Rival GPS Watch
Wahoo KICKR smart trainer
Lazer three helmets
Industry Nine hubset
Cane Creek components 
Swiftwick socks
Bike Flights travel vouchers
Shimano products
CTS Trainright Memberships
Jittery Joe’s Coffee
UNDRBUDR anti-chafe cream
Ride with GPS Premium Memberships

Next Up: The Golden Gran Fondo

Mark your calendar for August 28th, 2022 in Golden, CO.

Ride the same roads used in the Coors Classic and American Flyers. Climb over 10,000 feet through Colorado's Rocky Mountain Range at one the hardest Gran Fondo’s in America.

The Golden Gran Fondo will take riders on an unforgettable journey through the Rocky Mountains. It‘s earned a reputation as one of the hardest road bike rides in the USA, and for good reason. With over 10,000 feet of climbing over the 91 miles Gran Fondo course, traversing high alpine gravel roads, grades approaching 20% in some sections, and all starting at an altitude of 6,000 feet above sea level - no one should expect an easy day out!

If you want a smaller slice of the Rocky Mountains, there’s the 62 mile Medio Fondo and the 18 mile Piccolo Fondo to suit all fitness levels and abilities of riders so everyone can enjoy a super day out and compete for prizes and awards too!

Register NOW to Secure a Place!

Registration is open - but you'll need to hurry to secure a place on this epic challenge.

For more information, please visit https://www.granfondonationalseries.com/gran-fondo-golden, or click the button below to register now.

2022 SAUREZ Gran Fondo National Series Calendar

The 2022 Gran Fondo National Series includes eight events:

At Partner Events, cyclists can earn points toward the season-long Gran Fondo National Series Championship point’s competition, as well as qualify for the official USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championship event.

Registration is now open for all Series events!