'A team that can thrive together' - Paige Onweller and Toby Røed anchor Trek Driftless off-road team with three new teammates and a focus on US gravel races

Paige Onweller and Torbjørn 'Toby' Røed return to the Trek Driftless ‘all-surface team’ in 2026, where the duo will target repeat podium finishes overall at the Life Time Grand Prix series, in which Onweller finished third two years ago, and Røed was third last year.

A trio of versatile riders were added to the roster this year - Daxton Mock, Cécile Lejeune, and Cobe Freeburn.

Key departures included Haley Hunter Smith, the first women's champion of the Grand Prix when the series launched in 2022, and Russell Finsterwald, a three-time top-10 finisher in the series. Both move to privateer support with MAAP apparel and new equipment, Smith with Factor bikes and Finsterwald with Look bikes.

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For Onweller, the Mid South in mid-March marks a return to racing after six months of recovery from an incident in Arkansas when the driver of a car hit and injured her. The lingering effects from a concussion put a stop to her racing in the final three events of the Grand Prix, but she made the mandatory start at Big Sugar to be counted in the final standings, though she finished a distant 16th.

"I am happy to be entering my fourth year on the team and really thankful Trek has stayed with me through this recent injury. If history repeats itself, I won Big Sugar 2022 after a knee surgery that spring and in 2023, I was third at Unbound 12 weeks after ankle surgery - so we are hoping for a strong 2026 comeback season," the always optimistic Onweller told Cyclingnews.

"I'm really excited to have Cecile join the team. We are both committed to open communication and mutual respect; we've already been enjoying training together this offseason and building that relationship and collaboration.

"Brands can bring strong riders together on a team, but those riders need to be fully committed to each other with a lot of transparency - this is a lot harder to execute and is still largely rider dependent since most teams do not have performance directors. I believe Trek did a good job creating a team that can thrive together this season and I'm excited to be a part of it!"

Like Onweller, Røed has also won Big Sugar Gravel, and this year marks his third season in the Grand Prix. He transitioned from a road focus to gravel in 2024 and scored the win at The Mid South with podiums at Belgian Waffle Ride Arizona, SBT GRVL and Monsterrato that year.

Trek calls him "a pure diesel engine", and that was evident with a third-place finish at Unbound Gravel 200 and fourth at Leadville Trail 100 last year, as well as top 10s at The Traka 360, SBT GRVL and Lauf Gravel Worlds. He pulled off an unusual Traka double before Unbound, going ninth in the 360km race and then going outside the top 100 in the 200km race the next day.

"I'll do the Life Time series [again], it requires so much focus. They do have the biggest races and the most media exposure as well. It's a good place to be," Røed told Cyclingnews during the off-season, where the Norwegian spent much of his winter in Tucson, Arizona.

"Kobe and me are pretty good friends. We train in Tucson and do a little racing together. He did really well at SBT, which is awesome. He's been in the Trek pipeline for a while.

"Very excited to be three guys on Trek next year, and even more stoked to be joined by two really good friends. I think we will have a great year on the road together with Paige and Cecile."

New teammates

Born in France but living in Arizona, Lejeune raced the last two seasons with the US women's road team, the CCB p/b Levine Law Group. The 27-year-old won three of five stages to secure the GC at Oregon Trail Gravel in 2024, then had a breakout debut in the Life Time Grand Prix last year with fifth overall, boosted by fifth place in the Unbound Gravel 200.

"Having teammates to travel and race with is something I had been missing last year, and I know it’s going to be a game-changer for me," Lejeune noted on her Instagram account.

"I’m really looking forward to learning from every single team member, building something strong together, and seeing how far we can push things this year."

Mock, a 24-year-old who grew up near the Trek headquarters in Wisconsin, used to compete in mountain bike and cyclo-cross for Bear National Team as a junior and under-23 rider, earning bronze medals in U23 'cross races at US nationals and Pan-American Championships. Last year, he won the Valley of Tears Gravel in Texas.

The youngest in the group at 23 and also a former Bear National Team rider, Freeburn has won his Durango hometown race, Iron Horse Bicycle Classic, twice, and last year had a breakout season on Colorado gravel, winning Bighorn Gravel and finishing third at SBT GRVL. He also had a top 10 at Chequamegon MTB and finished 15th at Leadville Trail 100 MTB. This year, when he takes those starts again, he will be part of the Grand Prix series for the first time.

Lejeune and Mock will wear the colourful Santini kits designed by Trek. Freeburn, like Onweller and Røed, will have their own kits, while all are outfitted with Trek bikes. Look for the team to compete at The Mid South in Stillwater, Oklahoma, the elite races on Friday, March 13. Mock expects to race the week before to defend his title at Valley of Tears.